NEWS
BTS singer and soloist Jimin has unveiled his new pre-release track ‘Smeraldo Garden Marching Band’.
The new visual features the idol performing to the song in a fairytale woodland stage, bringing couples closer as he dances past them. He is joined by rapper Loco in the second verse, and the duo later close out the video with a lively dance while flower petals rain down on them.
“Ooh, I love you babe / I’ll come closer to you / I love you, babe / Ooh, I want you, babe / I wanna hold your hand / I want you, babe,” Jimin sings in the chorus.
‘Smeraldo Garden Marching Band’ is the first song to be released from the BTS singer’s upcoming solo album ‘Muse’. It will also include the fan-dedicated song ‘Closer Than This’, which Jimin dropped shortly after enlisting in the military last December. The full seven-track record will arrive on Friday, July 19 at 1pm KST / 12am ET.
The new album will be Jimin’s second solo album, coming about a year-and-a-half after his debut record ‘Face’. It will also make him the latest BTS member to release an album while serving his mandatory military service, after leader and rapper RM unveiled his second album ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’ last month.
Earlier this month, vocalist Jin became the first BTS member to complete his military service. The idol celebrated the occasion – which coincided with the boyband’s 11th anniversary – by holding a special fan meeting in Seoul.
In other K-pop news, BLACKPINK’s Lisa has made a solo comeback with her new single ‘Rockstar’, her first music release since leaving longtime agency YG Entertainment last year.
10cc drummer Paul Burgess has announced that he is leaving the band because the demands of touring have become too much for him.
The 75-year-old musician, who also spent time performing with Jethro Tull, Camel, Magna Carta, and The Icicle Works, has chosen to walk away from the legendary rock group after more than five decades.
He shared: “After so many wonderful years with 10cc, I must admit that the rigours of touring are no longer manageable for me as I get older, and I feel it’s time to let go of the long hours in airports and endless travel on buses.
“I’m not planning to stop playing altogether. I will still perform but at a pace that feels right, working alongside old friends and a new group of fellow musicians called The Guilty Men.”
Frontman Graham Gouldman confessed that it will feel unusual to perform without his “longest-running musical associate.”
He explained: “When Paul and I first joined forces in 10cc, we never could have imagined that we’d still be at it after 30 years, let alone 52.
“Paul has been my longest musical partner and it will feel different to turn around and see another drummer, but I completely understand why he no longer wants to sit on a plane for 14 hours or wake up in a new hotel every day for weeks at a time.”
Ben Stone, who has previously played with Mike and The Mechanics and Bonnie Tyler, will be taking over on drums.
Paul, who had several runs with 10cc after joining in 1973, performed his final show with the I’m Not In Love band in Alexandria, Virginia this past September.
The group is set to continue their And Another Bloody Greatest Hits Tour in the UK next year.
