Stray Kids prepare for comeback with upbeat London show
LONDON – “This is a career highlight,” popular K-pop boy band Stray Kids said as they headlined the BST Hyde Park festival on July 14.
The eight-man group from South Korea returned to London after nearly five years to make their British festival debut.
Made up of members Changbin, Felix, Hyunjin, Lee Know, Han, Seungmin, Bang Chan and I.N, Stray Kids debuted in 2018 after being formed by JYP Entertainment through a reality show. They have won over fans around the world with their genre-mixing sound and hit songs such as God’s Menu (2020), Maniac (2022) and S-Class (2023).
“It’s a really big festival and it’s a really big space. It’ll be really interesting to see how much the energy we bring to it will change that,” said Han shortly before the group took the stage to perform a high-energy 100-minute set in front of a crowd of thousands.
Named by Time magazine as one of its Next Generation Leaders, Stray Kids placed third on recorded music industry body IFPI’s top 10 list of global recording artistes in 2023. Their third Korean-language studio album, 5-Star, was the second biggest-selling album globally in 2023, IFPI said.
All eight members also walked the famed Met Gala red carpet in May 2024, wearing custom Tommy Hilfiger suits.
Bang Chan said the group were grateful for their strong streaming numbers and successes, but added that the onus was on bringing meaningful music to their fans, known as Stays.
“Lots of Stays and a lot of people are giving us a lot of attention, so I don’t think we should sit still and do nothing about it,” added Seungmin. “That’s why all the members are working hard on their parts.”
Part of the group’s “comeback” is their new EP, titled ATE, which will be released on July 19.
ATE represents the eight members who have “eaten up” their comeback, said Felix, adding that fans could expect new concepts and styles.
“It really means a lot to us. It’s been a while since our last album,” said Bang Chan. “With this album, we really want to emphasise our eight members, how genuine we are with music, and we’ve also put in a lot of styles of music for everyone out there to enjoy.”
Changbin added: “We’re bringing out all we can at this time and that makes us confident.” – REUTERS
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