[Today’s K-pop] Wanna One’s album release might face hitch: report

The plans to release a new song from Wanna One may be rescheduled, according to local media reports on Thursday.

CJ ENM said that talks with all related management companies to put out “Beautiful Part 3” on Jan. 27 have been completed. However, there still are administrative procedures that need to be finalized, it acknowledged.

CJ ENM has been pushing for the band’s reunion and put all members, except for Lai Kuanlin who is in China, on the stage for 2021 Mnet Asia Music Awards at the end of last year. They presented the new song, which harks back to “Beautiful,” main track from its 2017 album “1-1=0 (Nothing without You),” and “Beautiful Part 2,” a track from 2018 LP “1¹¹=1 (Power of Destiny).”

Earlier this month, the firm announced that the new song will be officially come out as an album on Jan. 27, exactly three years after the band’s final concert, and will feature all 11 members as Lai Kuanlin finished recording his part from China.

The boy band debuted through an audition program in 2017 and disbanded about 1 1/2 years later. All members, though, are actively pursuing their careers either as an individual or as a group.

aespa tops 200m views with “Black Mamba” music video 

The music video of aespa’s debut song “Black Mamba” surpassed 200 million views on YouTube Thursday, according to label SM Entertainment.

This is the band’s first video to reach the milestone and it became the tenth K-pop female group to have one, following the likes of Blackpink, Twice, Red Velvet, Girls’ Generation and ITZY.

The quartet is likely to have another soon, as the music video of “Next Level” already amassed 197 million views on YouTube.

“Black Mamba” came out in November 2020 and the accompanying video logged 100 million views in the shortest time for a K-pop group’s debut song, at 51 days. The band replaced the record with the video of “Next Level,” and then with that of “Savage,” to 32 days and 17 days respectively.

Enhypen debuts on Billboard world digital song sales chart

Enhypen will meet its fans with a live show on Saturday to mark the release of “Dimension: Answer,” its repackaged first LP.

The band will not only perform main track “Blessed-Cursed” but also share reactions to the song’s music video and tidbits from making the album. The bandmates will also play games and do a dance battle among themselves and chat with fans in the show that will also be broadcast in Japan.

The music video of “Blessed-Cursed” generated 10 million views on YouTube in four days since it was fully unveiled on Jan. 10. On Thursday, Billboard announced that the song debuted as No. 7 on its world digital song sales chart. Another track from the repack, “Polaroid Love,” was No. 9.

The album topped iTunes top albums chart in 10 regions and landed atop Oricon’s both daily and weekly album charts.

BTS’ V sets record in Japan with solo song

V of BTS entered Billboard Japan’s Hot 100 with the solo song “Christmas Tree.”

It hit the chart at No. 29, the highest spot for a male K-pop solo musician since Psy. Notable is the fact that the song claimed the spot with only three days since release.

Upon last week’s release, it swept across major charts in Japan and stayed at the top of the iTunes Japan chart for 89 hours, the longest period for a K-pop musician.

“Christmas Tree” is his solo work from the soundtrack of television drama “Our Beloved Summer.”

It came out on Dec. 24 and debuted on Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 79, becoming the first Korean OST song to make the list. He is the third member of the band to have an individual single to make the chart, following J-Hope (“Chicken Noodle Soup”) and Suga (“Daechwita” and “Girl of My Dreams”).

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