Hype’s Exclusive: Amy & Nick On Marriage, Music, & Making Karmin Uniquely Theirs

Since 2010, American pop duo Karmin aka Amy Noonan and Nick Noonan have been serenading fans with their unique takes on chart-topping hits. Now, with more than 1.5 millions subscribers on their YouTube channel, rings on their wedding fingers (true story!), and a 2nd full-length album on the way, Karmin is ready to take it to the next level.

Amy and Nick met while attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, where they formed Karmin. The name “Karmin” is a portmanteau made from the Latin word carmen meaning “song” (also a Spanish female name), and the word karma. The duo’s musical chemistry would later turn into a romantic relationship and in March 2016, they announced on Snapchat that they were married.

In case you didn’t hear, Karmin is in town to celebrate Sephora Malaysia’s 5th anniversary! And lucky us, got to meet with them just this afternoon real quick for an exclusive one-on-one interview.

Welcome to Malaysia and congratulations on getting married!

Amy: We’ve waited a long time to come here. It has been about 5 years or so. There’s so much support from our Malaysian fans, like really strong supporters.

You’re #YouTubeGoals for many people. How’s married life treating the both of you?

Amy: We actually didn’t announce anything but we do have photos and stuff..and I did change my Twitter name. And I like “thenoonans”.

Nick: That’s what our Snapchat is called – “thenoonans”. #YouTubeGoals! Totally.

Amy: Married life is amazing. We’re actually celebrating our 11th year anniversary, not marriage but dating. We’ll be dating for 11 years on 9th September, and our next album comes out on the same day, so that’s cool.

Nick: Married life is not much different because..since Karmin started on YouTube, we’ve just been together all the time so that hasn’t changed.

Over the years, you’ve done numerous covers and have dabbled with various styles/genres. What made you decide on your current genre?

Nick: That kinda happened..I think our genre now is a little bit..we’re actually focusing on what exactly the sound is..

Amy: We were very unique in the beginning, very ethnic with all the rapping and stuff. The label was very like, “Let’s get some hits!” so that was great and we learnt a lot. But we just left our label and signed with a new one, an indie label with Sony and they let us do our thing. We do 100% of the writing and production ourselves for this new album. You’ll hear it. It’s a little bit different.

Nick: We kinda closed the doors and were just like, “Okay, who are we? What do we sound like? What do we want to sound like?”..so now with this new album, you’ll be getting a lot more music from us.

Amy: It’s still pop but it’ll be unique.

The magical thing about Karmin is that you release covers that have got your personal touch to it. On average, how long does it take to learn and perfect one cover?

Amy: We usually spend 2 days working on it.

Nick: I can never learn the words! If I have to sing, it’ll take me a month.

Amy: It takes me an hour to learn the song like, I try to study and learn it the way the artiste did it, then we kinda try to put our own interpretation and flavour to it. And Nick is great, he sits there and programs everything, and plays the instruments..

Tell us more about your partnership as Karmin – is it hard to juggle between your romantic relationship and working relationship? We’d love to hear some tips!

Nick: Oh sure, sometimes! What happens is one kinda takes over the other one so there’s never a time for us to..

Amy: It’s hard to turn off business and personal sometimes. They mix. So we have to take days off where we’ll be separate like Nick will be in the studio working and I’ll be doing a makeup tutorial or something, just try to stay away from each other.

Nick: We’ll set rules like, you know, at 7 o’clock we’re done working. Stop Karmin and be normal people.

Amy: Yeah! Like watch TV or watch a movie..

Nick: Exactly. Since we’re both in it and we’re both so excited about it, it’s easy for it to take over and be the conversation all the time.

Amy: I remember a time when we would wake up and be like, “I haven’t talked to you for like a month!” because we’re just always working, you know?

Amy, I noticed that you experiment with your looks. I really loved your “Super Bass” cover look! How long do you usually take to doll up for a video and what are some of your go-to products?

Amy: Ooh. My go-to hairstyle is the suicide roll, which is something I haven’t done for a while. I went blonde for a little while for the “Pulses” album. I have to have red lipstick. NARS’ velvet matte lip pencil, “Dragon Girl”, is my favourite. I also do love Tarte because Tarte uses all-natural ingredients and my skin is pretty sensitive. And I love lashes too! As for dolling up, I have it down to probably 30 minutes now because I just got really good at doing it.

Nick, how about you? Does Amy take on the role of your personal stylist?

Nick: Yeah she does my hair! She kinda was my stylist but I’m starting to get better. I’m starting to branch out.

Amy: He’s from Maine, which is almost Canada..it’s so cold there.

Nick: It’s not that style is not an important thing to me, but in Maine is more about how I can survive through winter.

Karmin is one of the rare few artistes/groups that have successfully made the transition from being YouTubers to recording artistes. What would you say were some of the most valuable lessons your journey has thought you?

Nick: You can’t cheat anything. Everything..you have to let things happen, you have to let things go their path. One of the biggest things that we’ve learnt is that you can’t force things to happen.

Amy: You have to trust the timing of the universe, you know? Sometimes you’re like, “Why are we struggling so much?” but then something else happens very easily. So just be like water and just flow..

Nick: For us, that’s very important for us to create our art.

Amy: Yeah that’s the biggest thing. When you have somebody very important telling you, “You have to do this!” it’s like, but that’s not what we enjoy the most. So I guess, be yourself.

Nick: It just comes down to making sure that it’s honest. It’s a lot harder than it sounds sometimes.

Is it fair to say that you now have more creative control over the originals that you put out?

Amy: Now we just make an album and give it to them and say, “Here you go!” whereas before it was them telling us, “Okay, go in with this producer, do this..”

Your next record, “Leo Rising”, is set to be released in September. What can you reveal about “Leo Rising”?

Amy: We saw an astrologer and we didn’t know anything about astrology, and it was like a birthday present. And I remember thinking, “Wow, how does he know about us?!” because it was just based on where we were born and what time we were born. We’re both Tauruses but we’re nothing alike. So it turns out that you’re affected by all the signs in different ways. We thought, “That’s a really cool concept. Let’s write a song for each one of the signs!” So the whole album is based on different zodiacs.

Nick: We took a long time to work on it. It was done for a while but I think we were writing and recording for close to..13 months or something like that.

What would you say are the biggest differences in terms of musically between “Leo Rising” and your debut album, “Pulses”?

Nick: We really wanted to..we never had the opportunity to kick everybody out of the room and just the two of us make music since the covers. And the last time we did that with the covers, we felt that there was something there because it was very raw and very minimalist. So we just focused on the raw talent. That’s what we wanted to get back to, focus on the raw vocals, focus on the vibe, make the energy real and more of an emotional connection.

Between the both of you, who handles your social media platforms? Do you read through the comments?

Amy: I do it all! I like talking to the fans directly like, there are probably 150 fans that I know personally like my friends. They keep me posted on stuff, they got Gwen Stefani to follow me the other day, they make things happen! They voted us onto the cover of Rolling Stone I mean, it’s a really close relationship that I have with them. And then Nick is always the one to tell me, “Oh no don’t say that” or “Post something funnier” (laughs) But Snapchat is really fun because that’s where we get to be ourselves, be totally goofy, and do whatever we want.

Because you put yourselves out there in the virtual world, it’s also a very vulnerable position where people can say really mean things to you. How do you usually deal with them?

Nick: You know what it is now? It is a..it’s gonna happen. There is literally nothing in today’s world, in today’s comment-friendly or internet-friendly world..if you become successful in any way, shape, or form, you will have hate. That is what’s going to happen. From Adele, to Kanye, to Kim Kardashian..you name it. It doesn’t matter, you cannot escape it. It is a rite of passage, it is there. So it’s up to you whether you want it to affect you or not. And since we started on YouTube, we really got a taste of that prior.

Amy: Imagine calling your mom and explaining to her, “It’s okay, they don’t really want to hurt me. They’re just mean. They’re just saying scary things.”

Nick: When we first started, there was a lot. And we would notice too that when there are a lot of views going up, that’s when we would get a lot more mean comments. You just have to separate yourself. It just is what it is.

Aside from putting out music, covers, make-up tutorials, you also play shows and film vlogs/web series..although the last time you did a vlog was a long, long time ago..

Nick: Gosh this year has been really intense but yes, so each song in “Leo Rising” is based on a zodiac sign and Amy will be doing a make-up tutorial video for each one.

Amy: I’m trying to take time to figure out like, what would a Scorpio do with her make-up, or his make-up..I’m excited though. I love doing those. And hair too! I gotta start up again.

But all of that takes up so much of your time. What do you guys do when you’re not in front of the camera or a crowd at a show?

Nick: Oh, and also we’ve been renovating. Amy..we have a very interesting backyard. Amy made a town in our backyard. She put like a sidewalk, a street, a bank..you have to see the pictures! But we’ve sold it and now we’re renovating our new house. We’ve been doing that the last 4 months and that’s an intense process.

Amy: I love it! I’m picking wallpapers right now so if you guys wanna help me..

Show us the options and we will! On another note, which artistes would you say are some of your dream collaborations?

Amy: Oh man, well we love Kanye. He inspired us so much to start rapping, actually.

Nick: Yeah! Hip hop has become what rock n’ roll was back in the day. It’s the new creative alternative pop music. That’s really what we’re into at the end of the day. We love good pop music but what is pop music today? You go from Adele to Lil’ Wayne, to Lorde, it’s like..what genre is it? It doesn’t matter. If it’s good, it’s good.

Amy: We really love band this band Phantogram. They’re great. They’ve worked with the guy from Outkast, Big Boi. So they make some really interesting hip hop-infused indie pop music. We love the marrying of genres. If we could collaborate, I mean..

Last one for the road..best moment of your YouTube/singing career so far?

Amy: This has been 5 years in the making, I mean..I would say that the best moment for me was when we uploaded “Look At Me Now”, this cover that we did where I was rapping, I remember waking up and having like 1,400 e-mails. Because I had set it to send me an e-mail every time somebody subscribed. Before that we had like 10,000 subscribers which was great and we were so excited. And we woke up the next day and we had 11,400 subscribers overnight and I thought, “This is crazy!”

Nick: We thought there was something wrong, like it was an error.

Amy: But by the end of the day it had a million views. We were like..we have to quit our jobs. I was running down the street where Nick was working at a boxing..we had weird jobs. I was a wedding singer. I was running down the street crying like, I don’t know what’s happening. The whole world was calling my cell phone because my phone number was on the website. So it was like, Kanye calling, Ellen (DeGeneres) calling, and were like, “Hey is this Karmin? We wanna have you on the show”. Overnight. It was like Cinderella.

