F.T. Island promotes their new album with video truck event

F.T. Island is returning soon with their 4th album, “I Wish“, as they revealed, “On September 10th, the track and full music video for ‘I Wish’ will officially be released on several online sites. ‘I Wish’ is part of the 4th album ‘Five Treasure Box‘“.

FNC Entertainment had previously revealed details from the jacket cover shoot the boys had done for their new album, explaining the meaning of ‘Five Treasure Box’, relating the title to the treasures of the boys.

This album will be the first full-length album F.T. Island has released in 3 years. Each member participated in composing and writing lyrics for the album, and has been revealed to be the album in which the members participated the most so far.

The teaser for ‘I Wish’ was revealed on September 6th, displaying a more mature image for the five members, attracting much attention from fans.

The teaser was played on repeat on an F.T. Island shrink-wrapped van. The van started in Seoul on September 6th and went around promoting their return and new album. Fans who take pictures of the van and mention F.T. Island’s official fanclub on Twitter are to receive an autographed CD.

F.T. Island will be making their TV comeback on Mnet‘s ‘M! Countdown‘ on September 13th!

Source + Image: TV Report via Naver

F.T. Island reveals their ‘treasures’ through jacket photos

F.T. Island‘s jacket photos for their upcoming 4th full-length album is receiving much attention as it shows the ‘treasures’ of each member.

The band will be releasing their title track, “I Wish“, as well as the full music video on various music sites on the 10th. Just like the title of their upcoming album, ‘Five Treasure Box‘, the group included several personal items they treasure the most in the jacket photos.

Their agency, FNC Entertainment, revealed, “For the jacket photo shoot, leader / guitarist Jonghun brought his personal exercising weights like dumbbells and barbells. Vocalist Hongki brought his three dogs including the dog house and toys, showing his great love for his pets. Bassist Jaejin brought magazines, chips, and comic books, whereas drummer Minhwan came with his TV and teddy bear. Lastly, guitarist Seunghyun brought his instrument and headset to the photo shoot.”

F.T. Island is scheduled to release their new album on the 10th and will be making their first comeback stage on the September 13th broadcast of Mnet‘s ‘M! Countdown‘.

Source & Image: Star Today via Nate

’2012 Korean Music Wave Festival’ in Incheon canceled + fans of Super Junior’s Leeteuk concerned

The 4th annual ‘2012 ‘Korean Music Wave Festival‘, which was scheduled to take place on September 15th at the World Cup Stadium in Incheon, has unfortunately been canceled.

HH Company, the event’s organizer, posted the announcement and apology onto the Korean Wave Festival’s official website stating the cancellation was due to expenses. The sudden cancellation has left many fans angered and disappointed as it would have invited numerous well-known idol groups such as KARA, Super Junior, F.T. Island, B.A.P, ZE:A, Boyfriend, Girl’s Day, Rainbow, A Pink, and more.

Fans of Super Junior’s Leeteuk, in particular, have expressed their concern as this event would have been Leeteuk’s last stage performance before enlisting in the military later this year.

One fan commented, “I heard Leeteuk prepared a lot for this as it would probably be his last stage performance before enlisting. This is disappointing.” Another wrote, “We won’t be able to see Leeteuk for the next two years. I’m shocked by the cancellation.”

Aside from fans of Super Junior, other fandoms expressed their disappointment saying, “If it was going to be like this, you guys shouldn’t have announced the event to begin with” and “Think about everybody who had been waiting for the concert to take place. Please just continue with the concert.”

HH Company will be issuing refunds to those who purchased tickets.

Source: StarIn via Naver

F.T. Island’s Hongki shows his love for tvN’s ‘Reply 1997′

Like many viewers of tvN‘s ‘Reply 1997‘, F.T. Island‘s Hongki desperately asked for a second season of the drama via his Twitter account.

The singer tweeted on September 7th, “Reply Reply! Ahh it’s so much fun! I want to be on the show toooooo. Season 2! Do it do it!!!!!“, proving his love for the show.

Upon seeing the tweet, netizens commented, “The whole country is in love with ‘Reply’”, “‘Reply 1997′, don’t end“, “Season 2 please! Hongki can be in it, let’s go for a second season!“, clearly agreeing with the singer.

In addition to Honki, singer Kim Dong Ryul also confessed his love for the show. He posted on his Facebook account, “I can’t help but like a drama that markets to the past. The small details of the actors and production crew make it so great. I feel nostalgic on Tuesday nights“.

‘Reply 1997′ currently holds the highest viewer ratings during its time slot on Tuesday nights and has been receiving much love and attention as the final two episodes draw near.

Source & Image: Hankook Ilbo via Nate

F.T. Island’s Hongki becomes new ‘M! Countdown’ MC

With news of Tony An leaving his MC position on Mnet‘s ‘M! Countdown‘ after one year, it has been revealed that F.T. Island‘s Hongki is taking over as the new host!

