Red Velvet's Irene Successfully Concludes First Solo Asia Tour

Red Velvet's Irene has successfully wrapped up her first solo Asia tour, '2026 IRENE ASIA TOUR [I-WILL],' with a final performance in Bangkok, Thailand. The tour began in Seoul in May and visited five regions across Asia, including Taipei, Macau, Singapore, and Bangkok. The Bangkok concert sold out completely, solidifying Irene's position as a solo artist.

This tour served as a milestone for Irene to showcase her unique presence to the world. Her final performance in Bangkok, in particular, drew attention for the deep connection she shared with fans. Irene received recognition for her musical diversity and stage manners, presenting a different charm in each city. Throughout the tour, she maintained consistent communication with her fans, a key factor in its success.

Meanwhile, AILET's steady growth is also being watched closely. AILET's 'NOT CUTE ANYMORE' has broken 200 million streams, proving its global popularity. According to Spotify on the 19th, the title track of AILET's 1st single album, 'NOT CUTE ANYMORE,' reached 22,982,512 cumulative plays as of the 17th, just eight months after its release on November 24 last year.

The song surpassed 100 million cumulative plays on Spotify within 73 days of its release and added another 100 million plays in about five months. This makes AILET the second team to have a 200 million stream song after 'Magnetic.' AILET has now produced seven songs with over 100 million streams on Spotify. 'Magnetic' has over 800 million plays, followed by 'NOT CUTE ANYMORE' with 200 million. 'Lucky Girl Syndrome,' 'Cherish (My Love),' 'Tick-Tack,' '빌려온 고양이 (Do the Dance),' and 'jellyous' have also each surpassed 100 million plays.

'NOT CUTE ANYMORE' captures the feeling of not wanting to be seen as just cute, set against a pop sound based on reggae rhythms. With minimalistic sounds, vocals that flow like a conversation, and a performance that adds facial expressions to restrained movements, the group stepped out of its dreamy and girlish image. This change spread quickly through short-form videos. 'NOT CUTE ANYMORE' was used as background music for the so-called 'hoodie shot challenge,' attracting global interest. The trend started on short-form platforms and led to actual music consumption, with the song reaching number 7 on the US Billboard 'Bubbling Under Hot 100' chart as of January 17.

AILET will release the full audio for their 2nd Japanese single album, 'I Got Your Back,' on the 26th. The title track is a rock song about a friend who stays by your side even when overwhelmed by anxiety and pressure. The physical album will be released on the 29th. Irene's tour success and AILET's streaming records are seen as positive signals showing the global expansion of K-pop.