Nick: It was literally overnight. It was very strange.

Amy: I didn’t eat for 3 days because it was just so..stressful. It’s like you have been waiting for this your whole life and then it happens all in one day. That’s bizarre. What about you, Nick?

Nick: Oh the best moment for me would be..so there was this pizza that I had..

Nick: For me it was probably playing for Paul McCartney and then hanging out with him after the show.

Thank you Amy and Nick for the fun chat! And special thanks to our friends from Sephora Malaysia for making this interview happen.

Don’t forget! Karmin will be meeting their fans at Sephora KLCC from 12:30pm – 2pm tomorrow (29th July 2016, Friday). The event is open to public so drop by and say hi :)

For more information on Karmin, hit up their website or YouTube channel.

Featured image: Alice Baxley @ livenation.vice.com.

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#Cheras: Students Robbed & Assaulted By Motorcyclists After Uber Driver Abandoned Them

Ride-hailing apps are undoubtedly convenient, but users should always be careful when hitching a ride from a stranger.

Social media user Christine Juliana Danker recently took to Facebook to warn people about using Uber. In her post, she shared that her son and his friend were robbed and assaulted by motorcyclists after their Uber driver abandoned them in Cheras on Sunday (4th June).

“They took Uber, but the driver didn’t send them to their destination but dropped them halfway. Suddenly 2 guys on a motorcycle pretended to give them a lift, but the guys took them to a secluded spot, robbed and whacked them with their helmets,” wrote Danker.

Besides that, she added that the boys managed to find their way home and went to the hospital to receive treatment. They also lodged a police report.

According to NST, Danker’s son and his friend are college students from a private university. The victims claimed that the Uber driver had grabbed one of their mobile phones and changed the destination to Taman Murni Batu 9, which was not their original destination.

Kajang police chief Assistant Commissioner Othman Nanyan said that the case is being investigated under Section 394 of the Penal Code for causing hurt in committing robbery. “Police are in the midst of tracking down the men involved,” he said.

Meanwhile, one netizen known as Eby Shahrin Mokhtar noted that the driver has also filed a police report. Apparently, the 2 boys were drunk. While the veracity of Eby’s claim is uncertain, we think that the Uber driver in question should not have abandoned them by the roadside.

Last month, a pregnant woman was abandoned by the side of the road after being robbed by her Uber driver. According to reports, she was threatened at knifepoint when the vehicle arrived.

What do y’all think about the incident? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Sources: Christine Juliana Danker’s Facebook page, NST.


BLACKPINK’s Lisa Secretly Tells Fan What She’ll Perform For “Born Pink” World Tour

Yesterday (Sunday, 25th September), the girls of BLACKPINK (블랙핑크) held a fansign event to promote their 2nd full album “Born Pink” at the IFC Mall in Yeouido, Seoul. The event was a meaningful one for all the members, as it marked their first offline fan meeting after three years!

Previously, we mentioned about BLACKPINK’s long-awaited comeback. The good news continued when it was also revealed that the girls will be embarking on their large-scale world tour – and yes, they’ll be stopping by Malaysia too!

During the fansign event, Lisa gave a glimpse on what BLINKs can expect on their upcoming concert tour. One lucky BLINK at the fan meeting asked the Thai idol on whether she’s going to perform her solo songs at the concert. “I slyly asked Lisa which solo tracks she’ll be performing at the concert, and she said she didn’t know. Then I told her, ‘You’re lying’, to which she confessed that it was a lie (she’s so cute). She said, ‘I’ll probably do both?’ I’m looking forward for both ‘Lalisa’ and ‘Money’,” the fan wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, another fan who attended the event asked Jennie on whether she’ll sing “Solo” at this upcoming world tour. The “Pink Venom” singer then told the fan, “Only people who come to the concert will know.” The fan then said, “I’m going for both concerts so it’s okay,” to which Jennie responded by saying, “You’re asking even though you know I’m not going to tell you, right?”

Are you looking for the BLACKPINK members’ solo stages for the upcoming “Born Pink” world tour?


What Was Great & Not-So-Great About This Year’s #ITSTHESHIP2017

It has been a week now, yet we’re still not quite over it.

This year’s edition of Asia’s largest festival at sea, “It’s The Ship”, was arguably its most successful year to date. On 17th November, a whopping total of 4,000 shipmates and over 80 artistes boarded the newly-made Genting Dream cruise ship at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre in Singapore.

Over the course of a few days, the ship – captained by none other than Tyson Beckford – hosted multinational partygoers, energetic performances, as well as unique side activities that included everything imaginable.

When asked about their favourite moments/things about being on the ship, Finnish trance music duo Super8 & Tab gushed, “It’s always great to be back here in Asia, what more on a cruise ship. The crowd in Asia is always amazing and always so up for it! We also heard that there are waterslides on the ship and we’re looking forward to trying those out.”

Echoing Super8 & Tab’s excitement, trance DJ extraordinaire Omnia said, “It is definitely the people here. They have an open mind for the music and it’s the best a DJ can expect. What more on a ship! I really feel the energy from the people.” while power EDM duo Krewella told us exclusively, “We’re really looking forward to the whiskey and cigar side activity!”

It is without a doubt that “It’s The Ship” raised the bar even higher this year, with ticket sales skyrocketing and headlining performances by top class talents from around the world. But here’s what was great (and also not-so-great) about “It’s The Ship 2017”:

The newly-made Genting Dream cruise ship is everything that its name says – a dream. Redefining luxury travel, the ginormous vessel features all the comfort of authentic Asian hospitality, combined with the finest experiences from around the world. In fact, over 70% of the Genting Dream staterooms feature private balconies, and pure comfort with European bed linen and designer brand bath amenities. And, aside from hot tubs and pools, it also houses 6 waterslides. Six!

2. Finally getting some sand between our toes

After 2 days of journeying along the Straits of Malacca, nothing pleased us more than finally getting some sand between our toes. With a stop-off in Phuket, Thailand, crew members had the chance to party at the Kudo Beach club and partake in beer yoga before getting back on the ship for the return leg to Singapore, with over 1,700 shipmates disembarking. It may have been blistering hot, but shipmates were grateful to have had the chance to walk on dry land for a couple of hours!

What’s a cruise without variety? Perfect for those who needed a break from the pounding beats (read: partying), “It’s The Ship 2017” also offered an assortment of side activities. From a morning yoga session with Tigerlily to soccer with the Playboy Thailand bunnies, a mini-golf event and even rock-climbing for the adrenaline junkies, shipmates were kept well entertained. Psst! One shall not forget to mention 2 shows from legendary male strip troupe, The Chippendales.

It was during “It’s The Ship 2017” that we learnt that there are dolphins in the Straits of Malacca. They exist! On the ship, mornings are made for chilling at the cabin’s balcony while staring at the endless blue, which is exactly what we did that one fine morning. Coffee in hand and all that jazz, of course. Little did we know, there was a pod of dolphins beneath all the blue! Cue, dolphins chasing the waves. Cue, shipmate excitedly screaming and jumping while pointing at the dolphins. Unfortunately, in our excitement, we forgot to whip out our smartphones to document the rare sighting. So the above gif will do. Believe us please ?

Headline performances from EDM power duos Krewella and Yellow Claw lit up the Crown stage on Friday and Sunday nights, with other crowd favourites like Peking Duk, DJ Craze, Third Party, and Tigerlily rocking the boat until sunrise. Regional talent was also widely represented, with Livescape proving once again that promoting South East Asian artistes to the world is high on their agenda with acts like Bangkok Invaders, Joe Flizzow, and Shigga Shay flying the flag for Thai, Malaysia, and Singapore.

While this was not particularly the fault of the organiser (Livescape Asia), there’s still much to do in terms of efficiency and traffic control at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre in Singapore. Scores of artistes (yes, artistes), journalists/members of the media, as well as participating shipmates rocked up to the centre from as early as noon, but could only get on to the ship about 3 hours later (and that’s the earliest!) after standing around in snaky lines quite literally waiting for something to happen. It was draining, to say the least.

The “jam” getting out wasn’t any better. Again, this was probably not the fault of Livescape Asia but just to give you an idea of the chaos that ensued: picture hundreds of tired and likely hungover shipmates desperately needing to disembark the ship only to find that they’re pretty much stranded in the Genting Dream’s Zodiac Theatre (a 999-seat theatre) for more than an hour. And then going through to motions once again at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre (immigration, bag scans, bag collection). It wasn’t a pretty sight, hey.

That aside, to cap off what was already an incredible weekend at sea, “It’s The Ship” also saw a couple get engaged on the Saturday night and 6 shipmates who have already secured their places at the 2018 “It’s The Ship” sailing by getting their very own”It’s The Ship” logo tattooed on them.

So, what say you? You game for the next edition of “It’s The Ship”? Head on over to www.itstheship.com to pre-register for next year’s party!

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#StarTrek3: Idris Elba Eyed To Play A Villainous Role

Trekkies have every reason to be excited about the upcoming threequel of the rebooted “Star Trek” franchise now because the cast just keeps getting bigger and better.

It is unclear whether Benedict Cumberbatch will return to reprise his role as Khan, but Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk and the rest of the USS Enterprise crew are expected to face a new enemy in “Star Trek 3“.  This was further proven by Variety when they broke the news that Idris Elba could be portraying a villain in the 3rd “Star Trek” film.

Idris Elba is best known for his role as Heimdall, the Norse deity and the guardian of the burning rainbow bridge between the world of men and the world of gods in Marvel‘s “Thor” film series. He is also known for portraying drug lord and aspiring businessman Russell “Stringer” Bell in HBO TV series “The Wire” and Nelson Mandela in biographical film “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”. Through his role as Detective John Luther in BBC One series “Luther”, he was nominated thrice for Golden Globe Awards, winning once for “Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film”. He has also been nominated 4 times for Primetime Emmy Awards.

Elba appeared in a number of Hollywood films too, including “American Gangster”, “Takers”, “Prometheus“, and “Pacific Rim“. In addition to his acting work, he is a hip-hop soul musician and a DJ under the moniker DJ Big Driis (or Big Driis the Londoner).

Sources told Variety that Elba just entered talks to appear in “Star Trek 3” and rumour has it that he may be playing a Klingon, which is said to be the main villain in the threequel. His representatives did not respond for comment.

Elba will be seen next in Cary Fukunaga’s “Beasts of No Nation” and “Bastille Day” opposite “Cinderella” star Richard Madden. He is also set to appear in “Avengers: Age of Ultron“, Disney’s “The Jungle Book” and indie film “A Hundred Streets”.

