KPOPWORLD #5

KPOPWORLD #4

KPOPWORLD #3

KPOPWORLD #2 (Poster Version)

TNX (an acronym for The New Six) is a five-member boy group under P NATION. Originally debuting as six members, the group was formed through the SBS survival program LOUD, a collaboration project between J.Y. Park and PSY. They officially debuted on May 17, 2022 with their first mini album Way Up. The group’s lineup was finalized during the finale of LOUD in 2021, where Kyung Jun, Tae Hun, Hyun Soo, Jun Hyeok, Hwi, Sung Jun, and Tanaka Koki were selected for P NATION’s upcoming boy group. However, in January 2022, P NATION announced that Tanaka Koki would not debut with the team in order to continue training, leading the group to debut as six members under the name TNX. On their debut day, they also introduced their fandom name THX, meaning “Together with TNX.” Following their debut, TNX continued building their discography with releases such as Love Never Dies, Boyhood, and the digital single &quot;Fuego&quot;, while also participating in the survival competition Road to Kingdom : Ace of Ace in 2024. During this period, member Jun Hyeok temporarily paused activities due to anxiety before later returning to the group. In October 2024, it was announced that member Kyung Jun would enlist in the military and depart from the group following the completion of his service, reducing TNX to five members. The group continued activities with releases including the mini album For Real? in 2025 and the digital single &quot;Call Me Back&quot; in 2026, maintaining their growth under P NATION.

TNX 用了四年时间，在舞台表现力上建立起自己的口碑。《Die Another Day》则是他们第一次去 Rock 里寻找那份力量。

TNX 谈 Rock、现场演唱，以及拒绝退缩

在 K-pop 之外，来自东南亚的其他音乐类型，如 P-pop，也正逐渐获得国际关注。引领这一风潮的男团 SB19 即将前往 San Antonio，向大家展示他们究竟为何能做到这一点。

KPOPWORLD Festival 焦点：SB19

XLOV is a South Korean boy group formed by 257 Entertainment and currently managed by [WM Entertainment]. The group consists of four members: Wumuti, Rui, Hyun, and Haru. They debuted on January 7, 2025, with the single album I&#x27;mma Be. XLOV gained attention for promoting a genderless concept, incorporating androgynous styling and performances that challenge traditional gender norms in Kpop. The group&#x27;s name combines &quot;X,&quot; representing the unknown and negation, with &quot;LOV,&quot; symbolizing incomplete love, while their fandom name, EVOL, represents the completion of that concept. Several members were previously known through survival programs before debut. Wumuti, Rui, and Haru participated in Boys Planet, while Wumuti was also active in the project group WATERFIRE before helping form XLOV. The group is particularly noted for Wumuti&#x27;s involvement in songwriting and production, including contributions to their debut release. Since debuting, XLOV has released music including I&#x27;mma Be and I ONE, earning recognition for their distinctive concept, performance style, and growing international fanbase. In 2026, the group&#x27;s management structure changed following the acquisition of 257 Entertainment by WM Entertainment through RBW. Their music primarily incorporates elements of hip-hop, R&amp;B, and pop, while their visual identity and performances have distinguished them as one of the more unconventional rookie acts of the fifth generation of Kpop.

