[Today’s K-pop] NCT’s Taeyong to enlist next month

Taeyong of NCT will start his mandatory military duty from April 15, label SM Entertainment said Monday.

The musician shared the news with a hand-written letter uploaded on a fan platform on the day thanking his fans and bandmates for letting him grow and mature.

“Every single moment has been really meaningful and blissful,” said the idol promising that he will do his best and learn a lot during the service and return as a better self.

He will be the first member of NCT to enlist and will do so as a member of the naval band.

He wrapped up promoting his second solo EP “Tap” that came out last month and topped iTunes top albums chart in 33 regions. He also held a solo concert in Seoul.

NewJeans tops 500m Spotify streams with ‘Hype Boy’

NewJeans amassed 500 million plays on Spotify with “Hype Boy” as of Saturday, according to agency Ador on Monday.

It is the group’s third song to reach the milestone, following “OMG” and “Ditto.” “Hype Boy” is one of the three title songs from its namesake debut EP that swept up music scenes when it came out in August 2022. The single was the rookie group’s first to hit 200-million milestone on the platform.

Separately, the music video for “ETA” won bronze at Spikes Asia this year, one of the leading creative advertising festivals in Asia Pacific region. “ETA” is a B-side track from its second EP “Get Up” from July last year and the video was shot entirely by iPhone as part of “Shot on iPhone” campaign. A Coca-Cola commercial featuring the group also was shortlisted for the award.

Babymonster to host 1st fan meet tour

Babymonster will visit five cities in Asia to meet and greet fans in person, YG Entertainment announced Monday.

Tour “See You There” will bring the seven members to Tokyo, Jakarta, Singapore, Taipei and Bangkok. The news came with a poster adorned with cute characters, all drawn by the members who wanted to express their appreciation, the company said.

The group will bring out its first EP “Babymons7er” on April 1. The album will include lead single “Sheesh,” a hip-hop tune that leans on darker side of the septet and has a strong chorus and catchy choreography, said head producer Yang Hyun-suk in a video clip uploaded on the day to introduce the upcoming album. It will also feature “Like That” written by American singer and songwriter Charlie Puth.

In August, the seven members will join the lineup for Summer Sonic 2024, one of the largest music festivals in Japan.

Enhypen shares Japan tour details

Enhypen unveiled plans for the Japanese leg of its encore tour Fate Plus via agency Belift Lab on Monday.

From June to September, the band will head to five cities in the country – Saitama, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Aichi, and Miyagi -- for 11 concerts in total, its largest gig in Japan so far.

Before heading over to the country, it will perform in five cities in the US -- two in California and one each in Washington, Illinois, and New York -- from April to May.

Meanwhile, the bandmates returned from Shanghai on Sunday after an autograph session to promote its fifth EP “Orange Blood.”

The EP was released in November last year and sold over 2 million copies, a first for the band, as of last week. The album hit Billboard 200 at No. 4 and stayed on it for seven weeks in a row. It also topped Oricon’s weekly and weekly combined album rankings.