The reboot of the “Star Trek” film series was previously directed by J.J Abrams and co-written by Roberto Orci. It was previously reported that Orci would direct the final instalment of the “Star Trek” trilogy with 2 new writers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. However, he decided to remain as the producer of the film alongside Abrams, Bryan Burke, and Skydance’s David Ellison.

“Fast & Furious” veteran Justin Lin came aboard to helm the project based on a screenplay written by Simon “Scotty” Pegg and Doug Jung. Pine and Pegg will return to star in the film alongside Zachary Quinto, Anton Yelchin, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, and John Cho. The production is set to begin this June before its release on 8th July, 2016.

(Source: Empire Online / Featured image)


Girls’ Generation Taeyeon To Sing Korean Version Of “Frozen 2” Soundtrack

Following various clues and hints, it was finally revealed that Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon (태연) will be lending her voice for Disney’s “Frozen 2”!

The 30-year-old songstress will be singing the Korean version of the much-anticipated movie’s original soundtrack called “Into The Unknown”.

. [최초공개] <겨울왕국 2> 국내 커버송 아티스트는 바로 믿고듣는 만능 보컬리스트 태연? 올 겨울, 벌써부터 귀호강 예약! #겨울왕국2 #태연 아트 포스터 대공개 . #숨겨진세상 #Into_the_Unknown #두려워하지마 #11월대개봉

A post shared by  디즈니코리아 (@disneykorea) on Oct 29, 2019 at 6:00am PDT

Disney Korea announced the good news via their official Instagram yesterday (29th October). The caption reads, “[First release] <Frozen 2> The cover song artist for ‘Frozen 2’ is none other than multi-talented Taeyeon, who you can trust to listen to. This winter, you can already plan for your ears to enjoy! Revealing Taeyeon’s art poster for ‘Frozen 2’.”

Prior to the “Make Me Love You” singer, the Korean version of the 1st “Frozen” movie’s soundtrack – “Let It Go” – was sung by former SISTAR member Hyolyn. In addition, Taeyeon also took to Instagram to share with her fans the exciting news by writing, “Taeyeon’s music world that includes everything.#HiddenWorld #IntoTheUnknown #Frozen2 #DontBeAfraid #FirstReleaseInNovember”.

For the uninitiated, the MAMA-award-winning vocalist has just released her 2nd studio album “Taeyeon Vol. 2: Purpose”, along with the title track “Spark”. Check out the music video here:

Anybody here excited for Taeyeon’s take on “Into The Unknown”? We know we are! ?

Sources: Koreaboo, Soompi, AllKpop. / Featured image: Koreaboo.

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Covid-19: Passenger On Bus Wears Live Snake As Face Mask

A bus passenger in the United Kingdom (UK) was seen covering his face with a snake, which was wrapped around his neck and mouth.

Astonishingly, the witnesses didn’t agitate, but instead found the incident to be amusing when it happened during a bus ride to Manchester earlier on Monday (14th September).

According to SCMP, the other commuters didn’t bat an eye because they initially figured he was wearing a colourful mask. That’s what they thought, before the “mask” started slithering over the hand rails.

“At first I thought he had a really funky mask on, then he let it crawl around the hand rails. No one was really bothered on the bus but a man behind took a video. It was definitely entertaining,” one witness was quoted as saying.

Transportation officials in the UK have told the public that face coverings are mandatory on public transportation during the pandemic. The only exceptions are children under the age of 11 or those who are exempted for health or disability reasons.

A Transport for Greater Manchester spokesperson said, “This needn’t be a surgical mask, passengers can make their own or wear something suitable, such as a scarf or bandana. While there is a small degree of interpretation that can be applied to this, we do not believe it extends to the use of snakeskin, especially when still attached to the snake.”


(UPDATE) #PokemonGO: New Update Tweaks CP; Thanksgiving Event To See Double XP & Stardust

Trainers, if you woke up today to some very obvious changes to your favourite Pokémon’s combat power (CP), don’t panic. You didn’t accidentally power up your Pokémon in your sleep.

Due to an update that augmented reality game developer Niantic Inc. quietly rolled out just a couple of hours ago, various pocket monsters are getting a boost to their CP. Some Pokémon, such as Alakazam, Rhydon, and Gengar will have their CP increased while others will have their CP lowered.

“These changes will allow a more balanced and competitive battling and training experience in Gyms. We will continue to adjust the CP going forward to improve the game balance when necessary,” Niantic said in a blog post.

Note: At first glance upon opening our Pokémon GO app, we noticed a sizeable increase in CP for our Chansey, Snorlax, Gyarados, Magneton, Alakazam, and Kabutops. Pocket monsters that had their CP decreased include Arcanine, Lapras, Dragonite, and Charizard.

Aside from that, trainers will also see some exciting bonuses this month in conjunction with Pokémon GO’s Thanksgiving event.

“It has been an incredible experience since we launched Pokémon GO a few short months ago in July. We are passionate about creating experiences that encourage exploration and promote exercise. We are humbled that hundreds of millions of you around the world have joined us on this journey. So we would like to say thank you – and what better way to say thank you than to celebrate our community,” Niantic wrote.

The Halloween seasonal special which wrapped up just a few weeks ago saw the capture of 1.3 billion ghost Pokémon. This is due to a dramatic increase in the spawn rate of its ghost and other frightening horrors such as Haunters, Gengars, Cubones, Marowaks, Drowzees, Hypnos, etc. Niantic also boosted the drop rate for candy (read: Buddy System), which helped trainers evolve/power up their Pokémon faster.

A post shared by Hype Malaysia (@hypemy)

But unlike the Halloween shindig, the Thanksgiving event will simply offer double the amount of XP and Stardust you receive when completing in-game actions. Similar to the Halloween event, the Thanksgiving special will also run for about a week – 23rd till 30th November 2016.

In other news, Pokemasters in the country will be pleased to know that Malaysia’s first official Pokemon Café is set to open its doors to the public tomorrow (Wednesday, 23rd November). More deets here.

Awwyiss we love surprises. Niantic Inc. just released a long-awaited Pokémon! Oh, you know, the one that looks like giant pink/purple blob.

Ditto is known show up in the wild disguised as other Pokémon but according to our sources, some of the most common Pokémon are secretly Dittos. If you’ve always hated the idea of catching yet another Rattata, Pidgey, Spearow, or Magikarp, well it’s time to change it up. Because you can’t actually spot the blob in sightings and you won’t even know that you’ve caught a Ditto until after you’ve captured it.

Managed to get another video of catching Ditto, this time it transformed from a Rattata @trnrtips #PokemonGO #ditto pic.twitter.com/s45wGgFnxc

— WhatUpMC (@WhatUpMC) November 23, 2016

It is not known as of yet if Ditto is released permanently or if this is all just part of the Halloween event. But thank you, Niantic :)

Be right back. Need to go catch ’em all.

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11-Year-Old Girl Found Dead With Bleeding Genitals

19-year-old R.V. Kalaivanjini went out with her friend to buy nasi lemak when her trip turned into a walk of horror. She was crossing a parking lot at Lorong Batu Nilam 1E, Bukit Tinggi, Klang at 10:30pm on Wednesday night when she came across the girl, whom she thought was sleeping.

However, her attempts to wake the girl, who was clad in a white T-shirt and track bottoms, were unsuccessful “That was when I realised she could be dead. I got scared and asked a passer-by to call the police. I felt sad as the girl’s eyes were still open”, she said, adding that police arrived 15 minutes later and confirmed the girl’s death.

She said the spot where the girl was found was poorly-lit, which could explain why no one had spotted the body.

Investigations later showed that the deceased was 11-year-old Nur Amyliana Shuhada Mohd Noor and that she might have been sexually assaulted. She was believed to have gone missing about noon the same day. The girl’s home is a mere 200m away from where her body was found.

Nur Amyliana’s sister, who identified herself as Eni, 16, said her younger sister was playing outside her home while waiting for her elder sister to return with the house keys. However, when the elder sister returned, Nur Amyliana was nowhere to be found. The family had thought that she had gone to play nearby.

Klang Selatan district police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohamad Mat Yusop said early investigation found no apparent injuries on the victim’s body except for some bleeding on her private parts. He also confirmed that two male suspects, aged 19 and 24 were picked up near the scene and have been remanded for seven days.


Justin Bieber Opens Up About Split

He might have one of the largest Twitter fan followings, much more so than Lady Gaga. But for the first time in his entire life, Justin Bieber has openly admitted that he isn’t happy.

A few days shy of the official release of his “Believe Acoustic” album, the 18-year-old pop sensation expressed his feelings about his split with longtime girlfriend, Selena Gomez. In fact, Justin was very open about doing so, especially when he tweeted the following:

In the exclusive interview with the latest issue of “Billboard” magazine, he admitted to being in some form of post-split pain:

There are so many rumours. People say I call Selena every day and she won’t pick up the phone or I’m chasing her down, and these are all fake stories. I’m not in the happiest place that I’ve ever been. I’m trying to get through what I’m going through. I have my really close friends to cheer me up and keep me going. I don’t have any regrets. I live and learn. My mom says, “You got to learn the hard way, don’t you?”. That’s me. I learn the hard way. But it’s about how I pick myself up and be better and stronger.

And in the interest of proving that Justin is trying to be better and stronger, “Billboard” has also unveiled a very heartfelt (read: heartbroken-sounding) bonus track titled “Nothing Like Us” off Justin’s “Believe Acoustic” album:

[youtube id=”2l4IFqKII-s” width=”600″ height=”350″]

Lately I’ve been thinking, thinking about what we had,

I know it was hard, it was all that we knew.

Have you been drinking, to take all the pain away?

I wish that I could give you what you deserve,

Cause nothing can ever, ever replace you.

You know there’s no one, I can relate to.

I know we won’t find a love that’s so true.

There’s nothing like you and me together.

But that is the past now, we didn’t last now,

Tell me, was it worth it? We were so perfect.

Aww, doesn’t he sound like the ordinary everyday teenager who’s dealing with a breakup now? Our hearts aches with his. Your fans love you! Stay afloat, Justin.

Meanwhile, we can’t wait to get our hands on a copy of the “Believe Acoustic” album, which will contain eight reworked tracks from his platinum-selling 2012 album, “Believe”, on top of three new songs. The three new songs are all written or co-written by Justin himself. Yes, one of which is none other than the abovementioned, “Nothing Like Us”.

