From BTS to NCT Dream, K-pop acts gear up to return with new music in May

From K-pop dynamo BTS to boy band brand NCT's subunit NCT Dream, some of the scene's biggest acts as well as rookie groups are getting ready to come back with new music this month.

At the forefront is BTS. The seven-piece group, which released Japanese single "Film Out" in April, is set to drop new song "Butter" on May 21.

The English single, which the group's agency Big Hit Music described as a "fun and upbeat summer song," will first be released globally in a digital version at 1 p.m. on May 21 and the physical version will be available later on.

Concept clips and teaser videos distributed ahead of the official release center on a melting, heart-shaped piece of butter.

The succinctly titled track is the group's second song to be sung wholly in English after "Dynamite," which was the first song by a Korean pop act to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

NCT Dream is slated to release its first studio album "Hot Sauce" on Monday, a year after the group dropped Korean EP "Reload" in April last year.

The 10-track album features the hip-hop-based main track "Hot Sauce," R&B track "Dive Into You" and synth-pop number "ANL."

Fans are looking forward to the boy band's upcoming release, with preorders for the album breaking 1 million units, according to SM Entertainment.

Taemin of veteran boy band SHINee is set to release his third EP before temporarily bidding farewell to fans.

The 27-year-old singer will release five-track EP "Advice" on May 18 ahead of enlisting in the military later this month to fulfill his mandatory service. Taemin has been accepted at the Army's military band, his agency said.

The singer recently performed the main track of the upcoming album in a livestream concert, "Beyond Live - Taemin: Never Gonna Dance Again," last weekend. Around 90,000 from 119 countries tuned in for the online concert.

Some rookie groups are also getting ready to release new material.

Girl group aespa, which made its debut in November with single "Black Mamba," is scheduled to drop new track "Next Level" on May 17.

The four-piece group had entered the spotlight by debuting under a concept using avatars. Under the concept, aespa's four members -- Karina, Giselle, Winter and Ningning -- appear with their own virtual avatars.

Their debut single also made a splash on global music charts, with the music video for the song becoming the fastest debut music video by a K-pop act to reach 100 million views on YouTube.

On May 31, rookie boy band Tomorrow X Together (TXT) will drop its second studio album "Freeze."

The album, which comes seven months after its third EP "Minisode 1: Blue Hour," has already sold more than 520,000 in preorders. 

The five-piece act, which has built a reputation for releasing relatable songs for teenage listeners, landed "Minisode 1: Blue Hour" at No. 25 on the Billboard 200 in a sign of its growing global fan base. (Yonhap)