Author: Carmen Chin

IVE enter a fantasy world in vibrant music video for ‘Heya’

Their second mini-album ‘IVE Switch’ is out now

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K-pop girl group IVE have dropped their sophomore mini-album ‘IVE Switch’, alongside a music video for title track ‘Heya’.

Both the album and music video dropped on April 29 at 6pm KST, marking their first music of 2024. The new album features six new tracks including ‘Heya’, with B-sides such as the Wonyoung-penned ‘Blue Heart’, ‘Accendio’ and more.

In the music video for ‘Heya’, the six members of IVE are seen traversing a colourful world that appears to be made of paper mache as they perform the choreography to the upbeat new song.

“Heya, heya, heya / It’s time to swallow you in a bite / Heya, heya, heya / It’s already my victory / When I see you, I can’t resist,” they chant on the chorus.

In a press statement about the new album, Wonyoung said: “This is an album in which many unique attempts are made to show a more expanded ‘different [us]’ based on the independent and confident appearance that we previously showed.”

She also spoke about ‘Blue Heart’, a song she wrote about the scrutiny female idols face in the K-pop idols. “The lyrics of the song focused on capturing IVE’s mature side, in line with [the album’s] concept. It gave me an opportunity to think about a different side of myself.”

‘IVE Switch’ comes six months after their last mini-album ‘IVE Mine’, which featured three hit songs: ‘Off The Record’, ‘Baddie’ and ‘Either Way’. That record also featured B-side ‘OTT’, written solely by Wonyoung.

IVE are currently in the middle of their first-ever world tour ‘Show What I Have’, which has brought them to numerous cities across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The band were also announced as part of the line-up of this year’s Lollapalooza in Chicago.

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ENHYPEN announce special album ‘Memorabilia’, out next month

For ‘Dark Moon’, an original webcomic based on the band

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NME

ENHYPEN will be dropping a brand-new special album next month titled ‘Memorabilia’ for their original webcomic Dark Moon.

ENHYPEN announced the new album on April 29 at midnight KST via the official social media channels for Dark Moon, the original webcomic and novel based on the ENHYPEN members. Titled ‘Memorabilia’, the special album is due out on May 13 at 6pm KST.

The announcement also included the first teaser image, which features a pile of VHS tapes with various labels, which comes together to spell “What we must never lose”. Other details such as tracklist and title track will be announced at a later stage.

‘Memorabilia’ will mark ENHYPEN’s first new music release of 2024. It will follow their November 2023 mini-album ‘Orange Blood’, which was led by  the hit title track ‘Sweet Venom’.

ENHYPEN are currently on the North American leg of their ongoing ‘Fate Plus’ encore tour, with two shows in Chicago and Belmont Park respectively left in May. The encore tour kicked off in Seoul in late February, before the band left for the US in April.

In celebration of Spotify’s 10th anniversary of its ‘K-Pop ON!’ playlist, ENHYPEN released a special Spotify Singles cover of BTS’ ‘I Need U’. MONSTA X’s Shownu X Hyungwon as well as STAYC also participated in the Spotify project.

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NewJeans bring back the early-2000s in ‘Bubble Gum’ music video

The first of their upcoming May single album, ‘How Sweet’

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NME

K-pop girl group NewJeans have released a music video for their latest single ‘Bubble Gum’.

Released on April 26, ‘Bubble Gum’ marks the end of a nine-month hiatus for NewJeans. The music video features the quintet spending quality time with one another, teaching each other how to blow a bubblegum and playing by the beach as Hyein records everything on her camcorder.

“From its beginning to end, the clip captures the natural sides of the members, who blow bubble gum and play pranks on each other,” NewJeans’ label ADOR said of ‘Bubble Gum’ in a statement, per The Korea Times. “It is a song that’s easy to listen to.”

 

‘Bubble Gum’ is one of two songs from NewJeans’ upcoming May single album ‘How Sweet’. The girl group will also release a Japanese single album called ‘Supernatural’ in June, followed by a world tour that is currently scheduled for 2025.

