Ateez announced Wednesday that it will release its first photo book on March 18.

In a trailer for the book, titled “Ode to Youth,” the bandmates give a behind the scenes look of the photo shoots.

“Please keep walking alongside us. Let’s take one slow step after another as we’re doing fine,” wrote the bandmates in handwritten message. The 216-page tome will be accompanied by a making-of DVD, photo cards and a poster.

The eight-piece act ranked No. 73 on Billboard 200 with its repacked EP “Zero: Fever Epilogue” in December. The EP wraps up its “Fever” series that delved into the lost feelings of youth.

The band completed the US leg of its international tour last week and is preparing for an online live performance for its fans in Japan next month.

Viviz officially debuts, ready for 2nd act

Female trio Viviz hosted an online showcase Wednesday to mark its official debut.

SinB, Eunha and Umji, formerly of the now-disbanded GFriend, formed the group with a name that combines the words “vivid” and “days(z).” The group is releasing its first EP “Beam of Prism” full of confidence.

“We’ve already made a debut and felt that pressure, so we told each other to just ‘do well,’” said SinB. Not that it undermined their confidence. Calling themselves “experienced newbies,” the trio underlined that they are skilled performers with a nearly eight-year career.

“But there still are sides of us we haven’t been able to show, so there will be a lot of new stuff to present,” said Umji.

The fact that they are down to three, half the number of GFriend, made things a bit more hectic for the group, for example, leaving no time between takes when shooting a music video. They also racked their brains trying to find the right direction as a trio.

The passion to get back on stage, however, willed them through any obstacles. About nine months after the disbandment, it was almost unbearable waiting for the debut, said Eunha.

fromis_9 tops Oricon‘s daily album chart with 4th EP

Girl group fromis_9 rose to the top of Japan’s Oricon daily album ranking with its fourth EP “Midnight Guest,” according to the tally that came out on Wednesday.

The physical album was released in the country later than it did in Korea even though the songs were fully unveiled on the same day, Jan. 17.

The band topped the chart for the second time in a row following its second single album “9 Way Ticket.”

The EP topped iTunes albums chart in four regions and was among top 10 in 18 regions upon release. It sold more than 100,000 copies in the first week of sales, the ninth-highest record in two years for an album by a K-pop female group.

The nine-member group debuted through a cable television show “Idol School” in 2018 but gained popularity with its special single “Talk & Talk,” its first new music since it signed with Pledis Entertainment last year.

Meanwhile, member Lee Seoyeon tested positive for COVID-19 last week despite having completed vaccination. The rest of the bandmates tested negative but are self-quarantining as a preemptive measure.

AOA’s Seolhyun hints at exasperation for bandmate’s remarks

Seolhyun of AOA commented on her SNS account Wednesday possibly referring to the provocative messages former bandmate Kwon Mina wrote the day before.

With a series of pictures showing content of a book, she wrote: “Don’t be afraid to change,” “Think of good things you managed to do,” and “The past is precious, but we have to move forward.”

She also underlined a series of sentences from the book that include how one was hurt a lot from those who wielded their tongues without realizing that they were sharp swords.

Kwon resurfaced online insisting that her claims that she was ostracized and bullied for ten years were true. She left the group in 2019 saying that Jimin, in particular, drove her to multiple suicide attempts and the latter quit the band in 2020. Seolhyun also faced criticism for being a bystander.

By Hwang You-mee
(glamazon@heraldcorp.com)