NEWS
Wednesday Campanella
Courtesy of Billboard JapanJ-pop group Wednesday Campanella, featuring new vocalist Utaha, released two new songs called "Alice" and "Buckingham" on Wednesday, along with accompanying music videos.
Both songs were produced by member Hidefumi Kenmochi. The lyrics of "Alice" draws from the narrative of Alice in Wonderland, expressing how ordinary daily life was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The song suggests that maybe what made us happy was the little things in life, and that our days could become special by celebrating such details. The accompanying visuals were helmed by Yuichiro Fujishiro, who has directed many of the group’s videos in the past.
"Buckingham,” contrary to its title, is about a particular neighborhood in Setagaya City of Tokyo. The video for this track was directed by Mai, an up-and-coming visual artist and longtime friend of the group’s new lead singer, Utaha.
“It’s been a while since Wednesday Campanella last released a new song, and it’s also the first release with Utaha,” shares the singer and model born in 2001. “It's been a fresh and valuable experience for me to learn how sounds come together to make a song, and how everyone works together to create a video… The band is restarting with these two songs, and I hope our music is listened to, enjoyed by, and loved by many people.”
KATSEYE have officially begun a fresh chapter with the announcement of their forthcoming single, Pinky Up.
The K-pop girl group sparked curiosity online after sharing a string of mysterious posts that quickly had fans trying to piece together the clues.
The first teaser, posted on March 30, featured the Mona Lisa gently raising a hot cup of tea with her pinky finger lifted. The next video, uploaded the next day, showed an arcade claw machine labeled with the group’s name pulling a sword from a mix of sparkling plush toys and a single teacup. Making things even more intriguing, the caption stated: “We’re screaming from cloud nine!!”
Their third update finally revealed the song title along with its cover art. The image showed a figure kneeling on a rug next to a teacup and a toy cat, while the title appeared in bright hot pink text across the visual. The group also confirmed the release date as April 9.
Pinky Up will arrive just one day before KATSEYE appear at Coachella on April 10, which will mark their first time performing at the famous festival.
The single also marks their first comeback since HYBE and Geffen confirmed that member Manon Bannerman would be stepping away for a period of time to prioritize her “health and well being.”
In a message posted on Weverse, they shared: "Hello. After open and thoughtful conversations together, we are sharing that Manon will be taking a temporary hiatus from group activities to focus on her health and wellbeing."
The group expressed that they “fully support this decision,” and added: “KATSEYE remains committed to showing up for one another and for the fans who mean everything to us. We look forward to being together again when the time is right.”
While she is away, the group will continue promotions with Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, Sophia Laforteza and Yoonchae Jeung.
They closed their message by saying: “Thank you to our EYEKONS for your continued love, patience, and understanding.”