The release of ‘Bubble Gum’ comes amid a highly publicised battle between ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin and HYBE, which owns majority shares in the K-pop agency, over the ownership of the NewJeans label.

Last week, Min Hee-jin denied claims made by HYBE that the ADOR CEO had planned to takeover the K-pop agency in a press conference. Notably, the sweater worn by the music executive during the event sold out less than 24 hours later.

HYBE has since responded to claims made by Min in a statement, alleging that the ADOR CEO had “distorted the facts by mixing up the timeline”, while claiming that they “can refute all claims with evidence”.

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Stray Kids’ Han, NMIXX’s Bae collaborate on new track, ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5’

The latest instalment of ‘SKZ-RECORD’

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NME

Stray Kids‘ Han and NMIXX‘s Bae have joined forces on a new song, titled ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5’.

‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5’ was released on April 27 as the latest instalment of ‘SKZ-RECORD’, the ongoing series of covers and song releases by members of Stray Kids. Notably, Bae’s feature on the new track marks one of the few guest features on any ‘SKZ-RECORD’ entry.

Han is credited on ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5’ as its sole writer as well as a co-producer. The video features an animated cover art for the track, depicting an empty street in the middle of the night. Bae takes on the song’s second verse, before she joins Han on the remainder of the track.

The eight-piece last music release was their November 2023 mini-album ‘ROCK-STAR’, led by title track ‘LALALALA’. As with the rest of Stray Kids’ discography, all songs on ‘ROCK-STAR’ were co-written, composed and arranged by the group’s production sub-unit 3RACHA.

They are due to drop a new single featuring American singer-songwriter Charlie Puth titled ‘Lose My Breath’ on May 10, which has been touted as a “warm-up” to Stray Kids’ upcoming summer album.

Meanwhile, both Stray Kids and NMIXX, along with ITZY and J. Y. Park, collaborated on a song called ‘Like Magic’ in February. The track was made and released in collaboration with Coca-Cola, as part of promotional efforts for the brand’s new zero-sugar drink called Coca-Cola K-Wave.

In January, NMIXX made their comeback with their latest mini-album ‘Fe3O4: Break’, headlined by title track ‘Dash’. Ahead of the project’s arrival, NMIXX also dropped the powerful pre-release single ‘Soñar (Breaker)’ in December 2023.

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RIIZE drop music videos for two new songs, ‘9 Days’ and ‘One Kiss’

They also dropped a third new song, ‘Honestly’

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NME

RIIZE have released music videos for two new songs, ‘9 Days’ and ‘One Kiss’, from their upcoming mini-album ‘RIIZING’.

Both music videos were released on April 28 and marks the second and third tracks from RIIZE’s upcoming mini-album ‘RIIZING’ to receive video treatments. They follow the track ‘Impossible’, which the boyband earlier this month.

The visual for ‘9 Days’ features nostalgic, archival footage of the band across numerous milestone events, including live performances, backstage rehearsals and more. Meanwhile, the ‘One Kiss’ music video takes on the format of a casual vacation vlog of RIIZE enjoying some free time in Europe.

SM Entertainment described ‘9 Days’ in a press statement as a “dance song with energetic synths and drums”, with the lyrics saying “they are busy enough to feel like a week lasts nine days”. ‘One Kiss’, on the other hand, is billed as RIIZE’s first fan-dedicated song.

Aside from ‘9 Days’ and ‘One Kiss’, the band also released another B-side titled ‘Honestly’ on digital streaming platforms, described as an “R&B-pop song that combines soft and dreamy synth pads, trap drums and sweet vocals”. A “live clip” of ‘Honestly’ will be released on May 1.

All three new songs, alongside two previously released singles ‘Siren’ and ‘Impossible’, are now available to stream as part of the full ‘RIIZING’ record, which is due out alongside the album’s official title track sometime in June..

The group will also embark on their 2024 ‘RIIZING Day’ fan-con world tour prior to the release of the mini-album, with shows in Korea, the US and more.  ‘RIIZING’ is set to mark RIIZE’s second music release of 2024, following the single ‘Love 119’ in early January.

