BIGBANG’s G-Dragon showed off his facial hair in some newly posted selfies!
On December 13, G-Dragon took to Instagram to share an update with his fans. The singer posted photos of his customized Nike collaboration sneakers, a bottle of wine, and the logo of his fashion brand PEACEMINUSONE—but it was his two selfies that drew the most attention.
As many fans observed, the first selfie in particular seems specifically angled to put his new beard and mustache on display.
What do you think of G-Dragon’s new look? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Check out all of the photos from his recent update here:
The Korean Business Research Institute has revealed this month’s brand reputation rankings for male idol groups!
The rankings were determined through an analysis of the consumer participation, media coverage, interaction, and community indexes of various boy groups, using big data collected from November 12 to December 13.
BTS topped the list for the 19th consecutive month with a brand reputation index of 12,183,036 for December. High-ranking phrases in the group’s keyword analysis included “MAMA,” “lawsuit,” and “JTBC,” while their highest-ranking related terms included “thankful,” “greet,” and “suspicious.” BTS’s positivity-negativity analysis revealed a score of 64.82 percent positive reactions.
EXO also maintained their position at second place in the rankings this month. The group saw an impressive 67.70 percent increase in their score since last month for a total brand reputation index of 7,248,798.
ASTRO shot up to third place on the list after enjoying a staggering 148.10 percent rise in their brand reputation index since November. The group scored a total index of 3,346,232 for the month.
On December 12, DinDin shared photos on Instagram of shoes he received from Sandara Park. He smiles with Sandara Park in the first photo, and in the second photo, he has put the shoes on a chair as he bows down to them. The shoes in the photographs are limited edition Air Force 1 PARA-NOISE (AF1 PARA-NOISE) which is a collaboration of G-Dragon’s fashion brand PEACEMINUSONE and Nike.
DinDin has expressed his admiration for BIGBANG’s G-Dragon in the past and revealed that he’s such a big fan that his own fans gift him BIGBANG merchandise on his birthday.
DinDin wrote in the caption, “Darasuddenly asked me my foot size and gave me Ji Yong (G-Dragon’s real name)’s sneakers as a gift. She said that I need to wear these more than anyone else does. This is insane. Dara is an angel without wings. This is the biggest surprise and most moving moment of the year. My own older sisters don’t even do this. I’m certain that Dara is an angel. I love you. Sandara Park is the best. I can’t calm down.”
He added more praise for her in hashtags including “princess,” “fairy,” “prettiest in the world,” and promised to support her his whole life.
Sandara Park commented, “I did what the entire nation was hoping for!” and DinDin replied, “You’re the best. I’m going to make wings for Dara.”
Sandara Park previously attended G-Dragon’s private fashion event where he held a “Live Art Performance” for the sneaker launch. She showed support for his collaboration and thanked him for gifting her the sneakers in a sweet post.
Stock market analysts are busy predicting the potential of entertainment agencies in 2020, and YG Entertainment‘s predicted value weighs extremely high on whether the BIGBANG members will renew their contracts.
If BIGBANG promotes, BIGBANG’s profits are predicted to be 30 billion won (~$25 million USD). If not, they will likely reach 10 billion won (~$8 million USD).
— Yuanta Securities Korea Co. Ltd
[YG Entertainment] received lower targets in light of uncertainties regarding BIGBANG’s contract renewals.
— Hanhwa Investments & Securities Ltd
Whether or not BIGBANG resigns with [YG] is the biggest variable for our estimate.
— Mirae Asset Daewoo
Market analysts predict G-Dragon and Taeyang will most likely renew their contract with YG because of the trademarks on their stage names.
YG Entertainment currently holds the Korean copyrights to “G-DRAGON” in both Korean and English. They had filed for the copyrights back in 2003, years before BIGBANG’s debut in 2006.
In 2015, YG filed for the copyrights of “TAEYANG” and “GD X TAEYANG”. They were unable to obtain the copyrights for “Taeyang” in Korean because it is a proper noun meaning the sun.
If G-Dragon and Taeyang decide to leave YG Entertainment, they will not be able to promote with their stage name without the consent and permission from YG Entertainment. G-Dragon will most likely be unable to use even “GD” as it is affiliated with “G-DRAGON” as copyright.
Analysts believe their stage names are a crucial part of their careers as both artists have promoted solely as G-Dragon and Taeyang since their debut. Their birth names are have rarely been utilized in the past 13 years.
Reports also pointed out precedents of previous groups that had also faced similar difficulties. H.O.T, a group that disbanded back in 2001, still face difficulties promoting by their name even today as SM Entertainment holds the rights to their group name. When the members of BEAST left CubeEntertainment, they had to change their group name entirely to HIGHLIGHT after losing their lawsuit.
Analysts believe G-Dragon and Taeyang will most likely renew with YG Entertainment since the company holds the upper hand with their copyrights.
If there is zero chance of all of BIGBANG moving to another agency, G-Dragon and Taeyang will most likely promote as soloists if they don’t renew their contracts.
As such, YG Entertainment has the advantage of getting them to renew since they hold the copyrights.
