K-pop mogul Lee Soo-man‘s new 15-member boy band A2O SOUL will release its debut album “SUPERSTAR” on November 9 at 6 p.m. KST, agency A2O Entertainment announced on October 22 — less than a month after the group introduced itself with a prerelease single of the same name. The five-track EP adds a second lead track, “Dancing in the Dark,” to the prerelease title song.
The album presents what the group calls “NEW SYNTHWAVE,” a self-coined genre label meant to define its musical identity. Lee, who founded SM Entertainment in 1995 and launched BoA, TVXQ, Girls’ Generation, SHINee, EXO, Red Velvet, NCT and aespa before leaving in 2023, personally set the album’s musical direction and handpicked songwriters he had never worked with before, according to the agency.
A heavyweight songwriting team
“SUPERSTAR,” released October 13, was co-written by longtime SM producer Yoo Young-jin alongside HAAN — who worked on The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber’s hit “Stay” — and GENT!, whose credits include songs for Drake and Doja Cat, as reported by Allkpop. The single climbed to No. 18 on YouTube’s trending music chart and made a strong showing on China’s QQ Music, ranking second on the new songs chart, sixth on popular songs and fourth on the global music video chart.
A label already winning
A2O SOUL held its joint debut showcase with labelmates A2O LITE on October 12 at KINTEX in Goyang. The sister group has already set a high bar: A2O LITE’s debut song “NEON” reached No. 1 on Melon’s TOP100 just 29 hours after release, stayed there for six consecutive days, and earned the group its first music show trophy on SBS Life’s The Show on October 20, per K-popit. The 15-member A2O SOUL spans Korea, Japan, China, Thailand and the United States — and the physical album arrives in three versions with preorders open worldwide.
The group’s makeup reflects Lee’s global ambitions. A2O SOUL comprises Moon, Seoha, Hansung and See-one from Korea; Lucien from Korea and the United States; Sora, Gaku and Sono from Japan; Teo, Jun, Tai, Zai, Ayden and Zet from China; and Alure from Thailand, per the agency. Lee founded SM Entertainment in 1995 and built it into K-pop’s most storied hit factory before leaving after a high-profile battle for control in 2023. A2O Entertainment is his second act — and “SUPERSTAR” is its opening statement.
