K-pop News Today (Nov 13, 2026): ATEEZ Release “UP” Today, BIGBANG Lead the Final MAMA 2026 Lineup, I.O.I Return to MMA After 10 Years

I’ll be honest: I’ve had ATEEZ’s “BAD” chorus stuck in my head since June, so waking up on “UP” release day feels like a little holiday. And that’s not all. BIGBANG are coming to the MAMA stage for their 20th anniversary, I.O.I are back at the Melon Music Awards for the first time in 10 years, and SM confirmed which NCT teams are heading to Coachella. Here are the stories K-pop fans were talking about on Nov. 12.

ATEEZ Release “UP” Today After “BAD” Made Them a Household Name in Korea

ATEEZ release their 15th mini album “GOLDEN HOUR : Part.6” and title track “UP” today, Nov. 13, at 2 p.m. KST, and at a press event in Seoul on Nov. 12 the members talked about how “BAD” changed their year, Yonhap and Newsis reported. “We used to spend interviews explaining how well ATEEZ were doing overseas. Now people recognize us first and love us. These are dreamlike days,” said SAN, whose chest-pop move in “BAD” took over Reels and Shorts. WOOYOUNG laughed that restaurants now send out a little something extra on the house, and HONGJOONG said the viral clip proved “our essence is the stage and the music.” “UP” is built on loud brass and heavy bass, with lyrics co-written by HONGJOONG and MINGI, and late in the MV, SAN smashes through a wall. Their last album, “GOLDEN HOUR : Part.5,” gave them a third No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and sold 1.88 million copies in its first week on Hanteo, so all eyes are on a fourth. The group also open a new world tour, “ZERO TO ALL,” in Incheon on Jan. 22 to 24. The “UP” MV Teaser 2 had 303,213 views when we checked. ATINY, it’s finally here: press play at 2 p.m.

Sources: Yonhap, Nov. 12, Newsis, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

Also read: K-pop News Today (Nov 11, 2026): JENNIE's "Dracula" Climbs to No. 3 on the Hot 100, Stray Kids Grow Their World Tour to 46 Shows, RESCENE Pass 600,000 First-Week Copies

BIGBANG Join the Final 2026 MAMA AWARDS Lineup With a Dooly Collaboration

BIGBANG, ENHYPEN and IVE are on the final performer lineup for the 2026 MAMA AWARDS, which the show revealed on its official channels on Nov. 12, Top Star News reported. The ceremony takes place at Kyocera Dome Osaka on Nov. 20 and 21. Day one (Chapter 1) features ILLIT, ALLDAY PROJECT, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, BABYMONSTER, CL, ENHYPEN, Hearts2Hearts, NCT WISH, RESCENE, TREASURE and more, while day two (Chapter 2) brings &TEAM, TWICE’s NAYEON, HWASA, BIGBANG, CORTIS, IVE, izna, KiiiKiii, LE SSERAFIM, WOODZ and ZEROBASEONE. BIGBANG, celebrating their 20th anniversary, will perform a collaboration stage with the beloved cartoon “Dooly the Little Dinosaur,” and CL and ALLDAY PROJECT team up for “STILL THE BADDEST.” Actor Park Bo-gum returns as host and ambassador for the eighth time since his first turn in 2017. The official concept film had 25,479 views when we checked. VIPs, a BIGBANG anniversary stage at MAMA is the gift we didn’t know we needed.

Sources: Top Star News, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

I.O.I Return to the Melon Music Awards for the First Time in 10 Years

I.O.I will take the stage at the 2026 Melon Music Awards (MMA2026) for the first time in 10 years, Kakao Entertainment said on Nov. 12 as it revealed the stage concepts for day one, eToday reported. The group, formed through Mnet’s “Produce 101” in 2016, reunited this year after about nine years, and the title track of their third mini album “I.O.I : LOOP,” “갑자기” (meaning “suddenly”), hit No. 1 on both Melon’s TOP100 and HOT100. At MMA, they’ll tell their story from debut to reunion like a movie. Also on Nov. 14: NCT DREAM with a 10th-anniversary stage made with fans, aespa expanding their world, ATEEZ on “the start of a new journey,” a first joint stage with 14 members from two rookie boy groups, TWS turning “OVERDRIVE” into a high-teen musical with magic, and RESCENE with a romance-fantasy concept. For the first time, MMA runs over two days, Nov. 14 and 15 at Seoul’s Gocheok Sky Dome, with 26 acts in total, and fan voting closes today, Nov. 13. The official MMA2026 teaser had 38,926 views when we checked. Ten years later, I.O.I fans get one more beautiful chapter.

Sources: eToday, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

NCT 127 and NCT DREAM Confirmed for Coachella 2027

SM Entertainment confirmed on Nov. 12 that NCT 127 and NCT DREAM will play Coachella 2027 together as “NCT,” on April 10 and 17, CBS Nocut News reported. The festival poster listed only “NCT,” so this settles which teams are going. Both teams debuted in 2016 and marked their 10th anniversaries this year, and it will be their first Coachella. They’re preparing their own sets plus special collaboration stages as NCT, and NCT is the only K-pop boy group on next year’s lineup. NCT 127 are touring “NEO CITY : THE REDLINE,” and NCT DREAM just released their sixth full album “DREAM AFTER DREAM” on Nov. 9, with a fan showcase set for the evening of Nov. 12. The “Boogie Woogie” MV had 16,277,309 views when we checked, about three and a half days after release. NCTzens, April in Indio is going to be loud.

