A few days ago, the details for KARA’s new Japanese single, “Go Go Summer!“, were unveiled, and now the audio has emerged!
There’ll be four versions available – three limited editions and of course, a regular edition. ‘Limited Edition A’ is a CD+DVD, ‘Limited Edition B’ comes with a photobook, and ‘Limited Edition C’ will have an bonus track enclosed.
“Go Go Summer!” will be released on June 29th, but in the meantime, check out the radio rip below!
Source: allkpop
2 Juni:
There’ll be four versions available – three limited editions and of course, a regular edition. ‘Limited Edition A’ is a CD+DVD, ‘Limited Edition B’ comes with a photobook, and ‘Limited Edition C’ will have an bonus track enclosed.
“Go Go Summer!” will be released on June 29th, but it’s likely that we’ll be able to hear a radio rip fairly soon.
< CD Track List >
1. GO GO Summer！(「LG Electronics Optimus Bright」CM Theme Song)
2. Girls Be Ambitious! ( Dariya「Palty」 CM Tie-Up Song）
3. GO GO Summer！(Instrumental)
4. Girls Be Ambitious! (Instrumental)
5. To Me (Bonus track for Limited Edition Track C only!)
===
< DVD Track List >
01.「GO GO Summer! 」Music Clip
02.「GO GO Summer! (Dance Shot Ver.)」Music Clip
03.「GO GO サマー！」Music Clip (Behind-the-scenes)
===
Source + Images: Official Japanese KARA fanclub site via allkpop
30 Mei:
Girl group KARA performed their first Korean stage since the contract dispute with their agency.
On May 28th at the Seoul Sangam World Cup Stadium in Seoul, all five members of KARA stood together on stage at the “2011 Dream Concert“.
After their performance, members revealed their feelings about their first Korean comeback stage through their personal Twitter accounts.
—
First, Gyuri tweeted, “So touched… Thank you so much to all my people who cheered us on. I will continue to put in effort to become a great singer.”
Also, Nicole wrote, “I got to stand on stage for the first time in almost 6 months, I felt the meaning of performing, and I was touched by the many people who came.” She added, “I am so happy that we get to sing and perform in front of a large audience again, and thank you so much for trusting and loving us… We will try even harder. I love you. Kamilia.”
Hara, who was also an MC for the concert, tweeted, “Kamilia, did you all get home safely? Get home safely~ sleep in tomorrow! Everyone! Thank you so much for coming today, I kept an eye on all of you from afar and felt so proud! Sleep well! Muah~”
Seungyeon tweeted, “I love you.”
Lastly, Jiyoung wrote, “Through my eyes, I only saw the pearl peach colored balloons, and with my ears, I only heard the voices of our Kamilia. Thank you so much. I really didn’t think that so many people would come… let’s last together until the end and enjoy ourselves! I love you, my people! Ah~ I feel awesome!! Yeah~♥”
25 Mei
KARA will be returning to the Korean music scene in the fall.
According to DSP Media, KARA plans to greet their Korean fans in September with a new album. If the album is released as scheduled, it will be their first Korean album in 10 months, following after their 4th mini album, “Jumping“.
On May 24th, a DSP representative revealed,
“Though it might change due to album activities in Japan, we plan to release an album in September or October. In order to repay fans for having made them worry, KARA will return with an upgraded image. Currently, the members are continuing to receive vocal lessons and dance practice in order to improve themselves, even amidst their solo schedules. In particular, KARA has matured due to their experiences during their Japanese activities.“Meanwhile, KARA will be performing at the “2011 Dream Concert“. This will mark their first Korean performance together since their lawsuit controversy from January. A DSP Media representative stated,
“In order to prepare a special performance, they’ve made a new remix of their song and have changed the choreography as well. They are preparing for the ‘Dream Concert’ performance with nervousness and excitement.“KARA will be releasing their 3rd Japanese single in late June and will be leaving for previously-arranged promotions in early June. Filming for the music video have already been filming Korea and Thailand.
Source: DongA via allkpop
14 Mei:
Having kicked off group activities yesterday, the KARA girls continued about their busy schedule as they were spotted at Incheon International Airport on the evening of May 13th.
The girls’ destination was Phuket, Thailand where they will participate in their new music video shoot for their Japan promotions and marked their first international schedule after resolving a contract dispute.
The girls dressed in chic summer fashion were spotted looking relaxed and having bright smiles.
Girl group KARA has finally revived their group activities with all five members!
On May 12th, KARA guested on SBS’s variety program, “Strong Heart“, and announced their comeback.
An official of DSP Media, KARA’s agency, stated, “KARA have resumed television activities through ’Strong Heart’. This is the first activity where all five members are together.”
As stated, it’s the first public appearance of all five members since they concluded their dispute with their agency. Consequently, the public is very interested to hear the stories the girls will be sharing during their “Strong Heart” appearance, especially because it’s being rumored that KARA plans to truthfully reveal the experiences the conflict gave them.
KARA also held a fan meeting at E Mart (located in Sungdong-gu, Sungsu-dong Seoul) on the afternoon of May 12th. And in continuation with their television appearance, KARA will meet their fans through a fan meeting in June. On June 11th at 6pm, at the Jamsil Gymnasium in Seoul, KARA is planning to have their second official Korean fan meeting titled, “What We Would Like to Say Now…”
1 Mei:The three members of KARA and DSP Media’s agreement: “Existing contract is still intact, domestic activities are still shaky.”
Recently, allkpop reported that the three members of KARA and DSP Media came to a dramatic agreement.
On April 30th, KBS’s “Live Entertainment Weekly” reported on the news of the reunited KARA after the court hearing with their agency on the 28th. On that day, a press release was given to announce that KARA will be active again.
Through a phone interview with Entertainment Weekly, an official from KARA stated, “There was a lot of dialogue and everyone put in lots of effort to come to an agreement: this didn’t occur from a specific turning point. We had many discussions about how the five members of KARA will continue in their activities.”
They continued, “Currently, they have finished recording their album and photoshoot. Now, they just have to finish filming for their music video in the beginning of May. The time span for their domestic activities is still undecided.”
Seungyeon’s father also stated, “Both sides compromised to come to a solution. The girls have to take care of their image, but they probably had a hard time holding up during the negotiations. I would like them to continue well in their future activities.
KARA has put aside their differences and have come to a dramatic agreement, and this act of maturity has drawn the attention of many people.
Source: Newsen via Nate via allkpop
KARA fans can add more good news to their recent sigh of relief after hearing about the group and DSP Mediacoming to an agreement. All 5 members came together yesterday for the first time in a month for their album jacket photo shoot in Japan.
A representative stated, “All 5 members are together. The staff who has always been with them is overseeing the photo shoot. Thankfully, the atmosphere is okay. Though there are some difficulties, the members seem like they’ll be able to be harmonious together.”
The members will also be getting together early May to shoot their next music video.
28 April:KARA’s Nicole, Seungyeon, and Jiyoung have officially reached a compromise with DSP Mediatoday, finally putting an end to their months-long lawsuit.
On April 28th, a representative of the industry spoke through SPN and stated, “Under the arbitration ofTae Jin Ah, the lawyers of KARA’s three members and DSP Media have reached a final compromise.”
Tae Jin Ah said, “I have received signatures agreeing to a compromise from both parties; please congratulate this achievement. I would like to thank all of the fans that have worried over the situation.”
DSP Media announced, “All disputes between DSP Media and KARA’s three members have been resolved, and we have all reached a compromise where KARA will be able to continue promoting as five.”
They continued, “We discussed mainly about KARA’s future, and an agreement was reached where the three would drop their lawsuit without any conditions. We would like to thank our fans for supporting the girls without change, and promise to work hard to show improvement.”
15 April:With the lawsuit between DSP Media and KARA’s Seungyeon, Nicole, and Jiyoung unresolved, the trio has revealed that they will still be taking part in the group’s next Japanese single.The trio weren’t present for the first recording session on April 14th, however, they did confirm that they would participate after a compromise has been reached.
On the 15th, a representative of the three KARA girls trio spoke with OSEN and revealed, “The reason the girls did not go to the recording on the 14th was because they wanted to resolve the outstanding issues before they begin, which is why we postponed the date to the 26th. They did not mean that they would not be taking part in the recording session at all.”
He continued, “On the 14th, we sent a document of agreement and are still waiting for a response. We feel like a decision will be made within the next week. Overall, a lot of the differences in opinions between both parties are being worked out, with only one or two matters left to discuss. We’re all hoping that this will go well.”
The representative concluded, “Should this work out, we will cancel the lawsuit and the girls will return to DSP Media to work on their next Japanese album for June, in addition to other Korean schedules. The compromise is taking a considerable amount of time, which is quite frustrating, but we hope that everything goes well.”
12 April:Via tokyohive:Just hours after it was revealed that KARA had been breaking even more records for foreign female artists in Japan, and less than a week after revealing their Dance Version and BTS to “Jet Coaster Love“, KARA has revealed the PV to “Ima Okuritai, Arigatou“, the B-side track on the “Jet Coaster Love” single and used as the ending theme song for Kara’s Japanese drama URAKARA.
Check out the PV below!
Via tokyohive:
Since their debut in Japan last August, KARA’s latest single “Jet Coaster Love” has proven to be the most popular as the single has given them their best sales, selling 123,000 copies in it’s first week. The high sales volume has also put KARA at the number one spot on Oricon’s 4/18 Weekly Single Ranking.
This is the first time a foreign female group has had a number one ranking in it’s first week of release since the creation of the Oricon Single Ranking back in January 1968, so it has been 43 years and 4 months!
“Jet Coaster Love” has sold twice the amount of their previous single “Jumping”, which was released during their break-up crisis turmoil last November, selling 55,000 copies in its first week.
KARA was selected as the number one newcomer this year and “Jet Coaster Love” is their first number one in both the weekly single and album rankings. Their first single “Mister” and second single “Jumping” both ranked at #5, while their albums “KARA BEST 2007-2010” and “Girl’s Talk” both ranked #2.
The last time a foreign female artist has placed #1 on the weekly singles ranking was 6 years ago whenBoA’s “DO THE MOTION” reached #1 on the 4/11 2005 ranking. The last time a foreign female group placed number one, was The Nolans’s “Dancing Sister” single on the 11/17 1980 weekly ranking, which became number one in its 16th week; it’s been 30 years and 5 months.
KARA also left a comment, “Thanks to all of you, “Jet Coaster Love” has become #1. As KARA, we will continue to do our best to cheer everyone up in the future. And, we hope that everything can be restored even just one day sooner”.
“Jet Coaster Love” is KARA’s first single of 2011. It was originally supposed to be released on March 23rd, but was postponed due to the Great Tohoku Earthquake. In order to help out the area affected by the disaster, KARA has decided to donate all proceeds from this single (CD and digitally) to relief efforts.
8 April:KARA has once again reached the #1 spot on the Oricon Chart.
According to Japan’s Oricon Daily Singles Chart for April 7th, KARA’s third single, “Jet Coaster Love“, sold a whopping 28,643 copies on the second day of it’s release – bringing it up to 1st place. On it’s release day on April 6th, KARA instantly appeared on the chart at the #2 position. It was revealed that on the 6th, “Jet Coaster Love” sold 47,810 copies, but an ‘armed ambush’ by SDN48 – who ended up selling about 2,000 more copies – was the reason why KARA placed 2nd instead of 1st. However, on the 7th, KARA reached the #1 position, clearly showing their popularity in Japan. The #2 rank for April 7th went to Tsuyoshi Domoto (22,568 copies) and SDN48 fell from 1st all the way down to 6th.
KARA has already occupied the #1 spot several times on the Oricon daily charts including their first album, “Girl’s Story“, which has sold over 400,000 copies to date. They have also ranked #1 on the weekly DVD charts for their music video collection, “KARA BEST CLIP“.
Furthermore, unless there is an upset brewing, KARA is placed in position to claim the #1 spot on the officially recognized Oricon Weekly Singles Chart. Because of the earthquake, the group was unable to have a proper promotional cycle, and the release date of the single was delayed from March 14th back to April 6th. The fact that KARA has been so successful, despite all of the circumstances, is somewhat astounding.
KARA’s #1 ranking in both the single and album categories is a great feat. The only other Korean artists who have been able to receive this high honor are BoA and TVXQ. Also, this is the first record from the current Hallyu girl group frenzy lineup.
6 April:Girl group KARA has just unveiled another version of their MV for their latest track, “Jet Coaster Love”!From start to finish, this version of their colorful music video focuses mainly on their dance choreography. This new MV release will coincide with the offline release of their single, which was delayed due to the unfortunate tragedy that struck Japan last month.
The girls have also released a ‘making-of’ video for the MV, so be sure to check out both below:
==
“Jet Coaster Love” (Dance Version)
-
“Jet Coaster Love” Making-of Film
Source : allkpop
5 April:Girl group KARA has just unveiled another version of their MV for their recently released song, “Jet Coaster Love”!This version of their colorful music video focuses mostly on close-ups of their pretty faces from start to finish, as opposed to the earlier released version.
After seeing their single release aborted due to the unfortunate tragedy that struck Japan last month, this new MV release will coincide with the offline release of their ‘Jet Coaster Love’ single on April 6th.
Without further ado, check out the MV below!
Source: allkpop
31 Maret:KARA has recorded over 1 million copies in album sales, after only eight months in the Japanese music industry!
According to information revealed by Universal Music Japan on March 31st, KARA’s five albums – “Mister“, “Jumping“, “Girl’s Talk“, “Best Clips“, “KARA Best 2007-2010” – have sold a total of 1,080,000 copies in all.
“Girl’s Talk,” which was released last November, sold 430k copies so far and even ranked at the top ofOricon’s music chart for nine consecutive weeks after its release. “KARA Best Clip” DVD (released last February) and “KARA Best 2007-2010″ (released last September) sold 200k copies respectively. Meanwhile, “KARA Best Clip” managed to rank at the top of the weekly charts for two months in a row as well. As for the girls’ singles – “Mister,” and “Jumping” – they each sold 130k and 110k.
Im Jin Mo, a pop culture critic, commented, “After BoA and TVXQ, KARA is the first to surpass 1 million copies. As rookies who debuted only eight months in Japan, this is an astounding feat. I think the fact that they’ve created a position for themselves as Korean idols in Japan’s idol culture is a bigger achievement.”
24 Maret:
Their official website on Universal Japan announced, “KARA’s third single ‘Jet Coast Love‘ will be released on April 6th.”
It was planned to be released on the 23rd of March, but got delayed due to the earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan. Since the country is suffering from an economic crisis, it looks like their single probably won’t be as successful as their other ones.
They will donate much of the revenue from this album to help the disaster relief in Japan.
Source: Newsen via allkpop
15 Maret:Despite KARA’s current legal troubles with DSP Media, fans have been working hard to celebrate the girls’ upcoming 4th anniversary by putting up advertisements around Seoul.
KARA made their debut on March 29th, 2007 with their first album, “Blooming“. Though the official anniversary date is still a few days away, fans decided to post encouragements upon ad spots in many of Seoul’s major department stores.
The messages read, ”KARA always as 5, forever“, “Congratulations on the 4th anniversary since your debut“, and plenty more, which revealed the fans’ wish for the dispute to be resolved in a timely manner.
A representative from DSP Media stated, “…for the victims of the earthquakes and tsunamis, all of the proceeds from KARA’s new single will be donated.”
They added,“The KARA members are very hurt for the Japanese people and fans who have showed them so much love. They’re constantly looking for updates on the internet and television… They were looking for a way to help victims, and decided on donating the money from their new single.”
12 Maret:
The members arrived safe and sound at Seoul’s Gimpo International Airport, and reporters flocked to the scene to snap photos.
On the 11th, the members were able to wrap up filming for their Japanese drama, “URAKARA“, before the natural disaster took place. Whether or not KARA would still be able to follow through with their Japanese promotion schedule has yet to be decided.
Meanwhile, one of KARA’s staff members described the moment they felt the earthquake. “It was on the 11th, while on the set of “URAKARA”, the members were busy filming. As soon as we felt the earthquake, filming was halted and everyone was taken to a safe zone immediately. The members were very scared, due to the fact that objects from buildings were falling left and right.”
10 Maret: KARA will have yet another busy month ahead of them, as they gear up for the release of their third Japanese single.Their representatives spoke with Star News on March 10th and revealed, “KARA, who left for Japan on February 28th, will be returning to Korea on March 12th. They’ll be staying for about four days before leaving for Japan again on the 16th.”
During their brief stay in Korea, the girls will be shooting the music video for their latest Japanese single, “Jet Coaster Love,” which is scheduled for release on March 23rd.
The girls will also be guesting on Asahi TV’s “Music Station” immediately upon their return on the 18th, and are scheduled to perform “Mister” and “Jet Coaster Love” for the very first time since their lawsuit first broke out earlier this year.
5 Maret: 
Korean girl group, KARA, has released their music video collection DVD “KARA BEST CLIPS” last week and it topped Oricon’s Weekly Composite DVD Ranking chart; selling around 132,000 copies. KARA has personally been first in the single, album and DVD rankings. However, it’s been revealed that they’re the first foreign female artist to top the composite DVD ranking chart since its inception in 1999.
The previous record was held by Chinese group Twelve Girls Band’s, “Twelve Girls Band ~ First Premium Concert in Japan~” (1/26 2004) and American artist Britney Spears’s “Greatest Hits: My Prerogative” (12/20 2004) have came in at #2 on Oricon’s Weekly Composite DVD Ranking. KARA is the first foreign female artist to get number one on the Composite DVD Ranking.
Furthermore, KARA sold 132,000 copies of their music video collection “KARA BEST CLIPS” in their first week and this is the greatest amount sold for a music video collection for a female artist; not including live performance DVDs. The previous top seller was Kuraki Mai’s “FIRST CUT” (11/20 2000), which sold 99,000 copies. Kuraki has held the record for 10 years and 3 months, but KARA has just taken her record away.
In total, there have been only 6 foreign artists who have made it to number one on the Weekly DVD Composite Ranking: The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Tohoshinki (TVXQ), JUNSU/JEJUNG/YUCHUN (JYJ) and Michael Jackson.
List of Weekly Composite DVD #1 Ranking’s by a foreign artist:
“KARA BEST CLIPS” / KARA (Released: February 23, 2011)
“Michael Jackson VISION” / Michael Jackson (Released: November 24, 2010)
“TOHOSHINKI History in JAPAN SPECIAL” / Tohoshinki (TVXQ) (Released: September 29, 2010)
“THANKSGIVING LIVE IN DOME” / JUNSU/JEJUNG/YUCHUN (JYJ) (Released: September 8, 2010)
“TOHOSHINKI VIDEO CLIP COLLECTION –THE ONE-“ / Tohoshinki (TVXQ) (Released March 17, 2010)
“4th LIVE TOUR 2009 ~The Secret Code~ FINAL in TOKYO DOME” / Tohoshinki (TVXQ) (Released September 30, 2009)
“Led Zeppelin DVD” / Led Zeppelin (Released: June 11, 2003)
“The Beatles Anthology” / The Beatles (March 31, 2003)
Source: Oricon via allkpop
4 Maret:
Via tokyohive:
Girl group KARA has just unveiled the MV for their newest song, “Jet Coaster Love”!
The colorful music video focuses mostly on the dance scenes, where the girls KARA show off their lovely legs in crisp, matching white outfits. The single will be released on March 23rd.
Without further ado, check out the MV below!
Source: allkpop
2 Maret: KARA revealed their cute album jacket photos and a full audio release for their upcoming single, “Jet Coaster Love“. But they’re determined to continue treating their fans, as they’ve just unveiled a third teaser in the form of a short MV!
The teaser radiates a bright and happy vibe as it takes on a sweet “candy land” theme. Of course, it features lots of roller coasters for the girls to laugh and pose in.
Though they’re already enjoying a high popularity in Japan, KARA is sure to spike it up once more with their fun new song. Check out the teaser below!
Source: allkpop
Despite the fact that three of the group’s members are currently involved in a lawsuit against their own agency, DSP Media, the girls maintained their cute and bright image for the photoshoot.
Their popularity in Japan has also remained quite high, with “Jet Coaster Love” managing to rank #1 on ring tone charts last month. “KARA’s Best Clip“, which features the girls’ music videos, sold 132,000 copies in the first week of its release, and even ranked first on Oricon’s DVD chart.
Source: Sports Today via Nate via allkpop
23 Februari:
KARA fans are feeling a much-needed boost of hope, as it’s being revealed that all five members may be seen performing together on one stage.
According to a representative on February 23rd, there’s still a possibility of KARA performing at MBC’s ‘50th Anniversary Hallyu Concert‘, which will be held on March 12th in Bangkok, Thailand.
The MBC representative told Star News, “Discussions for KARA’s appearance on the show began before their dispute came about. Discussions are still taking place even today.”
They continued, “We have not yet finalized a decision on whether KARA will be making an appearance. This is due to a variety of reasons many are already aware of.”
KARA’s side also stated, “It’s true that we are discussing the group’s appearance on MBC’s Thailand Hallyu concert. Currently, both sides have not made any finalized plans.”
The MBC Thailand Hallyu concert will get to see performances by some of Korea’s top idol groups and singers, including TVXQ, SNSD, Wonder Girls, B2ST, 2PM, SECRET, Brown Eyed Girls, miss A, CNBLUE, F.T Island, 4minute, T-ara, After School and Son Dambi.
Source: Star News via Daum via allkpop
22 Februari:
KARA was recently revealed to be staying in Japan for another 20 days in order to fulfill their Japanese schedules amidst their ongoing lawsuit.
On February 21st, a representative of the girls commented that all five members will be staying in Japan until March 10th. Seungyeon left for Japan a day earlier than the rest on February 16th, followed by the remaining members on the 17th.
The girls decided to prolong their stay in order to wrap up their TV Tokyo drama, “URAKARA.”
Tae Jin Ah, president of the KSA, recently predicted successful arbitration between the trio and DSP Media as well.
Source: Star News via Nate via allkpop
18 Februari:
The members of KARA returned to Japan to resume filming for their show, “URAKARA“, and they were forced to endure yet another chapter of airport chaos.
Since Han Seungyeon left for Japan yesterday ahead of her group due to a personal schedule, the media saw the remaining four depart from Gimpo Airport together on February 17th.
Park Gyuri, Nicole, Goo Hara and Kang Jiyoung were seen at the lobby on February 17th at around 7:15 PM preparing for their evening flight to Japan. The members entered the airport in a composed manner, and did not answer any of the reporters’ questions; instead, they were rushed to the departing gate while being surrounded by bodyguards.
The members faced a situation where they had to grab onto each others’ hands to squeeze through their bodyguards in order to bypass the overly-enthusiastic reporters who swarmed around them.
Source: Star News via Nate via allkpop Credits: MrHoneyHamSY, KoreaSpotTv
Recently, it was announced that the president of the Korean Singers Association, Tae Jin Ah, personally decided to arbitrate the dispute between KARA and DSP Media. It was reported today that the three members of KARA have firmly refused to accept the Association’s intervention.
The representatives of the three members were in discussions with Tae Jin Ah until 5:00 PM KST on February 17th to talk about possible mutual agreements with DSP Media. Unfortunately, however, the discussion ended with the following statement from KARA, “We cannot come to agreements with the proposed cases.”
A representative of the KARA trio revealed to OSEN, “The initial issue that the three KARA members had expressed concerns over has still not been resolved, so unfortunately, the lawsuit must go on.”
With regards to the public’s discontented opinions on this on-going matter, the representative stated, “We are aware of the public’s opinion. We will be opening a conference sometime next week and reveal our perspective in full detail.”
Meanwhile, the KARA trio recently dissolved their partnership with their previous lawyers, Landmark, to begin fresh with the Hankyul law firm.
—
[UPDATE]
—
Through TV Report, Tae Jin Ah revealed that earlier reports of KARA’s trio rejecting arbitration was false. “On the 17th, Nicole’s mother called and asked to postpone discussions until the 19th. I cannot understand why reports of the trio rejectingarbitration were released. It’s difficult to believe, especially since we have not received any contact from representatives of the three .”
—
In a conflicting report, through Newsen, Tae Jin Ah announced, “Responses were originally scheduled to be given by 5 PM KST on the 17th, but have been postponed to 12 PM KST on the 18th.”
Source: TV Report via Naver, OSEN via Daum Media, Newsen viaallkpop
KARA’s legal dispute with DSP Media has now developed into a battle between professional law firms.
DSP Media was hit with a lawsuit three days ago from KARA’s Seungyeon, Nicole, and Jiyoung, and unable to avoid a legal battle, went ahead by bringing in Sejong Law Firm’s Im Sang Hyuk. Sejong is one of the representative law firms in the nation, as it houses over 300 lawyers by itself.
KARA’s trio, who had been working with Landmark ever since the start of this dispute, was recently revealed to have been in a secret meeting with Hankyul Law Firm on February 16th. Representatives of the trio asked Hankyul to take on their case, and Hankyul accepted.
Hankyul is known for their work in the entertainment industry, as they made headlines in 2005 for taking on the ‘celebrity x-files’ case. Hankyul is also responsible for 60% of the film distribution companies in the nation.
The legal representative KARA’s trio chose from Hankyul, Kim Jin Wook, has previous experience working with Super Junior’s Han Geng in his lawsuit against SM Entertainment. KARA’s trio were revealed to have been adamant with their decision on Kim, especially since he won the lawsuit.
Considering the fact that DSP Media is backed by Im Sang Hyuk, who’s currently the legal representative for JYJ against SM Entertainment, industry representatives have interpreted the trio’s move in switching out their lawyers to mean that they are now ready to put up an aggressive fight.
Source: Sports Chosun via Daum via allkpop
Three days after KARA’s Seungyeon, Nicole, and Jiyoung filed their lawsuit against DSP Media, the agency’s legal representatives have released an official statement refuting the girls’ claims.
On the morning of February 17th, DSP Media’s legal representative, Im Sang Hyuk, spoke with Star News and stated, “It’s said that the lawsuit was filed on February 14th, but it was actually filed on the 11th. Their accusation has not arrived yet, but DSP Media will be preparing to take legal action. This case is different in various ways from the TVXQ lawsuit.” (Im is also the lawyer for JYJ against SM Entertainment.)
He continued, “The representatives of the three KARA members claimed that each member only received $860 USD from January through June of 2010 from album sales made during their ‘Lupin‘ promotions. Their claim made it seem as if this amount was all that the members received for their income during this time period, but they are hiding the accurate truth.”
Im continued, “Aside from their album sales, KARA was distributed a total of $200,000 USD per member from income made through CFs, events, broadcast appearances, digital sales, and mobile sales.”
DSP Media’s lawyer further revealed that all promotional expenses were taken out from the income made through their album sales, and the girls were given a total of $1 million USD during this promotional period, which was divided into $200,000 USD per member.
Im further claims that Landmark’s demands for a change in administration was an invasion of DSP Media’s administration rights. “After Lee Ho Yeon CEO was hospitalized, his wife received full administrative rights and successfully advanced KARA into Japan. She has done absolutely nothing wrong. Because of this, Landmark demanding that the company change administrators is an invasion of DSP Media’s right of management.”
He continued, “KARA’s contracts have already passed the evaluation review by the Fair Trade Commission. There is nothing wrong with their contracts, which is why we believe that Landmark is acting as if these three members experienced a loss in their income.”
Im concluded, “We will continue to attempt discussions, but now that the three members have already taken legal action, we will be responding in the same manner.”
Source: Star News via Naver (1) (2) via allkpop
15 Februari:
Through a press report, the agency stated,
“Because we were not delivered the accusation yet, we will speak with a lawyer once it is delivered and take the appropriate action then. Aside from thelawsuit, we will do our absolute best to ensure that KARA’s future activities are fulfilled.Source: OSEN via Nate via allkpop
Their claims of flawed income distribution is a huge distortion. All of the payments made by DSP Media were done according to their contracts, and this will be further confirmed through the process of the lawsuit.
The legal process has begun, and we hope that the three KARA members will refrain from making one-sided claims that are unconfirmed. DSP Media will also be refraining from making any statements outside of the legal discussion, like we have done thus far. We will be prioritizing KARA’s future, no matter thelawsuit. DSP Media will make sure that this controversy is resolved in an amicable matter.
Before the three members of KARA filed the lawsuit, we have made repeated attempts to resolve the situation. While we were looking forward to discussions and for misunderstandings to be resolved, thelawsuit has taken us by surprise.”
A representative stated, “On the 15th or 16th, representatives of the three members will be holding a press conference and announce their positions in a more detailed fashion.”
The attendance of the three members has yet to be confirmed, as KARA is scheduled to leave for Japan on the 17th to continue their activities there.
Interestingly enough, industry representatives claim that during the time that they were in Korea, the three KARA members attended recording sessions for their new Japanese album with their other groupmates.
This attendance, however, was done under the agreement made with DSP Media on January 27th to fulfill all pre-scheduled activities prior to the dispute. This agreement also includes their Japanese activities, which explains why the group must return to Japan as complete unit in order to continue filming for their drama, ”URAKARA“.
Though KARA is scheduled to depart on the 17th, Jiyoung will be leaving a day earlier due to a personal schedule.
Source: OSEN, Star News via Nate via allkpop
The contract termination dispute between KARA’s Seungyeon, Nicole, and Jiyoung against DSP Media has escalated into a legal battle.
On February 14th, representatives of the three members filed a lawsuit against DSP Media, asking the Seoul Central District Court to confirm that their three exclusive contracts were invalid. They also claimed that their incomes were not distributed fairly.
Through their head representative, the three members of KARA stated, “Without prior compromise, the agency deducted promotional fees from our income without our consent, which is classified under embezzlement. From January through June of 2010, we brought in $410,000 USD in income, while the promotional expenses amounted to $390,000 USD. The expenses are abnormally excessive.”
They continued, “Even when ‘Lupin‘ was at its highest point in popularity, DSP Media only paid $860 USD per member for a total of six months. The $140 USD that we were paid a month is unfair compared to the income that we brought in.”
Landmark previously sent notice to DSP Media regarding the termination of the three contracts on January 19th. Although the members resumed their scheduled activities, the two parties were not able to come to an agreement during their repeated attempts at reconciliation over the course of 25 days.
The dispute’s escalation into a legal battle has caught both fans and industry representatives off guard, and many are speculating about what this could mean for KARA as a unit of five.
A representative of DSP Media spoke through Sports Today and stated, “We’re shocked. We met several times, but it is true that the dispute went back to first base with each discussion. But because of their ‘URAKARA‘ filming in Japan, we agreed to speak with their parents upon their return. Now that we found out that they filed a lawsuit, we’re just shocked. First of all, we will be having a meeting within our company first before releasing further statements.”
The representative also told Star News, “Their head representative claimed that the girls only received $860 USD per member for six months of their ‘Lupin’ promotions, but that is truly ridiculous. We deducted six months worth of their entire promotional expenses from the profits made off of their album sales. Thus, we did not deduct anything from their promotions in other areas such as CFs. Unlike what the three are claiming, we paid them a larger sum, but they’re claiming as if we’ve embezzled.
Source: Star News #1, #2, #3 and Sports Today via Nate via allkpop
Via tokyohive:
KARA just returned to Korea on February 13th, but not before leaving Japanese fans with a little treat. A news clip of the girls featured a short preview of their 3rd Japanese single “Jet Coaster Love”. Moreover, “Jet Coaster Love” entered the Recochoku “Chaku Uta ®” ranking at #1 on February 11th!
Check out the fifty-second teaser below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzE9E5jUy5M
Source: allkpop
Since then, the album received a platinum certification from RIAJ, and the album has sold over 300,000 copies to date. The last foreign female group to surpass 300,000 sales was Destiny’s Child with “#1’s” over 5 years ago in 2005.
Despite the recent turmoil with DSP over their contracts, the girls are still quite popular in Japan as earlier today the Oricon daily album chart revealed that KARA’s “Girl’s Talk” was back on top after being released nearly 12 weeks ago! The girls took first place by selling 2,249 units which is quite impressive after being released so long ago, congratulations.
Sources: Oricon via allkpop
11 Februari:
The fifth episode will be centered around Jiyoung seducing a male classmate from her high school. Representatives of “URAKARA” praised Jiyoung for her excellent acting skills, as well as her professional attitude.
The girls jumped back into their Japanese activities earlier last week, and photos such as these have been giving fans some much needed reassurement that everything is going back to normal.
The girls are also scheduled to release their third Japanese single, “Jet Coaster Love,” on March 23rd.
Source: Star News via Nate via allkpop
10 Februari:
Via tokyohive:
Despite the troubles KARA has been facing over the past few weeks, the group released a CM in Japan for aesthetics company TBC. The song featured in the CM, “Jet Coaster Love,“ is an upbeat tune which urges the listener to “fall in love” and it’s been announced that this song will be released as an official single.
Regular Edition [CD]
Release Date: 03/23/11
Price: 1980 yen (Approximately 15.00USD)
＜Tracks＞
01. Jet Coaster Love
02. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」
03. Jet Coaster Love (Instrumental)
04. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」(Instrumental)
05. S.O.S(Army Slick’s 2011 bavtronic mix)
Limited Edition A [CD+DVD]
Release Date: 03/23/11
Price: 1980 yen (Approximately 24.00USD)
＜Tracks＞
01. Jet Coaster Love
02. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」
03. Jet Coaster Love (Instrumental)
04. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」(Instrumental)
Limited Edition B [CD+Photo Book]
Release Date: Release Date: 03/23/11
Price: 1600 yen (Approximately 20.00USD)
＜Tracks＞
01. Jet Coaster Love
02. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」
03. Jet Coaster Love (Instrumental)
04. Ima、Okuritai 「Arigatou」(Instrumental)
Source: natalie via allkpop
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar