[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids announces int’l tour schedule

Stray Kids will kick off its international tour on April 30, announced label JYP Entertainment on Monday.

Starting with two concerts in Seoul, the band will fly off to Kobe, Japan in June and hop off to Tokyo the following week. On June 29, it will head to the US and visit fans in seven cities and wrap up with final two-day performances in Tokyo on July 27. More concerts may be added as the “And More” phrase from the poster hinted.
It has been almost 2 1/2 years since it hosted an on-site concert.

The tour is named after the main track, “Maniac,” from its upcoming album “Oddinary” which will be released on March 18.

The new EP will consist of seven tracks and all eight members participated in writing the songs. 3Racha, songwriting trio within the band, co-wrote the main track.

Its last album was second LP “Noeasy” from August last year that sold over 1.3 million copies.

Kim Wooseok returns with 3rd solo album

Kim Wooseok came out with his third solo EP “3rd Desire [Reve]” and held an online showcase Monday.

It has been approximately one year since his previous EP “2nd Desire [Tasty]” and he apologized for making his fans wait.

“It took me close to a year since I can’t multitask,” he said sheepishly.

The new extended play is made up of six tracks and he was confident that everyone could listen to them comfortably regardless of preferred concept. It is the last of his three-part “Desire” series and themed around the desire for sleep. He wanted to portray “an ambiguous feeling that borders between dream and reality.”

Even though he just wrapped up a drama, he not only had his hands on the lyrics and melodies of all tracks but also oversaw the production of the whole EP.

“What fans would like is the first thing I think of,” he said.

Jay Park, IU to collaborate

Jay Park has teamed up with IU for his forthcoming single.

Park’s agency More Vision uploaded a motion trailer for the digital single “Ganadara” on Monday that spelled out the name of the singer-songwriter as the featured artist.

He stepped down as the head of AOMG and H1gher Music -- both of which he founded -- in January and set up a new company More Vision last week, signaling that he is ready to resume his career as a musician.

Last month, he made news when all 20,000 bottles of premium soju he launched through his liquor company sold out. He will also appear in a dance survival contest among dance crews as a judge from March 18.

The single will be released on March 11.

Weeekly puts out 1st single album

Girl group Weeekly held an online showcase Monday to discuss its new single “Play Game: Awake.”

It has been about seven months since the fourth EP “Play Game: Holiday.”

The single contains candid and confident messages, said the bandmates. They maintained a healthy and positive energy, but expanded their original narratives, they added.

The single consists of three tracks including the focus track “Ven Para,” which means “come” in Spanish. With the hip-hop based song, the bandmates beckon their listeners to follow them and make it through the darkness.

“We’ve taken one step further and transformed ourselves to show stronger sides,” said Lee Soojin. The choreography for “Ven Para” was so aggressive that they ripped their clothes a few times while practicing, she confided. Lee Jaehee added that the song could be a turnaround for them as the concept is new for Weeekly.

Meanwhile, Shin Jiyoon will be absent from the promotional activities to focus on therapy for anxiety issues. She has undergone monthslong therapy for nervousness and anxiety, but the symptoms returned while preparing for the single, said agency IST Entertainment.

By Hwang You-mee (glamazon@heraldcorp.com)