K-pop releases in April 2023, from IVE’s first full-length album to NCT DoJaeJung’s debut to fourth Kep1er mini-album

IVE are rolling out their first full-length album, I’ve IVE, on April 10, and girl group Kep1er will drop their fourth mini-album, Lovestruck!, on the same day

NCT DoJaeJung, a subunit of boy group NCT, are poised to make their debut on April 17, and girl group Apink will release their 10th mini-album, Self, on April 5

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Girl group IVE’s first full-length album, I’ve IVE, will drop on April 10. It is one of many new K-pop releases this month. Photo: Instagram/@ivestarship

Published: 4:15am, 3 Apr 2023

By Dong Sun-hwa

The competition on the K-pop charts is intensifying this month, with a legion of prominent stars gearing up with their new music offerings. Included in the line-up are NCT DoJaeJung, IVE, Kep1er and Apink.

IVE (April 10)

Girl group IVE’s first full-length album, I’ve IVE, will drop on April 10. It has taken more than a year for the six-piece act to roll out a studio album since their debut in December 2021.

It has taken more than a year for IVE to roll out a studio album since their debut in December 2021. Photo: Instagram@ivestarship

To whet the appetites of their fans, IVE unveiled one of the songs, “Kitsch”, on March 27. The track has already made a splash, grabbing the No. 1 spot on multiple music streaming platforms including South Korean music streaming service Melon.

“‘Kitsch’, which highlights IVE members’ uniqueness and self-confidence, will help them solidify their identities,” Starship Entertainment, IVE’s management company, said in a statement. “Their coming album will revolve around the themes of self-love, self-confidence and free-spiritedness.”

IVE have risen to meteoric stardom thanks to the success of three singles: “Eleven”, “Love Dive” and “After Like”. Kakao Entertainment, which controls Starship, announced recently that it has partnered with the US record label Columbia Records to promote the group’s musical activities in North America. Columbia is the company behind stars like Beyoncé́ and Harry Styles.

Kep1er (April 10)

On the same day, girl group Kep1er will drop their fourth mini-album, Lovestruck!. Kep1er is a multinational act made up of nine contestants from South Korean reality competition show Girls Planet 999.