KARA dubbed Japan’s #1 Rookie Artist for 2010

KARA has made magnificent achievements in 2010 since their debut into Japan this year, and it’s being reflected by their ‘all-kill‘ on various album, singles, and mobile annual charts as 2010’s #1 rookie artist, and even placing in the top 10 in charts for all of Japanese artists.

On December 20th, Oricon had announced through their 2010 Annual Charts that KARA was this year’s #1 rookies in album sales. “KARA, who received great interest during the debut with their ‘butt dance’, released eight albums including Japanese singles for ‘Jumping’ and ‘Mister’, one Korean album, and a DVD, and gained a revenue of $15 million USD,” said Oricon.

According to Oricon, KARA sold 493,000 units to gain $15 million USD, which was closely followed bySNSD in 2nd place. A 3rd ranked Japanese rookie artist sold 83,000 units and gained a revenue of $1.5 million USD, showing a 10X difference in revenue in comparison with KARA. Despite KARA’s first official album, ‘Girls Talk‘, being in Korean, the group still managed to sell 200,000 units in one month, displaying KARA’s increasing status in the Japanese market.

Not only is KARA #1 on album sales sites, but they also ranked the #1 best rookie artists on the Japanese mobile site, Rekochoku, for which they placed first in almost every single category in their annual charts, including bell sound downloads and music videos. In addition, KARA was also picked in the top 5 in a poll for ‘2010’s Best MVP Artists‘, chosen directly by the general public.

On the annual sales charts for iTunes Japan that was announced on December 9th, KARA’s ‘Mister’ was placed #14, which was the highest rank out of all the rookie artists that debuted this year.

But it doesn’t finish there. USEN, Japan’s biggest cable TV company, recently released their overall chart for 2010, and KARA’s debut single, “Mister”, was ranked in the top 20 at #18. USEN’s charts determine which were the biggest tracks of the year based on the number of times a track is requested by listeners and broadcasted.

Aside from official results from online charts, KARA’s popularity has hit the jackpot amongst the general public as well. KARA were recently appointed the models for Japan’s biggest mobile news agency, au, and will take the main roles for a public TV drama to begin airing next year in January. In addition, KARA will soon be officially announced for one of Japan’s famous gaming companies. To top it off, KARA’s ‘Mister’ was ranked #1 on Japan’s Karaoke charts for November and December.

Junsu of JYJ thinks of 4Minute as one of the most promising singers

JYJ, whose members are Jaejoong, Yuchun and Junsu had just an interview with regards to their feelings and opinions upon releasing their recent single "Ayy Girl" as well as with some of their views with regards to doing their own promotions without the other 2 members of DBSK.

However, the most amazing thing that was brought up during this interview is when each of the members were asked to pick an idol group or a soloist who they think is one of the Most Promising Singers at the moment. Surprisingly, the group's new maknae, Junsu, chose 4Minute as his answer. On the other hand, Jaejoon picked Supernova while Yuchun chose MATE.

It is amazing how 4Minute continues to shine and be recognized by other idols despite of their long absence in Korea. Let us hope for more people to love and recognize our girls' skills and abilities.

4Minute released OST for "It's Ok, Daddy's Daughter"

It has been announced that Nam Jihyun, together with the other members of 4Minute will be releasing an OST for the drama known as, "It's Ok, Daddy's Daughter." The waiting is now over for you can freely listen to the song as much as you want!

The song's official title is "One Thing" which also showcases a fun and lovely melody reflecting the aura and story of the drama itself.

KARA reveals their company's money making scheme!

On a recent Japanese show that Kara was on, they revealed certain trainees of DSP Media.

That day, Kara revealed their practice room while some trainees were practicing. Kara introduced them as the company's trainees, and they all greeted the camera.

Netizens reactions included "We're curious what sort of team it'll be", "Could they be preparing a 7-member male group?", "Wish we could see more", "Hope they debut soon."

KARA is dominating Japan some more!

