T-ara to expand singing career into Japan

T-ara [Core Contents Media]

Female K-pop group T-ara will expand their singing career into Japan, according to their agency Core Contents Media on Tuesday.

A press release by Core Contents stated that T-ara has signed a 350 million yen contract with Japanese entertainment firm J-ROCK which plans to cultivate the girls' talents in various aspects of the business including singing, acting and emceeing.

Also, EMI Music Japan will be the girls' record label while Smile Company, under major talent agency Johnny and Associates, will manage the girls' careers in the country which will kick off with a showcase at the Shibuya-AX concert hall in Tokyo on July 5.

Composed of members Eunjung, Hyomin, Jiyeon, Boram, Soyeon, Qri and new member Hyo-young, T-ara made their debut in July 2009 with singles "Lie" and "Wanna Play."

They released their first studio album "Absolute First Album" in December 2009, which produced two hit songs "Bo Peep Bo Peep" and "I Go Crazy Because Of You."

Their last release was their second mini-album in December 2010 which topped various music charts.

Excluding member Ryu Hwa-young who joined T-ara the last, all six remaining members have pursued careers in acting on the big and small screen as well as appearing on entertainment shows.

※ Any copying, republication or redistribution of 10Asia's content is expressly prohibited without prior consent of 10Asia. Copyright infringement is subject to criminal and civil penalties.

Jessica Kim jesskim@