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Gyubin releases ‘Special’ with NELL’s Kim Jong-wan

The final installment of her collaboration project trilogy has arrived

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South Korean singer Gyubin has released ‘Special’, a brand-new collaboration with NELL’s Kim Jong-wan.

‘Special’ is the final instalment of Gyubin’s collaboration project trilogy. The first two releases were ‘Scribble’ with rapper Wonstein in September 2023 and ‘Start To Shine’ which features Dynamic Duo’s Gaekko in December 2023.

“I made this track with nervousness, excitement, and gratitude, and it was great to work with Kim Jong-wan of NELL, a senior whom I truly respect,” Gyubin said of the new track in a press release.

“Ultimately, ‘Special’ sings hope. I hope this song can be a huge support to everyone who is going through a hard time,” Kim said of the inspirational new song. He also took charge of writing and producing ‘Special’.

“Just shout it out / So that the whole world can hear you / Shout it out / Show who you are to the world / Spread your wings out and soar into the sky / This is your universe,” they sing on the chorus.

‘Special’ is also billed as a gift to Gyubin’s fans in celebration of 100 days since she debuted with the single ‘Really Like You’ in January this year.

In other K-pop news, BTS’ RM has announced the upcoming release of his second solo album, ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’. Due out late next month, the record will mark his first music since enlisting for mandatory military service in December 2023.

According to a statement from Big Hit Music, ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ will include 11 new tracks that “captures some of the universal emotions that we all experience at some point in life, such as the feeling of being an outsider who doesn’t fit in”.

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Sweater worn by ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin during press conference sells out in under a day

Both variations of the sweater sold out less than a day following the press conference

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NME

The sweater worn by ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin during a press conference where she refuted claims by HYBE has sold out.

Yesterday (April 25), Min Hee-jin, the CEO of NewJeans‘ agency ADOR, which is also a subsidiary of HYBE, held a press conference where she denied claims by HYBE that she planned to take over the K-pop label. The music executive also levied other accusations against the entertainment giant.

Despite many netizens criticising her appearance and attire during the press conference, others had seemingly taken a liking to the music executive’s outfit with Koreaboo reporting that the sweater own by Min had sold out in less than a day after the event.

Her green stripped sweater is the Organic Cotton Long-Sleeve Cut and Sew from Japanese apparel brand California General Store, which retails for 8,800 yen (about £45). The same sweater is only available in two colour ways – the green as seen on Min and a cream-coloured version. Both versions were sold out on the store’s website.

Elsewhere, in the saga between HYBE and ADOR, the entertainment giant has since responded to the claims levied by Min against the company in a new statement, alleged that “so much [of what Min claimed during the press conference] is far from the truth”.

The statement is the latest in the growing feud betweenHYBE and its subsidiary. It first started on Monday (April 22) when the audit team of HYBE launched an investigation into ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin over alleged plans to takeover ownership of the K-pop agency.

In the following days, Min accused HYBE of “undermining” the success of K-pop girl group NewJeans by creating a copycat version of the quintet. Meanwhile, HYBE said that it will file a complaint against executives of K-pop agency ADOR over a breach of trust and other allegations.

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Four K-pop idols allegedly “detained” in Bali over lack of filming permit

They reportedly had their passports confiscated and won’t be able to return to Korea until next week at the earliest

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NME

Members of Apink, Girls’ Generation and more have allegedly been “detained” in Bali, Indonesia after reportedly filming a show in the country without permit.

Today (April 26), South Korean news outlet SPOTV reported that four K-pop idols – Girls’ Generation’s Hyoyeon, Apink’s Bomi, Secret Number‘s Dita and ex-I.O.I member Nayoung – have been detained in Bali, alongside other cast and crew members of the upcoming reality television programme Pick Me Trip in Bali.

According to the news outlet, the K-pop idols arrived in Bali on April 21 and were scheduled to leave on April 25. However, their departure from Bali was stopped after local authorities discovered that the show the was being filmed without appropriate permits.