XLOV

自 2025 年 1 月出道以来，XLOV 一直将无性别造型作为整个团体身份的核心，而不只是某位成员偶尔尝试的一种造型

XLOV 的无性别造型如何打破 K-pop 固有框架

Jay Park 将领衔首届 KPOPWORLD Festival，如果你了解他的经历，就会明白这个安排再合理不过

KPOPWORLD Festival Spotlight：Jay Park

作为 KPOPWORLD Festival 的第二位主打阵容，独立摇滚乐队 The Rose 带来了一种令人耳目一新的真实感

KPOPWORLD Festival 聚焦：The Rose

BLACKPINK is a four-member South Korean girl group formed by YG Entertainment, consisting of Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa. They debuted on August 8, 2016 with Square One, led by &quot;Boombayah&quot; and &quot;Whistle,&quot; and arrived as YG&#x27;s first new girl group after 2NE1. From the beginning, the group was presented less as a large idol ensemble and more as four sharply individualized performers, each with a distinct vocal tone, visual identity, and public role. The group&#x27;s name captures the tension that became central to their image: &quot;black&quot; for a harder, more self-assured edge and &quot;pink&quot; for glamour, playfulness, and pop accessibility. Their music often builds around that contrast. Jennie and Lisa&#x27;s rap sections give many songs a clipped, percussive center, while Jisoo and Rosé&#x27;s vocals provide melodic lift and emotional color. This structure made BLACKPINK songs easy to recognize even across different producers, languages, and markets; the group could move from the spare whistle hook of their debut to the maximal drops of &quot;DDU-DU DDU-DU&quot; and still feel like the same act. BLACKPINK&#x27;s rise was also shaped by scarcity. Compared with many idol groups, they released relatively few songs in their first several years, which made each comeback feel closer to an event than a routine promotional cycle. That strategy had tradeoffs, but it concentrated public attention on a small set of songs, videos, styling choices, and stage moments. Tracks such as Kill This Love, How You Like That, Pink Venom, and Shut Down became reference points for a global-facing K-pop style built around impact, visual clarity, and immediately repeatable hooks. Their international growth came from more than chart performance. BLACKPINK connected K-pop&#x27;s idol system with the language of global pop, luxury fashion, digital fandom, and festival stages. They were the first Korean girl group to perform at Coachella in 2019 and returned in 2023 as the first K-pop act to headline the festival. Collaborations with Western pop artists, major fashion-house relationships, and an unusually large YouTube and social-media footprint helped make the members visible to audiences who did not necessarily follow Korean music closely. As individual artists, all four members developed major careers in music, acting, fashion, and brand work, making BLACKPINK one of the clearest examples of a modern K-pop group whose group identity and solo identities reinforce each other. After renewing with YG for group activities, the members&#x27; individual paths became more independent while BLACKPINK remained active as a shared brand and performance unit. Their significance is not only that they broke records, but that they helped normalize a model where a K-pop girl group could operate simultaneously as an idol act, a global pop project, and a set of four standalone celebrity careers. The fandom is known as BLINK.

BLACKPINK

8 月 19 日，JENNIE 的个人经纪公司 Odd Atelier 宣布，她将在 8 月下旬发行一张全新 EP。

JENNIE 宣布将于 8 月下旬推出新 EP

Cortis, is a South Korean boy band formed by Big Hit Music. The group consists of five members: Martin, James, Juhoon, Seonghyeon, and Keonho. They debuted on August 18, 2025, with the digital single “What You Want&quot; followed by their first EP, &quot;Color Outside the Lines&quot;. The group’s name is derived from the phrase “Color Outside the Lines,” reflecting their concept of creative freedom and nonconformity. Cortis has been promoted as a self-producing “creator crew,” with members participating in songwriting, choreography, and visual direction. Blending pop, hip-hop, and experimental elements, the group gained early attention for their performance skills, self-produced content, and strong rookie-year sales, establishing them as one of Big Hit Music’s newer generation acts.

CORTIS

新锐男团 CORTIS 在由观众投票决定的 MTV VMAs 中获得两项提名，分别是 Best New Artist 和 Best K-pop 类别

CORTIS 获 MTV VMAs 两项提名

AtHeart is a seven-member girl group under Titan Content. The lineup consists of Arin, Michi, Katelyn, Bome, Seohyeon, Aurora, and Nahyun. The group introduced its members gradually from 2024 into 2025, released the pre-debut single Good Girl (AtHeart), and officially debuted on August 13, 2025 with Plot Twist. Their fandom is known as Heartbeat. AtHeart&#x27;s early identity centers on polished pop, individual member visibility, and a social-media-friendly rollout that lets each member show a distinct personality. After debut, the group expanded the Plot Twist era with Plot Twist (English ver.) and Plot Twist (Remixes), then continued with singles such as Shut Up and Butterfly Doors.

