[Today’s K-pop] NCT Dream’s 1st LP becomes million-seller

NCT Dream’s first studio album, “Hot Sauce,” sold over 1 million copies, a first for the boy band, according to label S.M. Entertainment on Monday.

The LP went on sale May 10 and reached the milestone in a week. It was the highest first-week sales figure among all the albums released this year.

This is the septet’s first million-selling album and the third for the NCT family, after NCT 127’s second LP, “Neo Zone,” and NCT’s second full-length album, “Resonance.”

“Hot Sauce” ranked No. 1 on the iTunes top albums chart in 37 regions and topped major charts in Japan and China.

NCT Dream was formed in 2016 but lost a member when Mark turned 20. After 2 1/2 years he returned to the band as the age limit was lifted earlier this year.

Blackpink’s Lisa to join iKON onstage for competition

Lisa of Blackpink will appear on TV with iKON as part of a competition, label YG Entertainment confirmed Monday.

It was a surprise even to the producers of “Kingdom: Legendary War,” a competition program for K-pop boy bands, when the news was leaked last week. Fans were immediately abuzz, since it will be Lisa’s first collaborative performance.

No details were given but expectations are high for the joint performance, called “No Limit.” The six-piece act is also under YG Entertainment and is contending against BTOB, Stray Kids, Ateez, SF9 and The Boyz.

Lisa and iKON’s performance will be aired May 20.

Meanwhile, the idol is expected to come out with her solo debut album in the third quarter of this year.

Mamamoo to release album in June 

Mamamoo is coming out with a new album next month, the band’s first this year, said agency RBW Entertainment on Monday.

The quartet is launching a new project called “Where Are We?” which will reflect on the past seven years and offer the artists’ thoughts about the future. The project will last the rest of this year and will consist of an album, a summer concert and a documentary. The concert was originally scheduled for late May but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The band’s previous album, “Travel,” came out in November last year. Each of the four members has also enjoyed success on her own. Most recently, in April Wheein released her debut solo EP, “Redd,” and joined her bandmates as one of the top 10 female solo artists that sold the most in the first week of release. 

BTS drops second series of teaser photos

BTS released a second batch of teaser photos for its forthcoming digital single, “Butter,” Monday.

It included a group shot as well as individual shots of the septet, to the delight of eagerly awaiting fans.

The artists posed sitting together against an ocher wall, a change from the elevator that appeared in the previous photographs. Then each musician sat in a different chair with different objects -- a bowl of popcorn, a yellow mug and a plate of stacked pancakes topped with, of course, butter.

The band is releasing “Butter” on May 21. Ahead of its release, a teaser trailer for the music video will be uploaded May 19.

The summery dance number will be performed for the first time at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards, to be aired on NBC on May 23 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.

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