Sources: CBS Nocut News, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

CORTIS Pass 1.5 Billion Spotify Streams, the Most for a Recent Boy Group

CORTIS have passed 1.5 billion total streams on Spotify, reaching 1,500,550,000 as of Nov. 10, BIGHIT MUSIC said on Nov. 12, as Newsis reported. It took them one year and three months from debut, the most and fastest among K-pop boy groups that debuted in the past five years, and they did it with just 16 tracks. About 1.2 billion of those streams came this year alone, led by “REDRED” at more than 276 million. Their monthly listeners peaked at 12,947,465 on Aug. 27, the third-highest ever for a K-pop boy group, and have stayed above 10 million since. CORTIS sold out their first tour in Korea, North America and Japan this year and are nominated in major categories at both MMA2026 and MAMA. The “REDRED” MV had 89,793,402 views when we checked. That’s a whole lot of love for just 16 songs.

Sources: Newsis, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

NCT WISH Top Circle Chart’s October Album Chart With “I SPY”

NCT WISH’s fourth mini album “I SPY” topped Circle Chart’s monthly album chart for October, announced on Nov. 12, eToday reported. That completes a sweep of Circle’s daily, weekly and monthly album charts. The album, released on Oct. 12, became a million-seller in a single day, the group’s fourth million-seller in a row, and had sold 1,649,000 copies on Circle Chart as of Oct. 31. Their solo concert at Gocheok Sky Dome on Jan. 15 and 16, 2027, sold out both nights in the fan club presale alone, with extra seats opened. The “I SPY” MV had 24,992,708 views when we checked. NCTzens, the youngest NCT team is growing up so fast, and we love to see it.

Sources: eToday, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

TEN Wraps His First US Showcase Tour With About 20,000 Fans

TEN wrapped up the “TEN US SHOWCASE TOUR” in New York on Nov. 10 (local time), playing 14 US cities from Seattle to New York for about 20,000 fans, Xports News reported on Nov. 12. It was his first solo showcase tour, and he filled the setlist with his own songs, his signature performance and plenty of jokes with local fans. On stage, he teased new music and announced a 10th-anniversary concert in Shanghai on Nov. 21. TEN debuted with NCT in 2016 and has been on his own solo path since leaving SM in April. The “OUTWEST” MV had 6,734,208 views when we checked. Ten years in, TEN is still one of the most joyful performers to watch.

Sources: Xports News, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

JYP’s New Boy Group oftheblue Set Their Debut for Jan. 11, 2027

oftheblue, the first boy group from SQU4D, the JYP label team behind NMIXX, will debut on Jan. 11, 2027, with their first mini album “out of the blue,” JYP announced on Nov. 12, Joy News 24 reported. A blind presale of the debut album runs from Nov. 12 to 25, with a pop-up store in Seongsu-dong, Seoul, over the same two weeks. The group dropped their pre-debut song “풍선인간 (Aerotherapy)” on Nov. 11, a chill track the members helped write. “Honestly, it still doesn’t feel real,” they said after it came out. It’s SQU4D’s first new team in five years. The “Aerotherapy” blind performance video had 670,372 views when we checked, about two days after release. A brand-new boy group to cheer for in the new year? Yes, please.

Sources: Joy News 24, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

LUCY Return With “Again!” (다시!), a Band Anthem for Starting Over

Band LUCY released their eighth single “다시!” (“Again!”) on Nov. 12 at 6 p.m. KST, about seven months after their second full album “Childish,” Ilgan Sports and JTBC reported. Member Cho Wonsang wrote, composed and arranged both songs, the title track and “아마 괜찮을 너에게,” and the single speaks to young people who fall, regret and still get up to chase their dreams. Fans already heard it live at their concerts before release. “We hope our song gives you the courage and energy to start again,” said Shin Gwangil. The MV had 71,957 views about 10 hours after release when we checked. Walwalis, this one is a warm hug in band form.

Sources: Ilgan Sports, Nov. 12, JTBC, Nov. 12, YouTube views checked around 4:52 a.m. KST, Nov. 13

SEVENTEEN’s JEONGHAN Sings a Japanese “Winter Sonata” Classic

SEVENTEEN’s JEONGHAN will release a Japanese version of “My Memory,” one of the best-loved songs from the drama “Winter Sonata,” on Nov. 26 at noon, PLEDIS Entertainment said on Nov. 12, Top Star News reported. The song is the main theme of Amazon Audible’s Japanese audio drama remake of “Winter Sonata,” the series that sparked Japan’s Korean Wave more than 20 years ago. “It’s a song that brings back the memory of a first love everyone carries,” JEONGHAN said. He and JOSHUA play Saitama’s Belluna Dome on Nov. 21 and 22. CARAT, a soft JEONGHAN ballad for the first cold week of winter sounds perfect.

Sources: Top Star News, Nov. 12

So much to look forward to: “UP” at 2 p.m. today, MMA2026 at Gocheok this weekend, TXT’s “PERFECT STORM” on Monday and MAMA in Osaka next week. Who will take “Music Bank” this evening? I can’t wait to find out.

Featured photo: ATEEZ's SAN waves to fans at Milan Fashion Week, Feb. 28, 2026. Photo: sublimitas viii via YouTube/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized).