[Today’s K-pop] NCT127 to tour Japan in May, June

NCT127 will head to Japan for a tour in May and June, its label SM Entertainment announced Thursday.

The band will perform five times in Japan, starting in Nagoya on May 22 and will travel to Tokyo before visiting Osaka in June. It will be the first time in more than three years the nine-member act will perform in Japan. It also marks the group’s first dome tour, with stops at some of the biggest venues in the country.

NCT127 topped Oricon’s daily, weekly and monthly charts with its second Japanese EP “Loveholic” last year. Its third studio album “Sticker” also swept a series of charts in Japan when it came out last September.

This will be the band’s Japan leg of its second international tour -- “Neo City - The Link” -- which started with a three-day concert in Seoul in December 2021. Although no details have been released yet, the group are set to perform in a number of major cities around the world soon.

Ive floats teaser for 2nd single

Ive uploaded teaser photographs of Wonyoung and Liz for its upcoming single “Love Dive” Thursday.

In the images, Wonyoung sports high pigtails sitting pretty in a throne while Liz gazes at the camera holding a blown-up playing card showing Queen of Hearts. As the single’s title suggests, the group will reinterpret Cupid and dare everyone to dive into love whenever they are ready.

The rookie band of six girls debuted in December with the single “Eleven” and picked up a total of 13 trophies from television music chart shows. The track stayed on Billboard’s Global 200 and Global Excluding US charts for 12 weeks in a row after debuting at No. 58 and No. 38, respectively. The music video amassed 100 million views on YouTube earlier this month.

The double track single will be fully unveiled on April 5.

BTS’ J-Hope tests positive for COVID-19

J-Hope of BTS has tested positive for COVID-19, his label Big Hit Music announced on Thursday.

He felt stings in his throat and received a PCR test the previous day and the result came back positive even though he was fully vaccinated. He has no other symptoms, said the company. He is the sixth member of the band to contract the virus.

He will join the band’s activities next month after completing treatment and self-quarantine. The bandmates are soon to fly to Las Vegas to perform at the 64th Grammy Awards on April 3 in the US. The band is also a nominee for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance award.

After the Grammys, the septet will hold concerts in the city: on April 8,9, 15 and 16.

Mirae to host fan meet event in Japan in May

Boy band Mirae will meet its fans in Japan for the first time in May, its agency DSP Media announced.

The seven members will hold fan meet events, named “Into Our Future NOW,” in Osaka and Kawasaki, on May 4th and 6th. It will be the first time they are greeting their international fans in person.

The band debuted in March last year with EP “Killa.” It is also hosting a fan meet in Seoul on April 24. Last week, Mirae livestreamed to mark its first debut anniversary. 

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