Whether it's record sales or mobile sales, Kara achieved an electrifying all-kill in Japan music charts. It was recently revealed that Kara achieved an all-kill on Japan annual charts for #1 rookie. Based on all the sales, Kara was ranked the #1 newcomer and also was in the top 10 amongst all singers for the year.

On Dec 20th, Oricon revealed that Kara's music sales were #1 amongst newcomers this year. "Debuting in August of this year with the hip dance, Kara's 2 singles, Mister and Jumping>, Korean album and first full-length album, plus DVDs - totaling 8 items, sold 493,000 copies total and garnered 13 hundred million Yen." This was 10 times more than other rookies in 2010. They appear to be unrivaled in the newcomer market. Furthermore Kara's first full-length album Girls' Talk is nearing the 200k mark within one month, truly securing their place in the industry.

In addition to record sales, Kara has also been doing well in mobile downloads. Japan's mobile site Recochoku recently selected Kara as this year's top rookies, since they were #1 on charts such as ringtone downloads and music video. Kara was also voted as #5 on this year's MVP artists poll.

On Dec 9th, Japan's iTunes chart revealed that Mister was #14 on its annual chart. It's the highest rank out of the rookies this year.

In addition, Kara did well in USEN's rookie rankings. USEN recently revealed that Mister was ranked #18 for the year. USEN looks at hit song rankings, song requests and broadcasts to measure their overall ranking.

In truth, Kara hardly seems like rookies in the Japanese music industry. Kara is already receiving top-star level treatment in Japan with a very promising future. There are also rumors that broadcasting companies and commercials are all competing to get Kara on their show or advertisement.

Aside from just these numbers, public sentiment also reflects an explosive level of popularity. Japan's biggest mobile phone has selected Kara to be the main characters in a drama that will be aired in January to launch their phone model "au." There are also plans for Kara to be the main characters in a game that is being created by a famous game company. Japan's Karaoke charts have Kara's Mister ranked as the #1 song for the months of Nov and Dec, revealing Kara's popularity potential.

4minute releases ‘One Thing’ for “It’s Okay, Daddy’s Daughter” OST

4minute’s Nam Ji Hyun plays the role of cute and preppy ‘Shin Sun Hae’ in SBS’s drama “It’s Okay, Daddy’s Daughter.” She recently recruited her fellow 4minute members to sing the track titled“One Thing” for the OST (soundtrack) and the track was just released on the various Korean Music portals.

The song is an emotional song with a sweet melody and loving lyrics. It also features Hyuna’s patented rap skills and is a wonderful song to listen to.

Check out the track below and remember to support the artist(s) by purchasing the music.

KARA’s Kang Jiyoung is a fan of Super Junior’s Heechul?

On December 21st, Super Junior’s Heechul (and his new hairstyle!) uploaded a photo he took withKARA’s Kang Jiyoung onto his Twitter.

Fans have been literally laughing out loud as they looked at their “Heenim” posing every bit like a celebrity, while Jiyoung looked like an adoring fan. The impression deepens when you see Heechul’s stoic expression and compare it to Jiyoung’s gleeful one.

Netizens wrote, ‘Omona, Hee-nim’s celebrity pose… doesn’t Jiyoung feels like a fan?’, ‘Jiyoung’s pose looks like an admiration pose… Please smile, Hee-nim’, and ‘Chic celebrity and a lively fan.’

Super Junior’s Shindong & KARA’s Gyuri to voice-act for “Alpha & Omega”

Super Junior’s Shindong and KARA’s Gyuri will be lending their voices for the animated movie, “Alpha & Omega“.

The two have been assigned the leading roles of ‘Humphrey’ and ‘Kate’. Shindong will use his vast variety show experience to bring out the comedic personality of ‘Humphrey’. He should feel fairly comfortable with this new role, since he’s voice-acted before as ’Theodore’ from “Alvin and the Chipmunks.”

Gyuri, who’s referred to herself many times as a ‘goddess’, will be using her own personality as the background for Kate’s luxurious and confident manner of speech, which is much like her own already.

