Photographed for the "Pop Goes the World" portfolio in THR's music issue, the Korean rapper, songwriter, producer and fashion icon talks about his dream collaborations, international travel and the challenge of learning English.

A version of this story first appeared in the Jan. 31 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.

Imagine Justin Timberlake's boy bander-turned-credible musician pedigree and Kanye West's genre-bending artistic daredevilry, and you'll get an idea of G-Dragon's standing in K-pop -- though his reach is expanding rapidly beyond Asia.

Juggling equally successful careers as a solo artist and as frontman of the group Big Bang, whose 2012 world tour drew 800,000 fans to sold-out shows on four continents, the rapper, songwriter and producer says, "Before I was physically there in different countries to meet my fans in person, I didn't really realize how famous I was."

The 25-year-old, né Kwon Ji Yong, also has attracted recognition from Western peers. A few years ago, Ludacris paid a visit to the Seoul-based YG Entertainment, the record label and agency where G-Dragon, Big Bang and Psy are all signed. "We were showing him some music videos that YG came out with," recalls Danny Im, a former labelmate who now hosts the talk show Danny from LA on cable network Mnet America. "When they saw GD, they didn't know who he was, but they went, 'Yo, that kid's a star.'" The video was "Knockout," a track from the Big Bang subnunit GD&TOP, and produced by Diplo. The in-demand DJ returned for G-Dragon's 2013 solo album Coup d'Etat, a bold mashup of hip-hop, EDM, punk rock and Korean folk that charted on the Billboard 200 and also featured contributions from Baauer, Boys Noize, Sky Ferreira and Missy Elliott.


Still, G-Dragon, who has recorded a yet-unreleased song with Justin Bieber, says there is only one artist on his wish list: "Pharrell [Williams]! Ever since I got into writing hip-hop music, he's been my only living idol." (For his part, the newly minted Oscar nominee has tweeted that GD is an "amazing talent. Korean art is vast and next level. Time to collab.")  

Was there a moment when you truly realized that you and/or Big Bang had become incredibly popular on a worldwide level?

When I went on the Big Bang Alive Galaxy world tour in 2012 and my first solo world tour in 2013.  Before I was physically there in different countries to meet my fans in person, I didn’t really realize how famous I was.  Through the world tour experiences, I was able to figure out where we stand in different countries, which helped us learn how we should plan things going forward. 

Do you now think about the international market, and not just the Korean market, when you're working on a new record? 

Definitely. Nowadays, I can interact with my fans all around the world via SNS and YouTube, and they can monitor my daily life.  I study my fans all the time and what I learn from them will definitely be reflected in my future work.

How many frequent flier miles do you think you have?

I’m not sure. Maybe a few million?

You and your bandmate Taeyang recently returned from Paris Fashion Week, where you sat front row at shows like Yohji Yamamoto, Thom Browne, Saint Laurent, Lanvin and Comme des Garcons. What do you wear on long overseas flights?

I don’t care. I just try to look good always.

What are your future career goals? Would you consider doing a Big Bang or solo album for the English-language market?

I’ve always been thinking about it but, of course, learning English comes first.  I’ll definitely do it when I’m really ready for it.

Source: HOLLYWOODREPORTER

2NE1′s Dara, like her fellow labelmates as well as other celebrities, seems to love catching a bite to eat at the famed YG Cafeteria! While sharing the photo you see above, the idol also tweeted, “Whew~ I arrived at the cafeteria before its doors closed~ Today’s meal is bulgogi [marinated beef]!!! Ahtssabeh~^.^ I will eat well~ To you who worked hard.. Eat!!!”.

Her slim legs left some fans envious of her effortless ability to stay lean despite enjoying a delicious tray of Korean side-dishes and rice, while others expressed their wish of joining her at YG Cafeteria.

Although fans may not all get a chance to visit the agency’s cafeteria, they will soon have a chance to see 2NE1 up close as the girls kick off their 2nd world tour ‘AON (ALL OR NOTHING)’ at SK Handball Stadium in Songanggu, Seoul on March 1-2!

Source: AlLLKPOP

Of all the street-style stars to descend on Parisin the past few weeks, some of the flossiest — and most original — have been rapper G-Dragon and singer Taeyang, of South Korea's beloved boy band Big Bang. Spotted in the front row at most of the bigger couture shows and fall menswear shows, they caused a general spectacle with their penchant for bejeweled boleros and multi-colored hair.

This is the first time G-Dragon has appeared at Fashion Week since a brief, pink-haired appearance in 2012, but Taeyang has been on a roll. He caused a frenzy with street-style photographers last summer in Paris, attending the men's shows with a foot-high faux-hawk and kilts of tartan-plaid and bandana-print (with matching bank-robber face-gear). G and Tae have a mutual distaste for rules regarding color, fit, or gender. To that end, during the shows in Paris, the boys greeted many admirers, including Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel, Alber Elbaz at Lanvin, and Carine Roitfeld at Saint Laurent. 

But the Bangers aren't the only K-Pop stars making the street-style rounds. Blogs like K World Style, Kpopstarz, and K-Fashionista breathlessly chronicle the looks of the genre's best-dressed, including an ever-popular "Airport Style" feature — because unlike a good third of all U.S. celebs, you'll never see a member of 2NE1 slogging through LAX in ratty flip-flops and Christian Audigier leggings. Click through our slideshow for a primer on the K-Pop street-style clan’s best and brightest. 

Source: NYMAG: THE CUT
*Omitted the non-YG related topics

Multi-talented actress Goo Hye Sun has cross the 2.2 million likes milestone on her personal Facebook page! To thank fans for this achievement, she uploaded a pretty selca and a message via Facebook on January 29. She wrote, “Already a breakthrough of 2.2 million. Thank you. I greet you with a candid selca. Happy New Year.” In the picture, she shows off her fresh, bare face while looking into the camera. Although she has little to no make up on, she still looks very pretty and youthful!

Netizens replied, “Beautiful as always,” “You look like a comic book character,” “Wish I could see you as quickly as possible on TV,” and more.

You can check out her Facebook page here!

Source: Allkpop

After creating much buzz as “Bijinah,” singer Tae Jin Ah revealed he would like to collaborate with G-Dragon next. Tae Jin Ah had an interview session with SBS’ “Midnight TV Entertainment,” which aired on January 29. The singer discussed his collaboration stage with Rain and the performance of “La Song” on SBS’ “Inkigayo.”

During the interview, Tae Jin Ah revealed he accepted Rain’s request to perform together without hesitation and said, “I’m actually three years older than Rain’s father. I would enjoy more of these types of opportunities.”

He was asked which artist he would like to work with next. Tae Jin Ah answered, “G-Dragon has mentioned my name as his fashion mentor. I think it would be fun to work together.”

Source: Soompi

On January 27, 2NE1 appeared on ABC’s hit reality show “The Bachelor,” fostering a new interest in the girl group in the United States and Canada. The cast of “The Bachelor” visited YG Entertainment headquarters in South Korea. The show introduced YG to the cast as the place where “K-Pop in South Korea happens,” and compared 2NE1 to the Spice Girls, saying that 2NE1 are megastars in Korea. 2NE1 then welcomed the cast, who came into their dance studio, and taught them the dance to “I Am the Best.”

One of the girls on the show said, awestruck, “2NE1 is huge here in Korea. Their YouTube video has 77 million views. Million. That’s a lot of views.” 2NE1 also invited the “Bachelor” cast to perform with them for “I Am the Best” during their mini concert at Times Square in Seoul.

Following the broadcast of “The Bachelor,” 2NE1’s “I Am the Best” shot up to 3rd place on the U.S. iTunes’ electronic singles chart, and took over the top spot on Canada’s electronic singles chart, as well.

In other news, 2NE1 will be starting their second world tour in March at the Seoul Olympic Park SK Handball Stadium.

Source: Soompi

2NE1, after making an appearance on American ABC’s hit reality program The Bachelor, is gaining much popularity in the country.

At 8 pm on Jan 27, 2NE1 appeared on the 18th date episode of The Bachelor, becoming dance coaches of ‘I Am the Best.’

‘I Am the Best,’ released on YouTube in June 2006 has raked in 84 million views, becoming 2NE1’s main hit song. After their appearance on The Bachelor on Jan 28, the song ranked #3 in Electronic single chart in America’s iTunes and #1 in Canada’s. Their popularity is climbing up the ladder very quickly after the TV show.

‘The Bachelor’ is a hit reality series that holds a journey of a man looking for one soul mate among many women. It’s a long-loved program in its 18th season, and in the latest episode, Venezuelan former soccer player Juan Pablo Galavis appeared to enjoy his date with a number of beautiful women.

In the episode, the staffers and guests of the show visited YG’s headquarter to film dance coach group dating scene. The Bachelor team told the guests YG is where K-Pop is created, and a place where they can meet Korea’s most popular girl group, 2NE1. They added, 2NE1 is like Spice Girls, and they are super stars.

2NE1 coached the guests how to dance ‘I Am the Best,’ and one of them extolled their song and the choreography by saying it attracted 77 million views on YouTube. Another mentioned 2NE1’s the most popular K-Pop group in Korea, all very excited.

2NE1 invited the guests to their mini concert held at Seoul Times Square, and performed ‘I Am the Best’ together. The guests commented how every floor was filled with people and realized how popular 2NE1 actually is. They were excited to see scores of fans and was greatly satisfied they stood on stage with Korea’s most famous girl group.

After the show was aired, 2NE1’s hit song became even more popular, and is expected to maintain the enthusiasm for a while.

2NE1 is busy preparing their 2nd World Tour, after releasing 3 new songs ‘Falling in Love,’ ‘Do You Love Me,’ and ‘Missing You’ in 2013.

2NE1 is set to kick off their World Tour from March 1 and 2 at Seoul’s Olympic Park SK Handball Arena. They will tour around 9 countries including Japan and China, across 13 cities.


Source: YG-Life

”It’s already been eight years since BIGBANG made their debut, but their solidarity and skills are still growing continuously. At the time of BIGBANG’s debut, I said that BIGBANG will be a group that will stay with fans for a long time. I’ve kept that promise so far and will certainly keep it in the future.”

YG’s head Yang Hyun Suk has once again confirmed his unchanged affection for and trust in BIGBANG, a Korean Wave musician who has come under the global spotlight recently. In an interview after BIGBANG’s latest concert in Seoul, Yang said, “There are many cases where a group is disbanded only within a few years from debut. In fact, Tai-ji & Boys also retired four years after our debut, so we had to say good-bye to our fans unfortunately. That will never happen to BIGBANG”.

The biggest reason behind BIGBANG’s long-lived popularity is their solid skills as a musician, according to Yang. He says, “As time goes by, BIGBANG is more and more recognized on the global stage like the United States and Europe, going beyond Asia. America’s mainstream media like New York Times and proud Billboard cover BIGBANG and compliment the quality of their music frequently”.

Yang believes that his role is to set the background for BIGBANG to exert their full potential and to support them. He says, “It’s been long since BIGBANG made decisions for their own album independently. My role is just to be like salt for them, giving some words of advice and the support they need”.

This year is a year of a new leap forward for YG. Yang know this well. That is why he has changed his decades-long life style of staying up late and been committing himself to work from early in the morning every day.

“This year, BIGBANG, 2NE1, and Psy have to come back and we also have many rookies to debut. That reminds me of YG’s early days when we began to gain recognition with BIG MAMA, GUMMY, WHISUNG, and SEVEN. At that time, BIGBANG and 2NE1 were being trained for their debut. Now that BIGBANG and 2NE1 are gaining success globally, it is time for us to prepare for a new leap forward.”


Source: YG-LIFE

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Singer Psy expressed his affection for American hip-hop singer Will.I.Am.

On the 28, Psy posted a photo on his Twitter, saying “Gethering with this guy!always giving me somthing good because he’s something good!”.

There are Psy and Will.I,Am in the photo. Psy is taking a pose like a bird, with his arms. Will.I.Am is posing like he is praying, in front of Psy.

Psy uploaded his photo taken with Will.I.Am on his SNS back in November 2012, too. Then, he boasted his friendship with Will.I.Am once again by disclosing a photo of the two taken at a restaurant located in Los Angeles, California, the United States, in July, 2013. Will.I.Am has once worked with Korean girl group 2NE1 for album production.


Source: YG-Life