SHINee topped the iTunes top albums chart in 40 regions with eighth studio album, according to label SM Entertainment on Tuesday.

LP “Hard” also was No. 1 on the worldwide iTunes albums chart as well as multiple music charts at home.

The album consists of 10 tracks including the titular track and the bandmates performed six of them for the first time at its concert held in Seoul last week. Leader Onew, however, was absent from the live show as he is taking a break for health reasons.

On Wednesday, the veteran boy band will air reality show “SHINee’s 15m” on cable network JTBC. It will follow the bandmates along a road trip looking back on the 15 years they have been together.

Monsta X to launch 1st subunit

The first subunit under Monsta X will launch in late July, announced agency Starship Entertainment on Monday.

The news of members Shownu and Hyungwon as a duo came with a logo that showed S and H, the initials of the two, merging into one.

Shownu is the leader and main dancer of the six-piece act who resumed activities in April after completing his military duty. Hyungwon has produced a number of songs for the band and other artists, since he wrote “Nobody Else” for third full album “Fatal Love” that came out in November 2020.

Meanwhile, the band will greet fans at its fan concert slated to be held in Seoul July 8-9. Minhyuk will not be able to join, as he enlisted in April.

NewJeans goes platinum in Japan with ‘Ditto’

NewJeans earned platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan as its “Ditto” logged 100 million streams, said agency Ador Wednesday.

This is the first time the group received the certification. “Ditto,” from December last year, is the pre-release from single “OMG” which topped Oricon’s weekly combined single ranking, even though the quintet is yet to debut in the country officially. “Ditto” amassed 100 million streams on Oricon in the shortest time for an international female artist.

Separately, the rookie sensation made “Meet Music’s Future 25,” listed by American music magazine Rolling Stone, which touted it as “one of the fastest-rising acts in the world.”

NewJeans is set to drop its second EP, “Get Up,” on July 21 and will hold its first fan meet-up, “Bunnies Camp,” in Seoul this weekend.

Mamamoo’s Hwasa in talks with P Nation

Hwasa of Mamamoo is in discussions about signing with P Nation, a management firm headed by Psy, according to the company on Wednesday.

There was a local media report earlier on the day that said she would join the agency but the firm said that they are still in talks.

The songstress is also a member of the four-member group that debuted in 2014. She renewed her contract with RBW Entertainment in 2021, and it expires at the end of June.

Mamamoo wrapped up its first international tour, "My Con," last week with an encore concert in Seoul that went on for three days. The tour brought the foursome to nine cities each in Asia and the US. The Seoul gig that kicked off the tour was made into a movie that was unveiled last week in Korea.

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