The movie will be released on February 24th, 2011. We love how the two are getting into character already with their wolf mitts!

Victoria reveals her pre-debut photos and nickname on ‘Strong Heart’

f(x)’s Victoria showed off her flexibility once more on SBS’s “Strong Heart” by bending her finger back 180 degrees, without much difficulty to the amazement of the studio guests.

On the December 21st episode, Victoria revealed, “Not only my body, but my fingers are flexible as well.“ She then pulled back a single finger to meet the back of her hand, and shocked the entire studio.

She continued, “Now, I’ll show a scene from The Matrix,” and performed the infamous ‘bullet-dodge’ move which looked way more polished!

Victoria also revealed one of her pre-debut photos from her Beijing Dance Academy years, the alma mater of international star Zhang Ziyi. She even appeared in the actress’ documentary!

Footage of the documentary was revealed on “Strong Heart”, which featured Victoria in her teens with minimal make-up. The studio immediately exclaimed over her natural beauty, leading Victoria to shyly comment, “I was young back then.”

She also confessed about having to make a tough decision back then, “I had to choose between going to Korea, or staying in China and attending a dance college.”

Victoria was also later complimented by MC Kang Ho Dong for her fluent Korean skills, leading her to reveal the secret behind her mastering of the language. She acted out a scene from a cartoon show named “Pororo” and commented, “‘Pororo’ was my secret tutor.”

While on the topic of her pre-debut, Victoria’s pre-debut nickname was also revealed: she was said to have been the ’second Lee Na Young‘.

Super Junior’s Lee Teuk confirmed, “When Victoria was picked up by SM Entertainment, there was a rumor going around that a second Lee Na Young was coming. Victoria’s real name is Song Qian, and that name’s kind of hard to promote in Korea with. Our CEO was always like, ‘Our Song Qian can be victorious!’ and consequently named her Victoria.”

Onew is thankful towards T-ara’s Boram for liking him

Onew expressed his thankful feelings towards T-ara’s Boram on an episode of KBS 2TV’s “Nocturnal.”

The episode focused the members of the “Nocturnal” team helping to draw a mural on a dirty wall of an elementary school, and T-ara and IU made surprise visits as guests and joined the team to help out.

The MCs were more than happy with the extra help and provided them with snacks such as ddukboki (hot rice cakes) and fish cakes.

During the meal, Shin Dong Yeob and Yoon Jong Shin suggested Onew feed the snacks to the female celebrity (that was present) he has the most interest in. Without hesitation, Onew declared that he “had a person he’s always wanted to give to,” surprising the MCs.

The target of his affections turned out to be Boram, leading to a ‘rose colored’ atmosphere as Boram shyed away while the T-ara members revealed, “Boram has always been a hardcore fan of Onew.”

Onew answered, “I already knew that she was my fan through reading articles. I’ve always wanted to thank her for saying that she likes me.”

Victoria can fold herself 180 degrees backwards

On SBS "Strong heart" aired on 21st, Victoria folded herself backwards 180 degrees and surprised everyone.

She also added "I can also fold my finger too" and she folded her finger backwards until it touched her hand. She also showed the famous scene from the movie "Matrix" as if she was avoiding bullets flying at her.

Kara - 1st Girl Group To Reach "Platinum" Status - Explosive Popularity

Kara is the first Korean girl group to reach "Platinum" status for an album in Japan.

Recently Japan's record hubs disclosed that Kara's debut song has reached platinum status in downloads. This year's K-pop boom in Korea has led to Kara being the first Korean girl group to reach this status.

Platinum status is reached after hitting 250,000 in sales. This reflects how big of a hit was in the mobile market. The song sells for about 4,000 Korean Won, which is truly impressive.

In the album department, Kara's first full-length album "Girls' Talk" also has a potential of reaching platinum status. Oricon chart has its sales at about 180,000 within the first month, and they project that within the first half of 2011, the album should be able to reach platinum status.

Aside from , Kara's 2nd single has had over 100,000 downloads and has achieved gold status.