On August 27th, PD Jung Yoo Jin of ‘M! Countdown’ revealed, “In addition to the reorganization of the program, Lee Hongki has been appointed as the new MC  beginning on August 30th.”

Producers of the program explained, “Lee Hongki holds the qualities of being an outstanding host with his volubility and wit. In particular, he is fluent in Japanese and is very popular overseas, therefore we have selected him as the most suitable to host the global music chart show, ‘M! Countdown’.”

Check out Hongki’s first appearance as MC on this week’s ’M! Countdown’!

Source & Image: OSEN via Nate

F.T. Island’s Hongki shocks ‘GO Show’ viewers

F.T. Island‘s Hongki revealed why “wearing a bra” comes up when searching his name on a popular search engine.

On the August 24th broadcast of SBS’ ‘GO Show‘, MC Go Hyung Jung asked Hongki, “Why does wearing a bra come up when we search your name?” Hongki answered, “When I was younger, female fans would send me underwear. Not new underwear, but underwear that they used to wear,” shocking the audience.

He then added, “Out of curiosity, my members and I tried it on. Girls are probably uncomfortable. It was too tight,” causing the crowd to roar with laughter.

On this week’s ‘GO Show’, powerful vocalists such as Lim Jae Beom and Bobby Kim as well as F.T. Island’s Hongki told their personal stories regarding rumors that have come up throughout their careers.

Source & Photo: Star News via Nate

F.T. Island’s Seunghyun finishes up his last domestic performance in musical ‘Jack the Ripper’

F.T. Island‘s Seunghyun has successfully wrapped up promotions for his debut musical, ‘Jack the Ripper‘, in Korea.

On August 23rd, Seunghyun performed for the final time in Korea to a crowd of domestic and international fans that had gathered to see him put on his last show. Even before the show had begun, fans swarmed the theater, busily taking pictures of posters before the curtains rose.

Seunghyun received the attention of many when he was cast for the role of the leading character ‘Daniel’, especially for being one of the youngest to play the role. From the first performance to his last, Seunghyun showed stable acting and live singing skills as well as perfect delivery of his lines, earning the praise of the media. Through ‘Jack the Ripper’, Seunghyun was able to solidify a position for himself as a musical actor.

Following the conclusion, he stated, “Thank you for saying so much good things despite it being my debut musical. I tried my best to show a new side of me as a musical actor and not a singer, and I feel that I learned a lot of new things from this experience musically.”

‘Jack the Ripper’ will go on to Japan to run from September 19th to October 2nd.

Source + Photos: Chosun via Naver

Super Junior, KARA, F.T. Island, B.A.P, and more to perform at the 4th annual Incheon ‘Korean Music Wave’

The line-up for the 4th annual Incheon ‘Korean Music Wave‘ has been revealed!

The ‘Korean Music Wave’ will be held on September 15th at the Incheon World Cup Stadium. The artists scheduled to perform are Super Junior, KARA, F.T. Island, Wooyoung, TEEN TOP, 4minute, A Pink, ZE:A, Rainbow, Girl’s Day, and B.A.P.

The HH Company representative Lee Hyuk Jae stated, “We are glad to announce the 4th year of the Incheon ’Korean Music Wave’. It is a festival that not only involves music, but combines Korea’s music and culture together in one spot. Through this festival we can also display Incheon as not just a regular city, but one that can be associated with the Korean culture.”

Source + image: Nate

F.T. Island’s Jonghoon gets creative on Twitter

F.T. Island‘s leader and guitarist, Jonghoon, shared a unique photo collage, consisting a total of 12 selcas which made the shape of one big heart.

On July 13th, Jonghoon shared the photo collage (below) together with a short message “Heart :)” on his Twitter:

Heart:) twitter.com/FtGtJH/status/…

— JongHoon/フニ様 (@FtGtJH) July 13, 2012

The photo collage is similar to what KARA‘s Jiyoung did last month. Upon seeing Jonghoon’s creative photo, fans left comments like, “I love all 12 of the selcas!“, “You must be very bored“, and “I failed when I tried to do the same thing.”

Source: Jonghoon’s Twitter

Tip: tessa

Seol Hyun from F.T. Island’s “Severely” MV confirmed to be a member of FNC’s new girl group

With the news of FNC Entertainment preparing to debut its first girl group, the mysterious girl who was in F.T. Island‘s MV for “Severely” is receiving attention, once again.

The girl, who’s name is Seol Hyun, was nicknamed ‘Lee Hong Ki‘s girl’ due to her lead role as Lee Hong Ki’s love interest in the MV. With her tall height and beautiful looks, Seol Hyun is said to be a former model for school uniforms and a popular ulzzang.

FNC Entertainment confirmed Seol Hyun as an upcoming member stating, “It’s true that Seol Hyun is one of the members for the girl group. We’re planning on opening an official teaser website on July 13th at 2PM (KST), so please anticipate it.”