AtHeart

新人女团 AtHeart 发布了新单曲“3!4!”，并同步宣布推出同名宣传多平台剧集

AtHeart 发布新单曲“3!4!”并推出多平台剧集

本周在YouTube上，K-pop无处不在——而数据本身就足以说明这一点，无需额外证明

KATSEYE的<WILD>到来，ATEEZ和Stray Kids为K-pop在YouTube的强势一周再添一把火

K-pop 的练习生制度被广泛认为是音乐产业中最系统、最严格的艺人培养模式——而它的起源并不在 K-pop

练习生制度解析：K-pop 明星是如何诞生的

在 Islington Assembly Hall 开门迎客之前，KANG YUCHAN 和 from20 就先带我们走进后台，看看这两位冉冉升起的新星登台前的准备瞬间

KANG YUCHAN & from20 的 Body Talk Tour 伦敦后台直击

虽然像 Big 4 这样的大型 K-pop 公司仍被视为韩国偶像产业的头部经纪公司，但其他中型厂牌也在稳步崛起，成为真正能够影响音乐与偶像文化的重要玩家。

超越 Big 4：K-pop 中型厂牌如何赢下长期战局

SHINee is a boy group formed by SM Entertainment, debuting in May 2008 with &quot;Replay.&quot; The group consists of Onew, Jonghyun, Key, Minho, and Taemin. SM promoted them as a &quot;contemporary band,&quot; a phrase that fit their role as trendsetters in music, choreography, styling, and performance. SHINee&#x27;s catalog moved quickly from the smooth youthfulness of &quot;Replay&quot; into sharper electronic pop and hybrid performance tracks. Later records like &quot;View&quot; and &quot;1 of 1&quot; showed how far they could push taste while staying accessible, bringing deep house, retro R&amp;B, and fashion-conscious presentation into mainstream idol pop. Their dances were often technical without feeling stiff, and their vocals gave even experimental tracks a polished center. The members built unusually strong individual identities: Onew as a warm vocalist, Jonghyun as a songwriter and one of K-pop&#x27;s most expressive singers, Key as a style and variety standout, Minho as an athletic performer and actor, and Taemin as a solo performer whose work influenced later idols. Jonghyun&#x27;s death in 2017 remains an important and painful part of SHINee&#x27;s history, and the group&#x27;s later activities are often understood through both grief and continuity. SHINee&#x27;s fandom is known as Shawol. Their legacy is deep because they were not only popular; they were influential in ways that became part of K-pop&#x27;s basic vocabulary. Later groups inherited their emphasis on difficult choreography, distinctive styling, strong solo identities, and the idea that idol pop could be both polished and genuinely adventurous.

SHINee

SM Entertainment 已宣布，MINHO 将于 2026 年 9 月 7 日携《Make it Hot》以 solo 身份回归。此次消息是在 SHINee 6 月发行的团体专辑《Atmos》宣传活动结束后公布的。

SHINee 的 MINHO 将于 9 月发行第二张迷你专辑《Make it Hot》

I.O.I is an 11-member project girl group under Swing Entertainment formed through Mnet&#x27;s survival show Produce 101. The group was managed by YMC Entertainment and CJ E&amp;M, and officially debuted on May 4, 2016 with the mini album Chrysalis and its title track Dream Girls. Their name stood for &quot;Ideal of Idol&quot;, reflecting the show&#x27;s premise of creating a &quot;national girl group&quot; chosen directly by viewers. The final lineup consisted of Nayoung, Chungha, Sejeong, Chaeyeon, Kyulkyung, Sohye, Yeonjung, Yoojung, Mina, Doyeon, and Somi. Because the members came from different agencies, I.O.I was always planned as a temporary group. During their short run, they promoted both as a full group and as a sub-unit, releasing songs like Whatta Man, Very Very Very, and Downpour. Despite being active for less than a year, I.O.I became one of the most influential project groups in K-pop. Their success helped prove the power of survival-show fandoms and paved the way for later Produce groups like Wanna One, IZ*ONE, and X1. After their disbandment in January 2017, many members continued in the industry as soloists, actors, or members of groups such as Weki Meki, gugudan, DIA, PRISTIN, Cosmic Girls, and JEON SOMI as a solo artist. In 2026, I.O.I reunited for a special 10th anniversary project, marking their first major group comeback in nearly a decade. The reunion featured nine members, with Mina and Kyulkyung not participating, and included the EP I.O.I : Loop, a pre-release track, and anniversary concerts in Seoul before additional Asia tour stops. Although I.O.I began as a temporary group, their legacy has lasted far beyond their original contract, making them one of K-pop&#x27;s defining examples of how a short-lived project group could leave a permanent mark.