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“The Battleship Island” Cast & Director Bring The Noise To Kuala Lumpur

And by noise, we mean high decibel levels.

“The Battleship Island” star tour, which took place across 2 days in Kuala Lumpur, was the epitome of movie promotional tours in Malaysia.

A post shared by Hype Malaysia (@hypemy)

It all began on Wednesday (9th August 2017) evening at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, where the cast and director – – Hwang Jung Min, Song Joong Ki, So Ji Sub, Ryoo Seung Wan – were scheduled to make a special appearance at the mall entrance.

Malaysian Korean entertainment fans arrived as early as morning to secure a spot with the best view of the stage. There was even a huge projector screen (that spanned across 3 floors of Pavilion Elite) set up that provided live feed – a treat for those who were there but had their view blocked by the sea of heads. By “sea of heads”, we really mean that the crowd swelled up till as far as the eye can see.

It didn’t take long for the highly anticipated event to start, with the cast and director being chauffeured right up to the entrance of the mall. Upon stepping out of his ride, a very visibly gobsmacked Song Joong Ki exited the car, taking everything in with a genuine look of surprise. The “The Battleship Island” team had a couple of moments to register the sheer havoc (but in a good way) before they were guided towards the stage, but not without offering waves and smiles along the way.

The deafening screams heightened as the “The Battleship Island” cast and director made their way to the stage. Instantly, smartphones and cameras were held up in the air as the crowd grappled to take nice shots of the stars. While the event ran into some minor problems with the microphones, Song Joong Ki lightheartedly responded, “Malaysian fans are so passionate that even our microphones are not working.”

When asked who will survive alone on an island under severe conditions, Song Joong Ki, taking the opportunity to display his playfulness, quickly replied, “Me! I’m the youngest, man.” To which Hwang Jung Min, So Ji Sub, and Ryoo Seung Wan simply nodded and laughed in agreement. Exchanging a fun banter with the host and also amongst themselves throughout the entire red carpet session, the “The Battleship Island” colleagues proved they had a good working relationship.

The session lasted for about half an hour before it was time for the stars to say goodbye to their fans. But it was not over for the members of the media just yet! The next day, Malaysian media gathered around again for a press conference with Hwang Jung Min, So Ji Sub, Song Joong Ki, and Ryoo Seung Wan at The Majestic Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. Unlike the red carpet session at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, the press conference was a closed-door event.

To be continued in part 2 of our “The Battleship Island” coverage.

Special thanks and much love to our friends from GSC Movies for having us at the events :)

Catch “The Battleship Island” when it’s released in a Golden Screen Cinema near you on 17th August 2017!


#ZaynMalik: Singer Accused Of Copying Lil Wayne’s Album Artwork

Zayn Malik unveiled the album cover of his debut solo album, “Mind of Mine”, on Wednesday. On Thursday, he was already on the defence following accusations that he ripped of Lil Wayne’s cover art.

Fans online were quick to call out the former One Direction member for his lack of originality. Twitter has been awash with comparisons on the 2 albums covers, noting the similarities to Wayne’s 2008 album “Tha Carter III”. Both cover arts feature the respective artists as babies with tattoos.

On his “Mind of Mine” cover, the young Malik looks super adorable with his chin resting on his tattooed arms. Wayne’s cover on the other hand, depicts a baby Carter marked up with facial tattoos. Aside from the obvious tattoos, fans were quick to point out that the resemblance extended even from the soft lighting and the black background to the all-caps lettering.

In response to the accusations made against him, Malik took to Twitter to assure fans that wasn’t his intention and that “a lot of artists use it for their own reasons”. He tweeted, “I’m not tryna be no rapper, my album is me a child .. My ideas have been with me a long time” before asking the public to keep an open mind to his art.

I'm not tryna be no rapper , my album is me a child .. My ideas have been with me a long time,

Use your brain, appreciate art don't discriminate what you don't understand

Malik, who previously debut his hit single, “Pillowtalk”, will be debuting his first solo album, “Mind of Mine”, on 25th March 2016.

So what do you think? Is the throwback picture of Malik’s younger self a tribute to Wayne? Or is it down right derivative?

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#PrayForPantaiTimur: Start Of 2015 School Session Postponed

Malaysia’s Education Ministry on Monday (19th Dec) announced the postponement of the start of the 2015 school session for the whole country by one week because of the floods in several states.

The new school session for Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, and Johor was originally scheduled to begin on 4th Jan and for the other states, on 5th Jan.

Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said the new school session would begin on 11th Jan for Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, and Johor, and on 12th Jan for the other states.

“The postponement is inevitable due to the use of several schools as flood evacuation centres and floods at several other schools. It will take time for the teachers, parents and schoolchildren affected by the floods to make the necessary preparations,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, food items and relief supplies have begun arriving by air to Kelantan at the Sultan Ismail Petra Airport, including donations by ordinary Malaysians and non-governmental organisations.

If you too would like to extend whatever help you can (be it via donations or offering to volunteer), here are 11 ways to do so.

The flood victims will be needing the most basic of daily supplies such as:

More so now than ever, it’s time for us to put our differences aside and come together as Malaysians to help them out. Remember, all efforts, however big or small, counts!


Madge Kills It At Ultra Music Festival 2012

The “Queen of Pop” drove the crowd wild(er) when she appeared on stage at the sold out Ultra Music Festival 2012 in Miami. It was one of this year’s biggest Ultra Music Festival surprise for partygoers. Madonna took the stage to introduce EDM star, Avicii, who was working with her for her new single, “Girl Gone Wild“.

Dressed in spandex short shorts, fishnet tights, Chanel fingerless gloves, and an “MDNA” T-shirt, the legendary dance-music queen Madonna also took her appearance to a whole new level when she immediately and openly threw herself into a boiling pot of EDM drama.

To begin with, “MDNA” the title of her new album, is a play of words in reference to the drug “MDMA“. Also known as methylamphetamine, street-named “Ecstasy“.  It took all of only 53 seconds for the pop icon to make one of the biggest boo boo in the EDM scene this year.

She started her speech with briefly gushing about her excitement at being at Ultra, and how amazing Avicii is. Then, she went on to say, “Electronic dance music has been a part of my life since the beginning of my career. I can honestly say a DJ saved my life.”

Which all sounded really sweet, and the crowd cheered. That was until she ended her speech with, “How many people in this crowd have seen Molly?”:

[youtube id=”/d3jYN37a1_I” width=”600″ height=”350″]

“Molly” is also a slang for the active chemical in ecstasy, a drug often associated with EDM. That question alone blew up the entire internet. Blogs, twitter, and music critics alike. Including none other than Canadian EDM performer who was also at the Ultra Music Festival, Joel Zimmerman aka deadmau5.

deadmau5, perturbed and insulted, did not at all mince his words and took the slamming to both his Facebook page, Tumblr, and Twitter account after Madonna’s cameo.

Well, we didn’t expect any less from deadmau5, who has always been known for his very sword-sharp and blunt rants:

Uh, well, drama drama drama. Apparently, Madge’s people have yet to respond. But good to know that deadmau5 kept his PR people busy with this one.

That aside, despite the unexpected controversy (or shall we say, music war), Ultra Music Festival 2012 was a huge success! The three-day gathering with the largest gathering of EDM artistes across eight stages at Bayfront Park chalked up a headcount of over 150,000 partygoers.

For more videos and pictures from Ultra Music Festival 2012, visit their official website.

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(UPDATE) #QZ8501: Ill-Fated AirAsia Plane’s Black Boxes Found

Indonesia’s Directorate General of Marine Transport has confirmed that the black box of AirAsia QZ8501 has been found, Indonesian authorities said in a press release on Sunday (Jan 11). The breakthrough comes exactly two weeks after the flight from Surabaya to Singapore went down with 162 people on board.

In the release, coordinator of the Directorate General of Marine Transport Tonny Budiono said navy divers from Indonesia navy ship KN Jadayat found the black box at a depth of 30 to 32 meters.

The black box is currently wedged between pieces of wreckage making it difficult for divers to retrieve, and due to time constraints, retrieval will take place on Monday morning, said Mr Budiono. The search crew will attempt to retrieve the black box by moving parts of wreckage to loosen it from where it is currently stuck, and if that fails, the same balloon method used to lift the tail of the plane will be employed.

To facilitate recovery efforts, a marker buoy has been installed at the site where the black box is, added Mr Budiono.

According to AFP, Indonesian divers have retrieved the flight data recorder of the AirAsia plane that went down in the Java Sea a fortnight ago with 162 people on board, a crucial breakthrough that should help explain what caused the crash. The recorder, one of two black boxes containing vital information, was brought to the surface at 7:11 am (0011 GMT), said national search and rescue chief Bambang Soelistyo, after a lengthy, frustrating search often hampered by bad weather.

“We succeeded in bringing up part of the black box that we call the flight data recorder,” Soelistyo told reporters in the capital Jakarta. He said that it was found under the wreckage of a wing and added that divers were still hunting for the second black box, the cockpit voice recorder.

#BREAKING Flight data recorder retrieved from crashed AirAsia jet: official

— Agence France-Presse (@AFP) January 12, 2015

The flight data recorder monitors factors such as airspeed and heading, while the cockpit voice recorder stores radio transmissions and sounds in the cockpit.

AirAsia has released an official statement to confirm that both black boxes have been found:

SURABAYA, 13TH JANUARY 2015 – The National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) Republic of Indonesia today announced that Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) of QZ8501 aircraft has been found and lifted from the seafloor this morning. The CVR was found at a distance of approximately 20 meter from the location where the flight data recorder was found yesterday.

Following this finding, BASARNAS confirmed that both parts of the aircraft’s blackbox (flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder) have been evacuated and flown to Jakarta for further investigation by Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT).

Meanwhile in Surabaya, BASARNAS chief, Marshal Bambang Soelistyo visited the crisis center in East Java Region Police Headquarter this afternoon to have a direct dialogue with the families and loved ones of QZ 8501’s passengers and crew.

During the dialogue, Bambang Soelistyo assured the family that the main SAR operation is still on-going and their main priority is to search and recover the passengers despite weather and underwater current challenges faced by the SAR team.

The Disaster Victim Identification Police Department Republic of Indonesia (DVI POLRI) announced that two more passengers have been identified as: Oscar Desano (male) and Yuni Astutik (female) today.

To date, BASARNAS has confirmed to have recovered a total of 48 remains of which 36 remains have been identified by DVI POLRI and 12 remains are still being identified.

AirAsia Indonesia would like to take this opportunity to urge the public seeking progress on the search and evacuation and identification process of QZ 8501 passengers to refer solely to official information from BASARNAS and DVI POLRI.

