1. SHINee's Key performed a flawless cover of Lizzo's "Juice"!
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On Oct. 8, SHINee's Key visited the popular South Korean music program You Heeyeol’s Sketchbook and dazzled everyone with his iconic performance of Lizzo's "Juice."
While describing his decision to cover the song, Key explained that Lizzo is one of his favorite artists. "‘Juice’ represents one’s charm, and the lyrics are basically saying, ‘I can’t help it that I’m overflowing with charm,'" he explained, according to translation by Soompi. "I really liked the song’s lyrics, like, ‘If I’m shining, everybody gonna shine.'”
However, those aren't his favorite lyrics in the song. “But above all, the lyrics that stood out to me the most were, ‘Mirror, mirror on the wall / Don’t say it ’cause I know I’m cute," he cheekily added.
2. Enhypen explained the meaning behind their new single "Tamed-Dashed" at their press conference this week:
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Just six months after the release of their second mini-album, Border: Carnival, and its hit "Drunk-Dazed," Enhypen are back with their first full-length album, Dimension: Dilemma, and its feel-good, high-octane lead single, "Tamed-Dashed."
Speaking at the album's press conference Oct. 12, member Sunghoon revealed he was initially taken aback by "Tamed-Dashed" when he first heard it. "It was more cheery than the songs we used to do before, so we were a bit surprised," he recalled. "I thought that the lyrics and the overall vibe were refreshing."
Although it might be a shift from Enhypen's darker concepts, "Tamed-Dashed" retains the group's charm and penchant for title tracks with a deep meaning attached to them. Jake revealed that the new-wave song hinges upon the idea of trying to decide whether or not to ~tame~ a desire or to ~dash~ and abandon it completely. "It is a story of boys who feel flustered and nervous and experiencing the dilemma of desire in a more complicated world," he said.
In addition to "Tamed-Dashed," Dimension: Dilemma contains seven other hits that range from acoustic ballads ("Just a Little Bit") to funky electropop ("Upper Side Dreamin''). It also contains their first-ever collaboration track — the snappy rock anthem "Blockbuster," which features Tomorrow X Together's Yeonjun. "Yeonjun participated in the song to give it a more intense vibe," Heeseung revealed. "It is our first time working with another artist since our debut, so I was really excited. As an artist of Hybe Labels, I felt really honored."
Dimension: Dilemma culminates with the ruminating track "Interlude: Question," which members Jay, Jake, and Heeseung all received album credits on for their narration. "We each worked on and imported our own narrations with different tones after being handed the track and the lyrics," Jay explained. "After the producer listened to my recording, mine was finally selected, and I was very happy for the narration."
With a brand-new album under their belts, Enhypen's leader, Jungwon, wrapped up the press conference by sharing a new goal that he'd like to see come to fruition in the future. "Many people call us the 'hot icon of the fourth generation,'" he said. "With this album, I hope we go beyond the fourth generation and become the group that gets the most attention among all K-pop groups!"
This week also saw the release of Sunmi's "Go or Stop?," Raiden's "Love Right Back" (feat. Taeil of NCT, lIlBOI), Tri.be's "Would You Run," Lightsum's "Vivace," Donghae of Super Junior's "California Love" (feat. Jeno of NCT), Jessi's "Cold Blooded" (with SWF), and Eric Nam's "I Don't Know You Anymore," so be sure to check those out! 🎶
3. Seoul Fashion Week featured Exo's Kai as its global ambassador and amazing performances by Heize and DPR Live.
4. Epik High announced they will be going on a North American tour in 2022!
Did u miss us? Tickets go on-sale at https://t.co/qivcxrHser on FRIDAY OCT 15, 10AM YOUR CITY’S LOCAL TIME! Tell everyone. LFG!!! 🎫💎 #EpikHighIsHereTour #에픽하이 #epikhigh
On Oct. 13, Tablo took to Twitter to reveal that Epik High will be embarking on a massive tour throughout the US and Canada next year.
The Epik High Is Here North American tour 2022 kicks off in March in Seattle and will visit 29 cities in total, including Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. The month-and-a-half-long tour will culminate in a final performance in Oakland on April 12.
"Did u miss us?" Tablo captioned the tweet. "Tickets go on-sale at http://epikhigh.com on FRIDAY OCT 15, 10AM YOUR CITY’S LOCAL TIME! Tell everyone. LFG!!!"
5. Kang Daniel and Blackpink's Jisoo will star in two upcoming Disney+ series.
6. Finally — IU, Ailee, 2AM, and more have announced that new music is on the way!
IU Digital Single Image Teaser #2 🍓🌝 2021.10.19 00:00 (KST) #아이유 #IU #strawberry_moon
* IU shared multiple lyric, image, and concept teasers ahead of the release of her new single, "Strawberry Moon," on Oct. 19.
* Ailee's label the L1VE revealed that she will release her third album, Amy, on Oct. 27. They also announced its comeback schedule.
* 2AM shocked fans around the world when they announced on Instagram that they would be releasing their first mini-album in over seven years this week. Their fourth mini-album, Ballad 21 F/W, is scheduled for release Nov. 1, and the group has gone on to release concept photos and a promotional schedule as well.
* Park Ji-hoon revealed he will be making a comeback Oct. 28 with his fifth mini-album, titled Hot & Cold. He also revealed the album's promotional schedule.
* Just B unveiled a set of spooky concept images, a promotional schedule, a trailer, and the tracklist for their first single album, Just Beat, which is set for release Oct. 27.
That's it for this week! Have a lovely weekend, and be sure to catch up on the previous news wrap-up if you missed it!