Source: The Star Chosun

Tip: S.Lee

FNC Entertainment preparing to debut its new “7+1″ girl group

FNC Entertainment, home to F.T. Island, CNBLUE, Juniel, and more, is gearing up to finally debut its new girl group.

A representative of the agency revealed, “We will be revealing our rookie girl group through the teaser website on July 13th and the group will officially begin their activities. The team is a 7+1 member girl group, so please show lots of interest.”

As F.T. Island, CNBLUE, and Juniel are all known for their talent and individual colors, many are now highly anticipating the debut of FNC Entertainment’s first girl group, curious to know about the group’s musical flavor as well as their concept.

Meanwhile, FNC Entertainment’s rookie soloist Juniel is rapidly gaining an enormous amount of popularity for her debut track “Illa Illa“.

We aren’t really sure what “7+1″ means, is it the name, the number of members?  Hopefully, the upcoming teasers will provide some clues. Until then, tell us what your thought on a 7+1 member girl group in the comments below.

Source & Image: Herald News via Naver

F.T. Island’s Hongki combines sports & music for in ‘Dazed & Confused’

F.T. Island‘s Hongki has participated in a new London Olympics-themed pictorial for ‘Dazed & Confused‘ magazine!

To celebrate the London Olympics, the pictorial created its theme based on the idea of “an olympics of musicians” featuring Hongki. By utilizing shocking hair styles and punky looks, stylists combined elements from both music and sports to create an Olympics-inspired vibe.

Hongki has been known for making passes on fashion magazine pictorials, but he revealed that he couldn’t resist the appeal of this one for its creative combination of London rock band styles and sports. Thus, this pictorial marked his first solo photoshoot since his debut under F.T. Island.

The singer proved his passion for the craft by specially preparing props and accessories that he felt fit the concept.

Additional images and an interview can be found in the July edition of ‘Dazed & Confused’ magazine.

Source + Photos: TV Daily

Tip: hongkisbiased

F.T. Island successfully concludes Thai concert ‘Play! F.T. Island in Bangkok’

F.T. Island has successfully concluded their Thai concert!

On June 9th, the boys performed to a crowd of 4,500 screaming fans for their ‘Play! F.T. Island in Bangkok‘ concert. As it was held just two days after their fifth anniversary, fans had prepared a variety of events to celebrate with the boys.

Their press conference the day before was visited by hundreds of fans to welcome the boys once again. As expected of idols that managed to sell out such a large venue, the boys exhibited perfect stage manner and charisma, captivating the audience immediately.

Once they kicked off with “Will You Be My Girlfriend“, Thai fans held up red paper cut out into hearts and sang along from beginning to end. For their performance of “I Confess“, fans prepared a surprise event for the boys by bringing out yellow paper planes and flying them to the stage. During “Primadonna“, fans touched the boys’ hearts by holding up yellow signs with the phrase ‘F.T. Daebak’ written on them.

F.T. Island will be continuing their Asia tour to Hong Kong in July while simultaneously kicking off their Japanese nationwide tour, ‘F.T. Island Summer Tour 2012 ~RUN!RUN!RUN!~‘.

Source + Photos: SBS via Naver

F.T. Island’s ’20 (Twenty)’ album sales break record in Japan

F.T. Island recently broke the record in Japan for the most number of albums sold in the first week with their second Japanese album, ‘20 (Twenty)‘.

On May 16, F.T. Island was beat out by Japanese rock band Mr. Children for the 1st and 2nd spots on the Oricon Daily Album Chart, coming out in 3rd place.

However, F.T. Island was able to reach #1 on the Album Sales Chart on the 21st by selling 41,726 copies in the first week of its release.

The band stated, “The production for this album overlapped with our Korean promotions so we were tight on recording time, but we made sure to stop and interpret every part of the lyrics because it’s important that we deliver the proper emotions.”

The title track, “STAY“, was produced and written by member Jonghun, which added more meaning to the album.

Congratulations, F.T. Island!

Source + Image: Herald Biz via Naver

F.T. Island to hold their biggest Japanese tour this summer

F.T. Island will be kicking off their four city Japanese tour, ‘F.T. Island Summer Tour 2012 – Run! Run! Run!‘, this summer!

Starting June 24th through July 8th, the boys will be traveling through Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka to hold a total of five concerts for a 60,000 member audience. This is their biggest tour to date since their major Japanese debut in 2010.

Considering their past successes like their first studio album, ‘Five Treasure Island‘, selling 37,000 copies in its first week and topping the Oricon weekly chart, as well as their Budokan live concert selling out in two minutes, their summer tour is surely to be a hit.

Ahead of their summer tour, F.T. Island will also be releasing their second album, ‘Twenty‘, on May 16th.

Source + Photos: Joongang via Naver