National Transport Safety Committee senior investigator Mardjono Siswosuwarno told AFP that the black boxes would be sent to Jakarta and analysed at the committee’s laboratory.

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Michael Wong Guang Liang To Perform In Kuala Lumpur This November

Michael Wong, better known as Guang Liang (王光良) will be holding his “Lonely Planet” (今晚 我不孤獨) concert in Kuala Lumpur later in November.

His Malaysian pitstop will come after his North America tour (which includes New York, Los Angeles, San Jose, Toronto and Vancouver) in October. The 38-year-old singer took to his social media to share the announcement over the weekend.

If you recall, Guang Liang held his concert here 3 years ago. Although the last time his concert took place indoors at Putra Indoor Stadium, this time, it’ll be an outdoor event at Stadium Merdeka. For those of you who have been waiting, this is your chance to see him live!

Well known for his hit song, “Tong Hua” (Fairytale), the Malaysian Chinese singer and composer has produced a ton of love ballads and love songs. It’s no wonder Guang Liang, who has over 2 decades of experience in the music industry, has been called Asia’s “Prince of love songs”.

A post shared by 光良 Michael Wong (@michaelxymusic)

The details to Guang Liang’s “Lonely Planet” tour Live in Malaysia are as follows:

Concert tickets will go on sale on 6th September 2018 at 11:11am via TicketCharge.


#ParkSangHyun: Ex-MBLAQ Member Thunder Drops Stage Name For Acting Career

In October 2014, we were all caught off-guard by the rumours of MBLAQ’s Thunder (Cheondung) leaving the K-Pop idol boy group. It was later confirmed in December 2014 that, yes, he was indeed calling it quits, alongside another member Lee Joon following the expiration of their contracts with label J. Tune Camp.

Fans were left wondering about their future plans as it was stated that both Lee Joon and Thunder will be moving forward with their individual activities. At that time, it was yet to be known if they will sign a contract with J. Tune Camp and continue to be managed by the agency.

Just last month, Sports Donga wrote that Thunder officially signed with APOP Entertainment, a sister music label under MYSTIC Entertainment.

Upon the official announcement, a representative of the agency said:

Thunder is an artist that can be distinguished in many different fields with an endless amount of talent and potential. We plan on supporting Thunder in not only expanding his singing career, but also aiding his growth in both his acting skills and variety skills. We also plan on wholeheartedly aiding Thunder’s acting through MYSTIC Entertainment’s sister acting label, Family Actors.

It was revealed that Thunder came to sign with both MYSTIC Entertainment and APOP Entertainment through Cho Young Chul, a music producer for the 2 sister agencies.

Now, it has also been confirmed that Thunder will be dropping his stage name as he pursues his acting career. This means that from this point onwards, he will no longer go by the name “Thunder”. Instead, his future activities will include his birth name, Park Sang Hyun.

The first of his future projects with his birth name will materialise this April in the upcoming MBC weekend drama, “Let The Girl Cry” where he will play Hyun Seo, the nephew of Jin Woo (played by Song Chang Ui).

Well, can’t say that we’re not excited about watching Park Sang Hyun in action, real name and all ;)

Sources: Sports Donga (1), Sports Donga (2), Koreaboo.

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Bryan Singer Talks New X-Men Movie!

Co-written, producer, and directed by Bryan Singer, “X-Men: Days of Future Past” is intended to be the seventh installment in the X-Men film series. Based on the 1981 popular comics storyline, “Days of Future Past” by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, it’s the third X-Men film to be directed by Bryan Singer after X-Men (2000) and X2 (2003).

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” stars some of the respective casts from “X-Men: The Last Stand” and “X-Men: First Class” such as Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Anna Paquin, Shawn Ashmore, and Ellen Page. In addition to the existing cast, they’ve also added James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Oscar-winning Jennifer Lawrence, and Nicholas Hoult. Hugh Jackman, who appeared in the original trilogy and made a cameo appearance in the prequel, as well as having starred in his own spin-off movies, will reprise his role as “Wolverine”.

Over the weekend, Bryan Singer announced that they’ve also recently added French actor Omar Sy to the star-studded cast. Omar previously won praises for his starring role in the film, “The Intouchables”, a comedy about a quadriplegic aristocrat and his home-help from the melting-pot suburbs of Paris.

Bryan took it to Twitter to make the official announcement:

Although Omar’s role in the upcoming film hasn’t been specified, wow. All-star cast? Soon-to-be yet another amazing piece of work by Bryan Singer, who recently worked on “Jack the Giant Slayer”? Above all, a new “X-Men” movie? We have to say that we can’t wait for July 2014 when it’s released!

Sources: CNA, Inquirer Entertainment, Vulture.


Netflix’s “Kate” Review: If You Want John-Wick Level Action Then You’ll Love This

When it comes to the world of modern action cinema, David Leitch has become something of a legend. Bursting onto scenes in 2014 with “John Wick”, he began making a name for himself; with films like “Atomic Blonde” and “Deadpool 2” under his belt. Alongside director Ilya Naishuller and “John Wick” veteran writer Derek Kolstad, he released “Nobody” this year – a delightfully fun romp full of bare-knuckled brutality and a healthy dose of comical levity. In fact, we consider it to be the best action film we’ve seen so far this year.

Now, he brings us “Kate”. A ticking clock thriller directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan. One involving an assassin battling against a horde of Yakuza scum. All set to a brightly lit neon colour landscape of Tokyo. It’s a little hard not to compare “Kate” to Leitch’s “John Wick” and “Atomic Blonde”. So, does “Kate” hold a candle to its older siblings? Can Leitch keep up his golden streak, or will this be his first major blunder? Grab your shotgun and katana, and let’s find out!

Much like Leitch’s other films, “Kate” isn’t really interested about taking its time in building backstory through prolong exposition. Rather, the film simply drops us right in the middle of the action with the story going from zero to eighty in a matter of mere moments. There are occasional flashbacks but they barely take up much time. What the film does focus on is fleshing out the various warring factions in the Japanese underworld. This, of course, includes plenty of machiavellian plots, not-so-shocking betrayals and lots of Japanese themed weapons. Seriously, do these people just walk around with katanas and tantos (Japanese sword) strapped around their belts?!

Does “Kate” feel like the prolonged third act of “Kill Bill Vol. 1” made into a feature length film? The answer is a resounding yes. So with the plot locked on squarely moving the action along at breakneck speed, how does the film find time to humanise Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s super-assassin? Why, a child sidekick of course! To be fair, this isn’t a terrible way to inject some emotional stakes into the plot. It worked out well in “Sweet Tooth”. Unfortunately, Kate’s relationship with her hostage-turned-partner, Ani, is a rushed and cliched arc that does little to inspire.

“Birds of Prey” had a similar runtime of an hour and forty minutes with a million and one characters in it and it still made time to develop Harley’s relationship with Cassandra. Therefore, no excuses. There are some moments of bubbly levity between the two and the plot device of Kate’s poison adds a little more depth to their relationship. Now, if the plot would commit to “Kate” being a solo adventure with Winstead carrying the whole thing, then the lightning-fast pacing would be justified. The introduction of a secondary lead though complicates things when the plot has to attempt to sell us on Kate’s growth as a big sister. Sorry writers, you can’t have your crack-filled high octane cake and eat your character development at the same time.

Speaking of the titular Kate, we love Winstead’s performance as the stoic assassin with the heart of gold. Since her role as Ramona Flowers in 2010’s “Scott Pilgrim v. the World”, we’ve seen her grow as an actress. She’s moved away from her campier days into some heavier roles and has shown in films like “10 Cloverfield Lane” that she is a force to be reckoned with. If anyone could nail an emotionally reserved warrior broken by the fear of death and love, it’s definitely her. Which is why it’s such a shame that she’s hampered by the film’s mediocre writing. Given the right material, she would have absolutely crushed it.

As for her sidekick Ani, the best compliment we can give her is that we didn’t find her insufferably annoying. This is the teen actress’ feature film debut and she certainly does better than Addison Rae in “He’s All That”. She does have some really endearing moments of sass in the film when she’s not screaming our ears off. There’s definitely potential there. Woody Harrelson is in the film and he plays well…Woody Harrelson in every other film. If you’re thinking short-tempered, grizzled uncle-like characters then yes friend, you are on the money! We wished a little more was done with his Harrelson’s Varrick beyond the predictable route they took with him. Trust us, you’ll see the twist coming a mile away.

From choppy pacing to underdeveloped characterisation, so much has been sacrificed on the altar of action. Is the trade-off worth it? Fine, it is. “Kate” knows what action afficianados want and leans right into it. One thing we absolutely abhor are heavily edited fight sequences filmed to blurry shaky cams. There’s none of that bullshit here! Much like Leitch’s other films, Kate uses its R-rating to deliver bone-breaking, blood-soaked brawls with impressive hand-to-hand choreography. We especially enjoyed one visceral fight involving broken wine glasses and a pair of scissors. It’s not quite a pencil but it is still very f**king cool.

By the way, kudos to Winstead for being so heavily involved in all of her stunts. There are close to no cutaways with her being right there in the thick of it. However, she quite can’t match the frenetic energy of folks like Keanu Reeves or Charlize Theron from “Atomic Blonde”. It’s not from a lack of effort mind you. Some scenes calling for rapid reflexes sees her lagging behind with the actors having to sell her performance through their reaction. One could argue that her character was poisoned, therefore Kate isn’t supposed to be functioning at full force. Still, it does break immersion from time to time.

Netflix’s “Kate” is at its best when its speaks through its impressive and visceral action sequences. It helps to drown out the disjointed story and mediocre script. There’s definitely a future for actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the realm of action cinema, and the proof is in the messy blood-soaked pudding. If you’re looking for another fun and disturbing femme fatale action thriller, we recommend checking out “Revenge”. Now that’s how you do it!

So what did you think of Netflix’s “Kate”? Who do you think would win a fight between Kate, John Wick and Lorraine from “Atomic Blonde”? Be sure to let us know in the comments!

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Netflix's "Kate" is at its best when its speaks through its impressive and visceral action sequences. It helps to drown out the disjointed story and mediocre script. There's definitely a future for actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the realm of action cinema, and the proof is in the messy blood-soaked pudding.


YG’s New Girl Group To Debut 15th Jan?

We’ve been hearing so much about the new girl group that’s about to be unveiled by YG Entertainment that it was hard to not want to rummage through the interwebs for more information!

