Return of A-list bands to heat up K-pop scene this spring

A photo of South Korean band BIGBANG provided by YG Entertainment (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

The return of a group of A-list K-pop bands will heat up the music scene here this spring.

After setting a record for most album sales with “Map of the Soul: Persona” last year, K-pop super band BTS will drop “Map of the Soul: 7″ on Feb. 21, the second issue in the “Map of the Soul” album series.

The upcoming album is likely to rewrite some K-pop records after BTS made K-pop history by winning three No. 1s on the Billboard 200 in a span of one year last year.

Pre-orders for the new album hit an all-time high of 3.42 million copies within a week after it became available on Jan. 9, hinting at a surefire megahit.

Roaring girl band BLACKPINK is also on its way to unveil a new album, the first music release since the sensational success of the EP “Kill This Love,” released in April 2019.

Late last year, BLACKPINK became the first K-pop band to score 1 billion YouTube views after its 2018 song “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du” surpassed the threshold in November.

The music video of “Kill This Love,” the title track of the namesake EP, also topped 700 million views in early January in less than one year of its release.

The band’s agency said the four-piece girl band will return with a new album in early 2020, although it did not specify the timing.

“BLACKPINK is recording several new songs with an eye to releasing a new album in early 2020,” YG Entertainment said.

In April, another high-profile boy band, BIGBANG, will return to the public eye with performances during an American music festival.

BIGBANG is scheduled to appear at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California, on April 10 and 17, according to YG.

It will be the first full-lineup appearance of BIGBANG as a four-member team in years. Seungri left the band last year amid a series of criminal investigations.

The four current members were recently discharged from the military after the compulsory national defense duty put the band on a hiatus in 2017.

Ahead of the three bands, beloved girl band GFriend will release a new EP, “回: Labyrinth,” on Feb. 3, the band’s first album since its label Source Music was merged into Big Hit Entertainment, the label of BTS, last year.