This week in Kpop featured a slew of activity from a range of notable groups. Multicultural boy group Cross Gene made their return with “Play With Me” after five months. Their absence allowed member Casper to recover from a back injury. 24K also resurfaced from their year-and-a-half hiatus and began promoting their new song “Hey You”. Former member Byungho shocked the Kpop world after it was revealed he was married with a child just a month after 24K’s debut in 2012, and kept it secret from the company and his fellow bandmates.

Additionally, rising girl group EXID released “Ah Yeah”, the follow-up to their smash-hit single “Up & Down”. The group catapulted to fame after a fan recording of their performance went viral, with more than 14 million views to date. The response was so hot that EXID returned to the stage four months after their original promotions and went on to claim their first music show win since debut.

Continuing the succession of new releases, Block B unveiled their subunit BASTARZ, comprised of members U-Kwon, P.O., and B-Bomb, with the electronic dance track “Zero for Conduct”. While the song consists of hard-hitting beats, the backstory behind the unit’s formation was quite humorous. According to P.O., the seven members of Block B gathered and used the luck of the draw to determine who would join the new subunit.

Longtime YG Entertainment hip-hop duo Jinusean made a comeback after 11 years with the release of “Tell Me One More Time” featuring YG trainee Jang Hanna. Jinusean kicked off YG’s first comeback of 2015 with a catchy tune and rap, and of course, the sweet vocals of Jang Hanna. “Tell Me One More Time” topped multiple music charts.

Meanwhile, Pledis Entertainment’s 13-member boy group SEVENTEEN announced their debut date, set for the beginning of May. Fans first became familiar with them through their live stream show that aired its pilot episode on Christmas of 2012. During the almost three years they’ve been known, the group performed at many events, experienced several member changes, and had their debut constantly pushed back. Longtime fans are greatly anticipating seeing the boys take the stage after the lengthy wait.

Finally, April 16 marked one year after the Sewol ferry sank in South Korea, a tragedy in which 304 of the 476 passengers died, most being middle school students on a field trip. Our thoughts are with those who lost their loved ones in this devastating disaster.

Contributions by  Jenna Zhang ‘17, Asha Rao ‘17, and Angela Kwak ‘17