So far, we’ve had highly popular trainees Jennie Kim and Lee Hi. Jennie Kim was already a superstar in her own right after YG released a practice video of her. Her popularity went through the roof when she was later featured in G-Dragon’s “That XX” music video.

[youtube id=”HFQBxmv0GWc” width=”600″ height=”350″]

[youtube id=”j57IzkTFnT8″ width=”600″ height=”350″]

As for Lee Hi, well, you would’ve been living under a rock for the past few months if you’re a K-Pop fan and yet you know nothing about her. She is, of course, YG’s “baby girl”, fresh out of a talent show. One of the rare few YG artistes who had the least training and yet manage to achieve all-kills on music charts the moment she debuted. Did we also add that she’s only 16 years old?

No wonder she has only been receiving nothing but high praises and endless pouring-ins of admiration:

[youtube id=”hDSbYGCW4fI” width=”600″ height=”350″]

Lee Hi will apparently debut with a new girl group later too, named, “SuPearls“. But we don’t know that for a fact yet. Still, it has made fans wonder just how many girl groups YG Entertainment is planning to unveil.

On 20th December, Yang Hyun Suk (CEO of YG Entertainment) said:

Everything about the new girl group that we’ve prepared for so long will be revealed on 15th January. The members of the girl group are not yet confirmed – we’ve recorded each member’s practice sessions over a long period of time and though it’s not a survival competition, we’ll be eliminating one or two revealed members. An existing member who was previously revealed to the public has already left YG’s new girl group. YG’s new girl group will be vastly different than existing girl groups. We’ve decided that the members need to be acknowledged by the public before their debut and we’re planning a fresh promotional strategy.

If by “fresh”, he means to keep all of us aching with curiosity, then Yang Hyun Suk had definitely got his strategy down pat. The company will be posting videos of the members on its official homepage mid-January, before the final members and debut song will be confirmed

Meanwhile, let’s not forget that one of the mysterious girls was featured in G-Dragon’s “결국 (Finally/Without You)”. Until today, there has been neither a name (she was only listed as “? of YG New Girl Group”) nor a face to that voice. YG Entertainment has also previously briefly introduced Kim Eun Bi (one of the top six contestants on “Superstar K2”) and Yuna Kim (from the US auditions of “Superstar K”) via practice vid:

[youtube id=”u7eqi9zTQig” width=”600″ height=”350″]

Which of these girls have already left? Which ones will debut? How different will this new girl group/these new girl groups be from their current all-star girl group, 2NE1? Curiouser and curiouser!

As previously stated, YG Entertainment’s new girl group was supposed to have debuted in January. It’s March now and yet not a peep. They’re now expected to come out with their first release after the summer. This is of course, not the first of YG Entertainment’s abrupt announcements or decisions.

The agency stated that due to the fact that Lee Hi, Kang Seung Yoon, G-Dragon, Taeyang, and 2NE1’s comeback dates have been confirmed for any time from March to the end of this year, the new girl group’s debut had to be delayed.

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#Luhan: Court Refers Case Against SM Entertainment For Mediation

Former EXO member Luhan may have already left the group but his lawsuit against SM Entertainment has not been resolved yet.

Earlier on 10th Oct, Chinese media portal Sina reported that EXO-M’s Luhan has filed a lawsuit against SM Entertainment for an invalid contract. Soon after Luhan filed the lawsuit, he moved on from his past career to venture into the acting industry by taking on a role in the Chinese remake of the Korean film “Miss Granny”.

While Luhan worked hard towards his solo career, both Luhan and SM Entertainment have not been able to resolve the issue and have reached a settlement to confirm the lack of validity in Luhan’s lawsuit. Luhan stated through his lawsuit that SM has given an unfair treatment to the EXO-M members since the beginning of their debut. He also stated that “EXO-M had no promotions, received no financial backing, and endured a difficult time.”

However, SM responded by saying that Luhan is using EXO’s popularity for his personal gains after gaining a lot of popularity as a star through group promotions show. Thus, on 25th Nov, it was decided that the case will be brought to a court-referred mediation.

According to the Seoul Central District Court, the mediation allows both parties to comprise before the beginning of the trials. If the mediation is not successful or one of the parties does not show up, the case will proceed to the court rooms as originally planned.

But meanwhile, what do you guys think? Do you think Luhan and SM Entertainment will be able to compromise? Let us know what you think in the comments box below!


#StarWarsEpisodeVIII: #GotG Star Benicio Del Toro Eyed To Star As Villain

No one is born a villain, but Benicio Del Toro was certainly born with a particular set of skills that allow him to portray a perfect villain or main antagonist in a movie.

The Puerto Rican actor/film producer is reportedly going to play a baddie role in a galaxy far, far away aka the 8th instalment of the “Star Wars” film series. According to TheWrap, an offer has already gone out to the Academy Award-winning actor.

You may have recognise him from last year’s summer blockbuster, Marvel‘s “Guardians of the Galaxy“, but for those who are not in the know, the actor is best known for his role as Javier Rodríguez in 2000’s “Traffic”. The movie earned him an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a BAFTA Award. He is also known for his roles in 1995’s “The Usual Suspects”, 1998’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”, 2000’s “Franky Four Fingers in Snatch”, and 2005’s “Sin City”. His performance in 2008’s “Che” garnered him the “Best Actor Award” both at the Cannes Film Festival in France and at the Goya Awards in Spain.

His most recent film credits include Marvel’s “Thor: The Dark World” and “Inherent Vice”.

With his impressive performance as The Collector in “Guardians of the Galaxy”, Del Toro can certainly join the dark side in the “Star Wars” film franchise. Details regarding his baddie role in “Star Wars: Episode VIII” are still unknown as TheWrap reported that “discussions are still in the very early stages”.

Slated for release on 26th May 2017, the 8th “Star Wars” film will be written and directed by Rian Johnson. It will be produced by Ram Bergman and Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy. The story is expected to follow both J.J. Abrams’ “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and the first “anthology” film titled “Rogue One”.

Del Toro will be seen next alongside Emily Blunt in Denis Villeneuve’s crime drama “Sicario”. He will also star opposite Idris Elba in Harmony Korine’s “The Trap”.

Source: TheWrap / Featured image: haveageekasm.com.


#Urbanscapes2014: It’s A Wrap For #Mogwai & #TenaciousD Satellite Shows

Almost back-to-back, the Urbanscapes 2014 Satellite shows featuring Mogwai and Tenacious D respectively left their adoring fans on an all-time high, and all-time amped up for the Urbanscapes finale happening this weekend (6th Dec). Both shows were held at KL Live at Life Centre, Kuala Lumpur and saw a turnout of more than 1,000 fans per show.

Scottish post-rock band Mogwai consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), John Cummings (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). The band that typically compose lengthy guitar-based instrumental pieces, delighted a capacity crowd of some 1,100 at KL Live at Life Centre, Kuala Lumpur on 30th Nov.

Mogwai was supported by the opening act of the show, Malaysia’s own “Light! Camera! Actiongirl!” DJ duo.

Check out the gallery from the Urbanscapes 2014 Satellite Show featuring Mogwai below:

The Urbanscapes Satellite Show series was concluded with a one-of-a-kind performance by Tenacious D (Jack Black and Kyle Gass) last night. With their funniest songs added to their set list as well as funny onstage antics, the American comedy rock duo delighted a capacity crowd of some 1,800 at KL Live at Life Centre, Kuala Lumpur.

Tenacious D was supported by the opening act of the show, Malaysia’s very own Kyoto Protocol.

Check out the gallery from the Urbanscapes 2014 Satellite Show featuring Tenacious D below:

Buy your Urbanscapes tickets online here. Tickets can also be bought at physical outlets throughout the country. For full list of outlets, look them up here.

For more information on Urbanscapes 2014, visit their website or Facebook page.

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#SpiceGirls: 4 Unreleased New Songs Surface Online

A Spice Girls reunion? Nope, still not happening yet. Though they reunited briefly for a musical and London 2012’s Olympics closing ceremony, we just can’t get enough of them.

But today, devotees of Girl Power may need to prepare themselves for the onset of a panic attack because we have just been given the greatest gift of the world in the form of Soundcloud: the release of the never-before-heard songs from their 3rd and final album, “Forever”.

“Forever” received mixed reviews from the critics and it did not sell as well as their previous 2 albums. However, more than 5 million copies were sold worldwide and it was certified Platinum in UK for selling over 300,000 copies.

“Forever” is also their only album without Geri Halliwell, who announced her departure from the group in 1998 due to differences between them and the exhaustion from touring around. Halliwell’s departure from the group shocked the world and the news became one of the biggest entertainment news stories of the year. Thus, Halliwell’s vocals were not featured in the new tracks that were left unreleased for the past 15 years.

The unheard tracks were uploaded to Soundcloud and they are said to be the demos from “Forever” because it includes an alternate pop version of “Right Back At Ya”, a song that appeared on the 2000 record. As for the remaining 3 songs, they may not be the songs that would become the smash hits but they are most certainly going to be the songs that you can’t and won’t stop listening to.

Check out the songs below (the original Soundcloud links have been removed):

What do guys think about the new songs? Are you falling back in love with them already? Share thoughts in the comment box below.

(Source: Time, The Verge / Featured image)


8 Films You Might Want To Watch In Your 20s

Stepping into the 20s is not as easy as it sounds. You will go through that awkward phase where you realise that you are no longer a teenager but not yet an adult. Armed with more responsibilities in life, there’s no denying that there are some major life changes in your twenties, so much so that you’ll eventually realise that your twenties are simply going to be the best time of your life too.

Sure, you may become a little lost in the process but soon you’ll start to become curious about everything that’s happening in the society. There are other personal things you might be worried about in your life too but that’s okay. Because we’ve gone through that phase and so, we’ve put together a list of movies that you might want to watch during this awkward phase of life:

1.  The Grand Budapest Hotel (or any Wes Anderson’s films)

You see, Wes Anderson always has a way to get us hooked on his films with its whimsical storylines. We were first introduced to him through a clever film of young love “Moonrise Kingdom” after we heard rave reviews on Wes Anderson’s films and his quirky commercials. Most recently, “The Grand Budapest Hotel” became one of our favourite films to watch in 2014.

The film is a way to escape from reality as we step into Wes Anderson’s fantastical world that is armed with a deadpan humour style. Set in a fictitious East European, Alpine country, the story follows the adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the first and second World Wars. When Madame D, a very rich old woman dies unexpectedly in the hotel, he is accused of murdering her as the woman left him a very precious painting. Instead of focusing on the death and despair of the wars, the film centres on Gustave’s friendship with Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy as Moustafa vows to get justice for his friend.

Tired of the typical romantic comedy films? Well, “Life After Beth” could be your thing because Dane Dehaan has emphasised that this film is a “zom-com-rom-dram“. Yes, it’s a zombie romantic comedy drama and no, it’s not going to bore you at all!

Starring Dane Dehaan and Aubrey Plaza, “Life After Beth” is about Zach, a boy who becomes devastated and depressed after his girlfriend, Beth dies unexpectedly. But life decides to give him a second chance and he discovers Beth is resurrected! However, perhaps the dead should remain dead because Zach soon realises that Beth is not the same girl he used to know. Thus, this causes him to make a decision before Beth and the rest of the zombies become more violent than ever.

It’s an interesting film to watch as the film is filled with witty and funny dialogues. It steers clear of the cliches that appears in the typical zombie films and it doesn’t provide you reasons as to why the deads were resurrected. But perhaps that’s the point of the film because it focuses on the different reactions the people had towards the zombies instead of the horror side of the zombies.

Well, this is awkward. So, a medical school dropout named Wallace strikes up a close friendship with Chantry, an animator who lives with her longtime boyfriend Ben. While they try to maintain their distance between each other, their chemistry between them grows stronger, leading them to wonder what it means if your best friend is possibly the love of your life too?

Starring Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, the concept is pretty entertaining as it attempts to tackle the relationship problem that could be happening in real life. While the plot is unoriginal, endless possibilities have been provided for the relationship between the male lead and the female lead. YouTube star Anna Akana helped promote the film through a short film by featuring Daniel Radcliffe too

It’s never too old to read comic books, and it is certainly never too old to watch some of the craziest and most intense comic book scenes being brought to real life through “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”. Besides, the typical superhero film based on the comic book series can get a tad boring even though we enjoy watching them.

Based on a graphic novel, the film is about Scott Pilgrim, a college kid who plays in band which inspires to succeed. While still dating Knives Chau, a high schooler 5 years younger than him, he falls in love with Ramona Flowers, the girl of his dreams – literally. But here’s the problem, he has to break up with Knives Chau while trying to fight off 7 of Ramona’s evil ex-lovers! With their own power and skills, all of the fights are done in the hilarious video game style!

Sounds cool, huh? However, watching the film will make you realise that we are just like Scott as the film forces Scott to stay out of comfort zone in order to experience life and achieve the goal you’ve always dreamed of.

“Reality Bites” is perhaps the most accurate film that represents the feelings we all had after college graduation. It has this emotional impact that hits us hard as the film focuses on the fresh grads’ feeling of being lost, which is often difficult to deal with because what they dreamed to have in life is just not the same reality.

It defines the world of how knowledge isn’t everything and sometimes our passion will lead you somewhere else instead. As shown in the film, Lelaina (played by Winona Ryder) wants to make it big as a documentary filmmaker in the entertainment world but found herself working with a rather unsatisfying job as an intern for a cheesy morning talk show. Just as the title would suggest, the film taught the viewers that dreams doesn’t pay the bills because mutual respect and credibility are things which must be earned before being on top of the career ladder.

There’s a reason why we put this film into the list. It’s because the film is inspired by Will Reese the screenwriter and his own experience with cancer and it’s a story that deserves to be told. Directed by Jonathan Levine, the film casts Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Adam, a radio journalist who fights his cancer with the support from his best friend, Kyle (played by Seth Rogen).

Through “50/50”, you’ll begin to realise that there’s nothing more important than having friendship, love, and positive energy in your life. Cancer can be scary but the film tackles the topic of cancer in a positive way, in the sense that there’s nothing to worry about as long as you keep an open mind. Unlike “The Fault in Our Stars”, the film as well as the dialogues aren’t too sentimental as the emotions just felt so real. The jokes are so spot on that we think it might be a real-life conversation between cancer patients and their friends.

While the gay sex scenes might attract those who are curious about the film, “Kill Your Darlings” tells the story of the great poets of the Beat Generation: Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and William Burroughs. The great poets are played by Daniel Radcliffe, Dane Dehaan, and Ben Foster respectively. For some, it may remind them of the “Dead Poets Society” but these poets are real people who find their unique means of expression in the midst of World War II.

However, the film is strongly based on Allen Ginsberg’s side of the story, which Lucien’s son argued that the story of the film is inaccurate and has been revised to serve Allen’s age and agenda. The story did stray away from the truth and the direction is unclear but perhaps that is intentional as a result of Allen’s agenda. On top of that, it felt like the film focuses more on Allen’s alleged intimate interaction with Lucien, resulting in a love-story kind of film.

Having lived in the human world for so long, vampires can get depressed and tired of the world too. “Only Lovers Left Alive” centres on the story of the centuries-old vampire, Adam (played by Tom Hiddleston) who is reunited with his lover, Eve (played by Tilda Swinton) after becoming depressed and tired of the human world with declined civilisation and blood contaminated by the zombies. In fact, the arrival of Eve’s carefree little sister, Ava, threatens their love and their survival in the world.

Both Adam and Eve have embraced their passion for music and literature, which helps to create a more elegant and artistic vampire film. The film is a little slow with moody scenes but it highlights their eternal love which is almost timeless. Directed by Jim Jarmusch, the film might draw you in with its concept on the society’s civilisation as well as the idea of escapism while displaying true romance in the modern world. One of the things we liked about the film was the excellent soundtrack that helps create the mood of the film.

So, what are some of the films that you would recommend to those who are in their twenties?

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Viral Video Of Entrepreneur Being Splashed With Syrup Was Scripted?

A video went viral online over the weekend, showing a founder of a beauty product, Dato’ Seri Eein, being splashed with a glass of syrup by another male customer at a famous Nasi Dagang restaurant in Shah Alam.

The man was believed to be angry at the young entrepreneur for causing disturbance to other diners at the eatery. Many fans have in turn slammed the customer over his rude actions. He has since apologised after facing tons of backlash from the public.

Despite the heated backlash, there were also a few who claimed that the incident was completely planned and scripted from the very beginning. This came from Facebook user, Nurwati Hussin. In this case, the netizen claimed that each of the individuals involved in the incident have known each other.

She further added that the owner of the restaurant, known as Honeysa Husna, had also appeared in the supposed-victim’s live video in the past. On the other hand, the man, Ridhuan Wan, had previously posted a review of the restaurant’s food on his social media.

Some also argued that Eein was splashed by red paint and not syrup. As pointed out by Twitter user Bunga (@flwrprncss_), the colour of the beverage was so concentrated. Others also argued that the live broadcast session was still carrying on during the intense altercation.

Interestingly, even local rapper-turned-influencer Caprice argued that the incident was simply “fake”. Here’s his take on the issue:

A post shared by  Caprice (@capriceofficial) on Oct 10, 2020 at 4:02am PDT

Following the shocking revelation, Dato’ Seri Eein (full name Muhammad Solihin Abdullah)’s Facebook account has been deactivated as at the time of writing. Marketing gimmick or not, it’s up to you guys to decide.


Malaysian Songbird Yuna To Be Featured In Epik High’s New Album

Malaysian songstress Yuna will be one of the artists featured on Korean alternative hip hop trio Epik High’s upcoming new album, “Sleepless In __________”, which will be released on 11th March 2019.

Epik High’s member Tablo revealed the list of people collaborating with them on their album which includes Suga from BTS, indie singer-songwriter sunwoojunga, R&B singer Crush, and hip-hop artist-producer Code Kunst.

Yuna retweeted the post and fans filled the comment section with nothing but congratulatory and happy wishes.

“Good luck Kak Yuna for the collab release, we Malaysians, are so proud of you changing the setting and doing things that no other are doing, you’re a revolutionary in Malaysia music industry,” read one tweet.

You asked for it.. me & #EPIKHIGH @blobyblo #Coachella2016 pic.twitter.com/Fy6AUrPg2A

Yuna first met Epik High at the Coachella Music Festival in the United States three years ago.


“Please Stick To Culinary”: Fazley Yaakob’s “Gegar Vaganza” Performance Gets Slammed

The eighth season of local singing show “Gegar Vaganza” (or “GV8” in short) kicked off with a bang last night (Sunday, 21st November). During the first week of the competition, Aliff Aziz landed in first place with the highest score of 74.60%, while Datuk Fazley Yaakob came in last with 53.60%.

However, it was later revealed that Fazley (full name Ahmad Fadzli Yaakob) was not eliminated in the first week of the music reality show. With that being said, the 43-year-old celebrity chef managed to quality to the next round of the competition, alongside 12 other participants of the show.

A post shared by Astro Gempak (@astrogempak)

Fazley’s performance of his hit song “Asmara Ini” during the first concert of “GV8” was met with negative reviews from music fans, Oh My Media reported. Through a live broadcast on Astro Gempak’s official YouTube channel, many viewers took to the comments section to leave critical remarks towards the “MasterChef Selebriti” winner.

In this case, a lot of them pointed out the several errors shown in Fazley’s performance on the stage. Not only that, others also criticised his out of tune singing and also his shaky voice. In fact, one commentator even quipped on whether he was performing at a karaoke centre!

The comments left by netizens on Twitter were no different, of course. A lot of social media users stated that the “Gila Bola” actor should focus on being a chef rather than making his return to the music industry. “Okay, Fazley. Please stick to culinary. I don’t want to hear your singing anymore. It’s so bad!” one netizen tweeted.

In response to the mounting backlash, Fazley wrote on his Twitter, “Greetings, for those of you who watched #GegarVaganza8 last night, I’m sorry. The performance was very unsatisfactory last night. Indeed, it’s been almost 10 years since I performed on stage. I was too nervous and a bit emotional while thinking of my kids. God willing, next week will be better.”

In related news about “GV8”, Adibah Noor took to her Twitter to personally apologise to her fans over her unsatisfactory performance of her song “Terlalu Istimewa” during the first week of the singing competition.

According to a report by Murai, the powerhouse vocalist shared, “Dear fans. I was okay before my turn, until I was called to the stage, I was so nervous. I haven’t felt that feeling for a long time. Hence, it interrupted my breathing and delivery techniques. I’m really sorry. I will do better next week. Thank you for your kindness and love.”

The full list of scores for the contestants are listed as follows:

For those interested, you guys can watch the first week of “Gegar Vaganza” season 8 concert here:

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Talk About Junk In The Trunk!

So here’s the deal (pun, intended): Two Bronx neighbours, Priscilla Pena and Michelle Blassingale, were returning from the Dominican Republic. They had just arrived at JFK aboard a JetBlue airliner from Santo Domingo when they were stopped by Customs and Border Protection officers.

Apparently, a drug-sniffing dog alerted officers when it neared Priscilla, but the feds search her luggage without finding any drugs. But upon a conducting a body search (a pat-down and then a strip-search), the feds caught the women wearing a “diaper” filled with cocaine and rigged like a girdle around their hind quarters.

Together, both Priscilla and Michelle were charged with smuggling approximately 6 ½ kilos of cocaine. According to the New York Post, Michelle was held in custody in Brooklyn while Priscilla was released on a USD150,000 bond.

Not trying to make a joke out of the situation or anything like that (drug smuggling is a serious offence) but Black Eyed Peas’ “My Humps” comes to mind:

[youtube id=”iEe_eraFWWs” width=”600″ height=”350″]


Hype’s Movie Review: 4 Reasons Why Avengers: Endgame Is The Best One Of Them All

The moment we all have been waiting for has finally arrived. After 11 years and 22 movies, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has culminated to its peak thus far.

“Avengers: Endgame” finally hits theaters worldwide. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, the highly anticipated picture picks up after the tragedy that occurred in “Infinity War”. If you remember, “Infinity War” ended with a cliffhanger leaving fans confused and devastated.

Thanos wiped out half of the population after gaining the six infinity stones. Now, the remaining members are left to figure out how to undo the damage. With that legendary of a cast and a story, comic book lovers can sure expect a hell out of a ride and walk home feeling delighted.

After watching the film ourselves, here are 4 reasons why we think “Endgame” is the best of the Avengers movies.

Often in superhero flicks, there seems to be a rule book that most superhero movies abide by. One can already predict the storyline even before watching it. For “Endgame” however, there’s a sense of uncertainty to it. Take, for instance, the death of the characters.

For the longest time, when a superhero dies in a movie, fans don’t take it too seriously. This is because there’s a high possibility that they will come back to life. But with “Endgame”, the outcome isn’t guaranteed. In fact, it’s not determined that all of the characters will make it in one piece.

The movie just takes it time to explore the aftermath of the Thanos incident. The characters here aren’t at their best. As a matter of fact, they are struggling to cope with their grieve. While some have accepted it and tried to live on, others hit rock bottom. We don’t often see this in superhero movies.

With this movie, it’s clear to see that the Russo brothers really poured their heart and soul into making it. Unlike “Infinity War”, the scenes didn’t feel that it was rushed, instead, it felt more smooth and well balanced.

In “Infinity War” especially during the beginning, a lot of the scenes were short and quick paced. The focus was clearly to gather them together for the big fight. Hence, we didn’t really get to delve into the characters. “Endgame” on the other hand, took the time to pay attention to the little details.

Speaking of well-balanced, it’s no secret that the movie carries an emotional weight. Despite that, there’s still room for some comedy and joy. The entire thing is filled with scenes that will tear you up, scenes that will make your heart warm, scenes you could laugh too, and scenes that you would want to cheer on.

Of course, what’s a superhero movie without some action?

If you are a fan of action movies, “Endgame” is definitely something you wouldn’t want to miss. Not only were the moves well choreographed and the effects were done beautifully, but the action scenes were also filled with emotions.

Considering how Thanos took everything away from them, you could clearly feel that the characters were translating their anger into every hit. Even if you weren’t a hardcore fan, you can’t help but root for their victory.

Also, with new members like Captain Marvel joining the squad, be prepared for a whole new level of a fight sequence.

“Endgame” marks the end of a chapter. After 11 years, the franchise is bidding its farewell to an era that helped make it what it is today. We must say it was great to see how our beloved characters have grown over the years. In this movie, fans will get to see the characters mature into the people they are meant to be.

All in all, “Endgame” was a masterpiece because it exceeds all of the expectations a superhero movie is supposed to be. Even though, it’s goodbye it definitely feels good to move on and welcome the next chapter.

If you haven’t got the chance to watch it, here’s the trailer:

To stand a chance to win some merchandise, head over here.

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#MaxisONE: Maxis Now Offering Data Upgrade To 20GB For ONE Plan Users

Remember 2 weeks ago when Maxis made the announcement that its current MaxisONE plan users will receive an upgrade for their data quotas with no extra charges? Turns out, the newly upgraded MaxisONE plan is getting even more data!

That’s right peeps, the new MaxisONE revamp is now allowing all current subscribers to enjoy up to 20GB of data. Unlike its other competitors where their offers are only limited to a short-term duration, this auto-upgrade is applicable to all customers permanently for free.

You will still get access to the unlimited calls and SMS bundle for the same fee, while your monthly data is now increased as follows:

In addition, MaxisONE has also rolled out a new feature called the Data Pool, which basically allows users to share their data with others users. The primary line will have the option of allocating how much data each sub-line gets via the MyMaxis app.

Of course the number of supplementary lines will depend on which MaxisONE plan the MaxisONE subscriber has:

As part of the MaxisONE World feature, your family can now use the MaxisONE Data Pool while roaming during your vacation trips when you’re abroad.

To learn more about the Data Pool feature, watch the 90 second clip below:

For more information, visit Maxis’ website or Facebook page.

Sources: Lowyat.NET, Mega Power Tech, Soya Cincau.


Hype’s Now Playing: SISTAR’s Hyorin – I Miss You

SISTAR’s (씨스타) Hyorin (효린) is on a roll!

Shortly after releasing “I Like That”, KBS has enlisted the pop idol queen to participate in their latest Wednesday-Thursday drama’s, titled “Uncontrollably Fond” (함부로 애틋하게), Original Soundtrack (OST) project. The drama stars Kim Woo Bin (from “The Heirs”) as Shin Joon Young, superstar actor, and miss A’s Suzy (from “Dream High”) as No Eul, a documentary producer who values money over justice.

The song, titled “I Miss You”, is the 5th part of the OST project and it is an emotional ballad that represents the 2 leads’ budding love. The track features Hyorin’s beautiful yet soulful voice. Just like the OSTs for “Descendants Of The Sun” (태양의 후예), the almost 4-minute-long music video is a compilation of scenes from the drama.

“Uncontrollably Fond” follows a couple who broke up when they were young due to an unfortunate past, and resumes their relationship again after they meet years later.

Watch the music video for “I Miss You” below:

Hyorin made her debut in 2010 through Starship Entertainment’s SISTAR with their first single, “Push Push”. The group have since released several hit tracks such as “Alone”, “Loving You”, “Touch My Body”, and “Shake It”. Prior to her participation in “Uncontrollably Fond”, she has released OSTs for hit K-dramas such as “Master’s Sun”, “My Love From The Star”, and “Warm and Cozy”.

“Uncontrollably Fond” airs every Wednesday and Thursday at 9:55pm KST on KBS.

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#ParkBoGuminMY: Finding Love In The Moonlight With Park Bo Gum In Malaysia

On Saturday (10th December), South Korean heartthrob Park Bo Gum (박보검) held his very first Malaysian fan meeting, titled “Oh Happy Day”, at KLCC Plenary Hall and it is hands down, the best Hallyu fan meeting we’ve attended this year.

Dubbed the “National Man of Good Influence” by South Korean media outlets, the “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds” (aka “Love in the Moonlight”) actor impressed his fans with his sincere words, sporting character, and bright smile.

With a whopping total of 3,000 odd fans, both young and old, it’s evident that the actor’s fame in Malaysia is on the rise. Some fans even brought their whole family with them. Talk about family bonding game strong!

The event started off with “Chapter 1: Happy Q&A” whereby the emcee, Owen Yap of 8TV, asked Park a couple of questions that were submitted by fans. The actor revealed that he resembles Choi Taek from “Reply 1988” in real life, describing himself as someone who looks soft on the outside but is actually strong on the inside.

A post shared by Hype Malaysia (@hypemy)

When asked about his childhood ambitions, Park answered that he wanted to be everything – be it a singer, pianist, flight attendant, or Korean teacher. After that, he unveiled several personal travel photos taken from Seoul to Hollywood, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Did any of you spot him around Dataran Merdeka last week?

Park then shared his favourite scenes from “Reply 1988” and “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds”. As he is known to be a big family man, both scenes involved his characters (Choi Taek and Lee Young) opening up to their fathers. He even reminded fans that they should spend more time with their family. Aww <3

Watch one of the heartwarming scenes below:

Park also performed 2 songs – “A Little Girl” (소녀) and “Violet Fragrance” (보라빛향기) off “Reply 1988” OST album. The live stage was accompanied by twinkling lights and fans were delighted to hear the actor’s sweet singing voice and smooth piano skills.

For the 3rd session, titled “Happy Dining”, the star tried some iconic Malaysian dishes (satay, nasi lemak, and cendol) and his favourite is none other than satay! He loved it so much that he couldn’t stop eating. After feeding his empty tummy (he skipped lunch because he was nervous about the fan meeting), he made tuna rice balls onstage. Not only did he teach fans how to make his favourite dish, he even put it in 2 lunch boxes for 2 very lucky fans.

(Note: To make Park’s favourite rice balls, all you need is seaweed, tuna, mayo, and a pair of clean hands. Don’t say we didn’t share ?)

In the “Happy Games” segment, Park participated in a total of 5 different activities, including dancing to “Bombastic”, which sent fans into a frenzy. He also donned on a purple baju Melayu, which was given loud approval by fans, judging from their shrieks. Though the star seemed tired, he finished the games with enthusiasm and a big smile.

He ended the fan meeting with a handwritten letter that he wrote on his first night in Malaysia. He wrote:

“Hello, this is Park Bo Gum. I don’t why but I feel awkward writing this. When I first heard about my Asian tour, I was very worried. ‘Me? Will they know who I am?’

“When I first heard about Malaysia being my first stop, I was so anxious because Malaysia is a country that I have not promoted in, even once. Aside from the hot and late arrival, I am very thankful for those who welcomed me at the airport. But at the same time, I felt very sorry. All of you are precious children of your family and they are worried for your safety. I’m also concerned about whether there would be public transport for you to go home.

“I will do my very best to make 10th December 2016 an unforgettable day for both me and my fans. I truly wish that everyone’s life will always be filled with thankful things.”

Lastly, he sang “My Person” off “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds” OST album as the event’s encore. Park even stood outside the hall to greet each and every fan good bye. Isn’t he the sweetest K-Drama actor ever?

We’ll be waiting for you to come back to Malaysia for another “bombastic” fan meeting, Bogummie!

Special thanks to IME Asia for the invite :) Don’t forget to follow IME Asia via their official Facebook page.

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