Latest news with #Zerobaseone
Forbes
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Universal CityWalk LINE FRIENDS SQUARE Opens With K-Pop Focus
Line Friends Square, Universal CityWalk Despite the dip in album sales globally, K-pop doesn't seem to be slowing down, especially when it comes to merchandising power within the fandom. Universal CityWalk Hollywood's LINE FRIENDS SQUARE, which opened this past weekend, was aware of the K-pop craze and heavily fitted their store with BTS' popular animated line, BT21, and Zerobaseone's Zeroni line. They also included NewJeans' Buninis, LINE FRIENDS original characters Brown Bear and Cony, and a few NBCUniversal properties, such as Felix the Cat, Casper the Friendly Ghost, Trolls, and Woody Woodpecker, for their COLLER line. With two other stores in the United States – New York City and Hollywood, Universal CityWalk becomes the third LINE FRIENDS SQUARE. Rebekah Lee, Senior Manager of E-Commerce & Marketing, says the company wanted to remain in the Los Angeles area, with opportunities for events, concerts, and showcases. 'Universal CityWalk Hollywood is such a great partner to work with in opening a new store in their mall,' says Lee. 'We thought we could start here and then hopefully expand to other locations in the future. Here is a destination for any character-related events or experiences. It's a great location to have friends, family, or anyone who may not even be into K-pop come visit the store and have a great experience altogether.' At their grand opening on Friday, K-pop fans lined up since 6 a.m. for a chance to obtain their favorite character merch, especially several exclusive BT21 items sold only at the Universal CityWalk store. Though BT21 heavily filled the store, it was the Zeroni line that garnered the most attention. Immediately following the ribbon-cutting ceremony, another group of fans in line waited in a separate line inside the store, specifically for Zeroni items. One Zerobaseone fan, who was second in line, was hoping to buy the consistently sold-out Zeroni plush keychains. '[Zerobaseone] is my favorite group,' says the fan. 'I like collecting all the characters. Today, I got all the last items I needed for my collection. I needed all nine members.' Line Friends Square, Universal CityWalk Many lined up early in hopes of securing free goodie bags, which were given to the first 30 guests, and the event continues next weekend (May 3 & 4). Every visitor is also eligible to participate in a 'lucky draw,' where everyone's a winner. Universal CityWalk is also offering those who purchase between April 25 and May 4 a chance to win one of two pairs of general admission tickets to Universal Studios Hollywood. BTS fans can also look forward to seeing their favorite BT21 mascots making daily appearances from 11 a.m. til 6 p.m. Jay Ahn, Vice President of LINE FRIENDS America, says K-pop was the biggest draw for Universal, telling us that the NBC Universal team reached out to them for their K-pop characters. 'Of course, we love our original characters like Brown Bear, but K-pop IPs draw the most fans,' says Ahn. 'If we have a bigger space, we would definitely bring more original IP as well. We are targeting to open one in Orlando, which will have more space for our original characters and K-pop line.' Ahn says the opportunities of having the store in CityWalk are endless, as they hope to bring some performances on the main stage and large-scale events. He hinted at looking forward to even more collaborations with popular K-pop stars in the future. NBC Universal owns and shares the rights to many intellectual properties, including Minions, The Secret Life of Pets, Felix the Cat, Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, Jaws, Super Mario Bros., Harry Potter, and more. Universal Studios Hollywood heavily showcases these with themed sections, rides, food, and merchandise. With events like Universal Fan Fest, which have brought other IPs into the park, such as One Piece and Star Trek, fans may one day see Brown Bear or BT21's Chimmy walking around the theme park. Lee hopes one day it can happen. 'That's a hope and goal that it would be part of that experience,' she says. 'Of course, IP is very strict on how that works. If LINE FRIENDS are able to be part of the theme park inside, that would be a great opportunity, and it would be really fun and exciting for everyone.'
Korea Herald
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Zerobaseone lands 1st Billboard 200 entry
Zerobaseone entered the Billboard 200 at No. 28 with its fifth EP 'Blue Paradise,' according to the latest chart dated April 19. It is the boy band's first entry on the main albums chart and also placed them at No. 16 on Billboard Artist 100. Earlier this month, the band marked their first release of physical albums in the US with the new EP as well as pop-up stores in New York and Los Angeles that offered a range of exclusive merchandise. The mini album was first released in Korea in February and sold over a million copies on the day of release, becoming the band's fifth million-seller. Zerobaseone will perform B-side tracks from the EP on stage for the first time at their fan concert 'Blue Mansion,' which will be held in Seoul on April 18-20.
Korea Herald
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Zerobaseone expands pop-up store to China
Zerobaseone is opening a pop-up store in Beijing for its fifth EP 'Blue Paradise' in April, agency WakeOne Entertainment said Tuesday. The band ran pop-ups in Seoul and Tokyo to mark the release of the mini album and will bring the event to China from April 3-26. Visitors to the temporary space can experience multiple zones where they can complete a mobile mission and play games as well as purchase exclusive merchandise. The EP sold over a million copies on the day of release in February, becoming the group's fifth consecutive million-selling album, and topped the iTunes Top Albums Chart in 12 regions. It also debuted atop Oricon's Weekly and Weekly Combined Album Rankings. The main track from the album, 'Blue,' came in first place on television music chart shows three times, and the band released a Japanese-language version of the song last week. In April, the band will host its second fan concert in Seoul, dubbed 'Blue Mansion,' for three days. glamazon@
Korea Herald
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Zerobaseone to tackle US with 1st physical album
Zerobaseone will roll out physical copies of its fifth EP in the US, a first for the boy band, agency WakeOne Entertainment said Wednesday. It is releasing the EP 'Blue Paradise' in three different versions —'Hide,' 'Seek' and 'Random' — on April 4. 'We are so happy and excited to hear the news,' said the band, adding that it is proud to have a chance to better reach its fans around the world. The mini album came out in Korea in February and sold over 1 million copies on the day of release. In addition to the main track 'Blue,' the album contains the group's first subunit endeavors: three songs featuring three members each. The main single was recorded in Japanese as well and was dropped as a digital single last week. Meanwhile, the nine members are preparing to meet their fans in person in Seoul at their 'Blue Mansion' fan concert on April 18-20.
Korea Herald
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Zerobaseone to host 2nd fan concert
Zerobaseone will greet fans at its second fan concert 'Blue Mansion,' slated to be held in Seoul on April 18-20, agency WakeOne Entertainment said Monday. The nine members will host the event 1 1/2 years after their first fan concert which was held at Gocheok Sky Dome in August 2023. They will demonstrate the performance skills they have honed through the 'Timeless World' concert tour, which took them to eight cities across Asia and drew about 140,000 attendees. A concert film of the tour will come to cinemas Wednesday. At the upcoming fan concert, the bandmates will perform songs from their fifth EP 'Blue Paradise." The mini album came out last month and sold over one million copies on its day of release, becoming Zerobaseone's fifth consecutive million-seller. The EP topped Oricon's Weekly and Weekly Combined Album Rankings as well as the iTunes Top Albums Chart in 17 regions.