I.O.I

Chungha 将于 2026 年 9 月 1 日推出全新数字单曲“México”。该消息由 Chungha 的经纪公司 MORE VISION 发布。

Chungha 将于 9 月 1 日发行数字单曲“México”

Stray Kids is an eight-member boy group under JYP Entertainment, consisting of Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N. The group was introduced through the 2017 survival program Stray Kids and officially debuted in March 2018 with I Am Not, following the pre-debut release &quot;Hellevator.&quot; Former member Kim Woojin left in 2019. The group&#x27;s identity is unusually tied to self-production. Before debut, Bang Chan had already gathered the members around a team-first concept, and the production trio 3RACHA -- Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han -- became the engine behind much of Stray Kids&#x27; sound. That gave the group a different center of gravity from many idol acts: the music often felt like it came from inside the team rather than being assigned to them. Musically, Stray Kids are known for dense rap writing, aggressive electronic textures, sudden rhythmic switches, and choruses built for performance impact. &quot;God&#x27;s Menu,&quot; &quot;Back Door,&quot; &quot;Thunderous,&quot; &quot;Maniac,&quot; and &quot;S-Class&quot; made their style easy to identify: noisy in the intentional sense, but organized around hooks, slogans, and choreography that fans could immediately hold onto. Their lyrics often return to pressure, self-definition, ambition, and the awkward process of growing into confidence. The members&#x27; contrast is a major part of the group&#x27;s appeal. Bang Chan anchors the team as leader and producer; Changbin and Han give the rap line speed and personality; Lee Know, Hyunjin, and Felix shape the performance image; Seungmin and I.N bring clearer melodic balance. Rather than smoothing those differences out, Stray Kids usually lean into them, making their songs feel crowded, restless, and unmistakably theirs. Stray Kids became one of the defining global boy groups of the fourth generation, with a fandom known as STAY and major touring success across Asia, North America, Europe, and beyond. Their rise helped prove that a self-producing idol group could scale internationally while keeping a specific sonic fingerprint. Even when the group experiments with genre or language, the core idea remains stable: Stray Kids make high-impact pop out of tension, noise, teamwork, and control.

Stray Kids

JYP Entertainment 旗下的 Stray Kids 凭借 THIS &amp; THAT 夺得 Billboard 200 第九次冠军，成为历史上唯一达成这一成就的亚洲艺人

Stray Kids 凭借 ‘THIS & THAT’ 创下 Billboard 200 第九个冠军纪录

&nbsp;本周的《Last Week In K-pop, Interpreted》在问：要跟上节奏，到底要付出多少？V 和 Jungkook 面临身体负担，Gunil 的离队暴露出与经纪公司之间的脱节，BIGBANG 证明回归不一定非得全员到齐，而 NCT 127 则在四年后重返美国。&nbsp;

K-pop 上周回顾解读（2026年8月10日 - 8月14日）

KATSEYE is a multinational girl group formed through the reality competition series Dream Academy, a collaboration between HYBE and Geffen Records. The group debuted in June 2024 with the single &quot;Debut&quot;. KATSEYE consists of six members from different countries: Daniela Avanzini, Lara Rajagopalan, Manon Bannerman, Megan Skiendiel, Sophia Laforteza, and Yoonchae Jeong. The group was created to combine Kpop training with a global pop approach, featuring members from North America, Europe, and Asia. The group first gained attention through the documentary series The Debut: Dream Academy (or Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE on Netflix), which followed the trainees&#x27; journey during the Dream Academy project and the process of forming the final lineup. KATSEYE&#x27;s music blends elements of pop, dance, and K-pop-influenced production while targeting a global audience with multilingual promotion and international activities.

KATSEYE

在相隔不到六个月的时间里，KATSEYE 有两位成员先后暂停团体活动——先是 Manon，如今是 Sophia——而就在这几周内，组合的首部纪录片、第三张 EP 和出道巡演也接连登场。

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