All of the cast and crew, which amounts up to around 30 individuals, have allegedly had their passports confiscated and are currently residing in a hotel while the case is under investigation. According to SPOTV, the earliest they will be able to return to Korea would be early next week.

Citing an unidentified agency representative, SPOTV reported that the detainment was due to a “visa issue”, as translated by Koreaboo.  The individual also alleged that they were “able to get in contact with [the cast and crew” as of yesterday evening” and believes that they “will be able to return following their investigation”.

“The cast members don’t even know why they have been detained. It’s frustrating that the production team is not sharing details about the situation in a reasonable manner,” the representative added. “I think we will understand the situation once the investigation is complete. We are working so that they can return to Korea as soon as possible.”

A representative from KBS Joy, the channel that is expected to air Pick Me Trip in Bali, said in a statement to Xportnews that it has “no connection with the production company that was filming in Bali” while also noting that the “broadcast of the program has not been finalised”.

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BTS’ RM announces second solo album, ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’

It marks his first music since enlisting for mandatory military service in December last year

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NME

BTS‘ RM has announced the upcoming release of his second solo album, ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’.

Big Hit Music announced RM’s ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ today (April 26) through BTS’ Weverse page. In its post, The K-pop agency also included a teaser image for the record, which features abstract, monochrome doodles of what appears to be an art gallery.

Due out on May 24 at 1pm KST, ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ is being described as an “11-track album that captures some of the universal emotions that we all experience at some point in life, such as the feeling of being an outsider who doesn’t fit in”.

It also added that ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ “falls within the alternative genre, boasting a rich sound coupled with frank, honest lyrics”. Details such as tracklist and title track will be disclosed at a later stage.

The forthcoming release of ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ will mark RM’s first music since he enlisted into the South Korean military for mandatory two years of service in December 2023. His last release was his solo debut album, ‘Indigo’, which dropped in December 2022.

Led by title track ‘Wild Flower’, ‘Indigo’ included nine other tracks – all of which were co-written by RM himself. Production on the record was handled by long-time BTS collaborator Pdogg, john eun, HONNE, eAeon, among others.

The record also features several collaborative tracks, namely ‘Yun’ with Erykah Badu, ‘Still Live’ with Anderson .Paak, ‘All Day’ with Tablo of Epik High, ‘Hectic’ with Colde, and ‘Closer’ with Mahalia and Paul Blanco.

In other BTS news, an upcoming pop-up event called ‘Monochrome’ by BTS has announced several brand-new international locations, including Bangkok, Los Angeles, Jakarta and more. It will be available from April to June this year, with specifics dates varying per location.

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BIBI and Jackson Wang drop sultry music video for ‘Feeling Lucky’

The pair first debuted the song at Coachella

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NME

BIBI and Jackson Wang have dropped a music video for their new collaboration, ‘Feeling Lucky’.

The sultry visual largely features BIBI and Jackson Wang in intimate close-up shots as they performing the song while embracing one another. It comes just weeks after the duo debuted ‘Feeling Lucky’ live during week one of Coachella 2024, as part of 88rising’s ‘Futures’ set.

“Something about the way that it taste / You’re running your mouth at a dangerous race / You know what to do and you know what to say / Even when you’rе away, I’m always thinking ’bout you,” they harmonise on the song.

 

‘Feeling Lucky’ marks Jackson Wang’s first music release of 2024. Last year, Wang released the standalone single ‘Cheetah’ in April, the music video for which included a teaser for an upcoming project dubbed ‘Magic Man 2’, though there have been little updates since.

Meanwhile, BIBI recently released the song ‘Eve’, a tie-in song for the brand-new PlayStation 5 title Stellar Blade. The song was named after the game’s protagonist, with its music video featuring references to the Stellar Blade universe and gameplay.

In other K-pop news, WAKEONE has confirmed that girl group Kep1er are currently still undergoing discussions regarding contract extensions. The company’s statement came after numerous reports that the K-pop act would disband in July.

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