All-female Korean-pop act Aespa will release its first concert film “aespa World Tour in Cinemas” from next month.
The film will have a limited run playing globally on April 24 and 27, it was announced by Trafalgar Releasing, one of the firms behind the “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” movie.
The company did not disclose the local releasing partners but said that the film will play in premium formats, including ScreenX, 4DX and Ultra 4DX where available.
Aespa’s first world tour “aespa LIVE TOUR 2023 SYNK : HYPER LINE,” ran from Feb. to Sept., 2023, visiting 21 venues across four continents.
The new film captures Aespa’s concert at London’s O2 Arena, Aespa’s first-ever U.K. show, and performances of fan favourites including “Next Level,” “Savage,” “Girls,” “Spicy” and “Black Mamba.” The film also highlights individual performances by each member, complemented by exclusive behind-the-scenes interviews.
“With over 2.8 billion YouTube views at NEXT LEVEL MV and much raved-about performances; the fierce foursome of KARINA, GISELLE, WINTER and NINGNING are rapidly cementing their status as killer performers on and off screen,” said Trafalgar.
aespa 에스파 ‘Drama’ MV
🎬 https://t.co/GjQSLMGf5c#aespa #æspa #에스파#Drama #aespaDrama pic.twitter.com/fFKKdl72ok
— aespa (@aespa_official) November 10, 2023
Who Are Aespa?
aespa (에스파; also stylized as æspa) is a four-member girl group under SM Entertainment. They debuted on November 17, 2020 with the digital single “Black Mamba”.
Their name is a combination of “æ”, which means ‘Avatar X Experience’, and “aspect”, which means double-sided. Together it means that you would being able to experience a new world through an avatar of yourself.
Pre-debut activities
On September 19, 2016, Ningning was revealed as a new member of the trainee team SMROOKIES. She appeared on the “Rookies Princess: Who’s the Best?” segment of the program “My SMT” in 2016 and was also part of the soundtrack for the Korean animated TV program “Shining Star” in 2017.
On February 2019, Karina appeared in Taemin’s “Want” music video. She also performed with him on music shows in the following weeks.
2020: Debut with “Black Mamba”, fandom name
On October 26, 2020, an intro video was released on aespa’s social media announcing their name and logo. Later that day, it was announced that SM would be debuting a new girl group in November. The next day, the group’s first member, Winter, was officially revealed. On October 28, the second member, Karina, was revealed. The same day, a video shown during a press conference featuring Lee Soo-Man revealed the group will have four members, including Giselle and Ningning. On October 29, Ningning was officially revealed as the group’s third member. On October 30, Giselle was revealed as the group’s fourth and final member.
On November 2, it was announced the group would debut on November 17 with the digital single “Black Mamba”, The music video for the song counted 21,4225,062 views in its first day, breaking the record for most viewed music videos in the first 24 hours by a K-pop group in its debut, which was previously held by ITZY with the song “Dalla Dalla”.
On November 17, on their debut day, the group’s fanclub name was announced to be “MY (마이)” which is the word used to mean “the most precious friend” in KWANGYA where aespa’s avatar æ lives.
2021 (1): First music show win, “Forever”, and “Next Level”
On January 8, 2021, the music video for “Black Mamba” hit 100 million views, which took only 51 days and 12 hours to achieve, setting the new record in K-pop history as the debut MV to garner 100 million views in the shortest time period. On January 14, a Forbes article mentioned that the group is expected to put out new music early into 2021 with all signs pointing to additional international activities. Three days later, the group won their first music show win with “Black Mamba” on SBS’s Inkigayo. On January 29, the hashtag #늘네옆에난서있을게 (#I_will_always_stand_by_your_side) was promoted by the group’s official Twitter account, and it was later revealed that the group would release a surprise single “Forever” on February 5. The single is a remake of the song of the same name by Yoo Young Jin from the SMTOWN album Winter Vacation In SMTOWN.Com. On February 4, SM Entertainment announced that the group would release a series of performances for the single in the following days with various concepts.
On March 15, an economic analysis by SM Entertainment revealed that a virtual show in conjunction with the group’s “æ-avatars” is expected for the year. Lee Kihoon, a researcher at the Hana Financial Group, also adds that the debut process of the group was largely responsible for making SM the most innovative company in the current era of the “metauniverses”. Four days later, aespa was one of the two k-pop groups chosen by People magazine in the list “Emerging Artists Making Their Mark on the Musical Landscape in 2021”. According to the article, the group was currently preparing to be able to release their first mini album during the South Korean summer. On April 6, it was reaffirmed again in an article from “Just Jared” that the group are set to release new music in the summer.
On May 4, SM Entertainment confirmed that aespa are preparing for a May comeback. The exact dates will be released once finalized. On the midnight of May 6, a teaser was posted via the group’s social medias announcing the group’s comeback entitled “Next Level”. Later that same day, it was confirmed that aespa would be coming back with their third digital single titled “Next Level” on May 17. The song is a remake of the song of the same name from the original soundtrack of the movie “Fast & Furious: Hobbs e Shaw”. On May 15, the first video showing the worldview story of the group was released through the group’s official YouTube channel. Two days later, it was revealed during the press conference for “Next Level” that the group plans to release their first full-length album soon.
2021 (2): Savage, and “Dreams Come True”
On July 14, Winter appeared in Kangta’s “Free To Fly 2021” music video. On the same day it was announced that the group would collaborate with the game “Eternal Return” by Kakao Games, launching a music video in partnership with the company and also making a presentation at the game’s opening ceremony. On July 23, it was announced that the group had signed with CAA (Creative Artists Agency) to handle its activities in the United States.
On September 10, SM Entertainment’s subsidiary EDM label ScreaM Records announced the release of “IScreaM Vol.10 : Next Level Remixes” on September 14. Four days later, the first teaser for the group’s second comeback with Savage was revealed. Later that same day, SM Entertainment confirmed that the release was the group’s first mini-album which would be released on October 5, with six songs of various genres including the title track of the same name. An online showcase entitled SYNK DIVE: aespa Savage SHOWCASE was held on the same day. On October 5, it was revealed that the album had already reached the milestone of 400,000 copies sold during its pre-order. The title song “Savage” reached the top of all major Korean digital charts.
On October 17, Billboard announced Savage debuted at number 20 on the US Billboard 200 album chart, the highest ranking ever for a K-pop girl group’s debut on the chart. On October 21, it was reported that the album had sold 513,292 copies within 15 days of its release.
Aespa Visionary Awards 2021 (December 1, 2021)
On November 1, it was announced that the group would participate in “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade” in New York, thus becoming the first female K-Pop group to perform on the parade. Three days later, it was announced that the group would participate in SM’s remastering project and release their own version of S.E.S.’s “Dreams Come True” before the end of 2021. On November 23, it was also announced that the group was the only girl group selected by CJ ENM as one of six ‘2021 Visionaries’ in the K-entertainment industry. The group was selected for breaking the traditional “fan culture” through avatars/metaverse and opening up new possibilities in the industry.
Aespa at the Mnet Asian Music Awards 2021 Red Carpet on December 11, 2021
On December 10, it was announced that the group would be part of the winter album 2021 Winter SMTOWN : SMCU Express as part of SMTOWN, the album will be released on December 27, 2021. On December 11 it was revealed that the music video for the group’s version of “Dreams Come True” would be released on December 20 as part of the project. Two days later, the first teaser image for “Dreams Come True” was revealed. On the same day it was revealed that on December 23, a video would be released in partnership with YouTube Originals showing the re-creation of the song with the participation of the singer BoA who was the producer, choreographer and art director from the single and Bada from S.E.S. On December 23, it was revealed that Giselle and Ningning would collaborate on 2021 Winter SMTOWN: SMCU EXPRESS, Giselle on “Zoo” with Taeyong, Jeno, Hendery & Yang Yang from NCT, and Ningning on “Snowy Dream 2021” with Yeri from Red Velvet, Haechan, Chenle & Jisung from NCT. On December 27, it was revealed that Karina and Winter would be part of the new unit “GOT the beat” from the project Girls On Top alongside BoA, Taeyeon & Hyoyeon from Girls’ Generation and Wendy & Seulgi from Red Velvet making their debut with the digital single “Step Back” on January 3, 2022.
2022: Coachella debut, international expansion, and Girls, “Beautiful Christmas”
On January 8, the group became the first artist ever to win the Artist of the Year award at the Golden Disc Awards.
On March 25, it was reported that Winter and Ningning would sing an OST for the tvN drama Our Blues.
On April 19, SM Entertainment confirmed that aespa would perform in the second week of the 2022 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 23 as part of 88rising’s Head in the Clouds Forever showcase, becoming the third K-pop girl group to perform at the festival along with BLACKPINK and 2NE1. The group performed “aenergy”, “Black Level”, “Savage”, “Next Level”, and an English version of the unreleased song “Life’s Too Short”, which will be included in their upcoming album.
On May 12, the group was included in TIME Magazine’s Next Generation Leaders list. On May 27, the group was also included on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list in the Entertainment and Sports category.
On the midnight of June 1, the group released through their social networks a video revealing that the title of their second mini album would be Girls and would be released on July 8, 2022. Later that day, it was announced that aespa had signed a contract with American label Warner Records for their global promotions, becoming the first K-pop group to do so. The group’s first English single, “Life’s Too Short” would be released on June 24. Also on June 1, aespa released the song “Illusion” as a pre-release for their upcoming second mini-album and was selected as Apple Music’s ‘Up Next’ artist for June. On June 2, the group announced their first ever Japanese showcase tour, titled aespa Japan Premium Showcase 2022 ~ Synk ~, which will be held on August 6 and August 7 at Pia Arena MM in Yokohama, Japan. Five days later, on June 7, Live Nation announced via Twitter that aespa would be holding a North American showcase, titled aespa Showcase Synk in LA, on June 26 and June 27 at the YouTube Theater in Los Angeles, California. Six days later, it was reported that physical pre-order sales for Girls exceeded 1 million copies, marking only the second time in K-pop history that a girl group has done so. On June 20, 2022, the group released the second episode of their SM Culture Universe worldview, titled “Next Level”, the episode is 17 minutes long and was released on the group’s official YouTube channel. Four days later, on June 24, the group announced their first fanmeeting 2022 aespa Fan Meeting : My SYNK. aespa, which is to be held on July 30, 2022 at SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium offline and online via Beyond LIVE.
On July 1, it was reported that aespa would be attending the UN ‘2022 High-Level Political Forum for sustainable development’ on July 5. Along with making a speech regarding the importance of sustainable development, the group performed their hit single “Next Level”.
A week later, a day prior to the album’s release, it was revealed that pre-order sales for Girls had exceeded 1.6 million copies, the highest pre-order number ever recorded for an album by a Korean girl group. The album made its debut at #1 on the Circle Album Chart for the week of July 3-July 9 with 1,426,487 copies sold, becoming the biggest female debut in the chart’s history Girls is the best selling album by a girl group on Hanteo with 1,426,687 copies sold. aespa is the first female artist to have an album sell over 1 million copies in a week.
On November 25, SM C&C announced that aespa’s first reality show, aespa Synk Road, will begin airing on December 14 through Waave. The reality show was filmed in Donghae and Pyeongchang, Gangwon-do, South Korea.
On December 9, it was announced that aepsa will be releasing a collaboration single, “Beautiful Christmas”, with Red Velvet on December 14. The song will also be featured on SMTOWN’s ninth winter album, 2022 Winter SMTOWN : SMCU Palace.
2023: First concert tour, “Hold On Tight”, “Welcome To My World”, My World, “Better Things”, “Zoom Zoom”, Drama, “Jingle Bell Rock”
Aespa 2023 aespa 1st Concert SYNK Hyper Line in Tokyo (April 2, 2023)
aespa performing at Yoyogi National Stadium First Gymnasium in Tokyo on April 2, 2023 as part of the 2023 aespa 1st Concert ‘SYNK : Hyper Line’.
On December 1, 2022, it was announced via the group’s official Japanese website that they will hold their first-ever Japanese tour, tentatively titled Aespa Live Tour 2023 in Japan, from March 13 through April 30, 2023. Later, on January 20, a poster revealed through the official social medias announced the group will hold their first concert tour, titled 2023 aespa 1st Concert ‘SYNK : Hyper Line’. That same day, an update on Aespa’s official Japanese website announced that the previous announced concert dates were part of the aforementioned tour.
On January 17, it was announced that Aespa will perform on the second day of the Governors Ball music festival on June 10, becoming the first-ever K-pop group to do so.
On March 16, Star News reported that aespa will be releasing an album in early May. An hour later, SM confirmed the reports.
On March 17, it was revealed that aespa would be releasing a new song, “Hold On Tight”, for the original soundtrack of the upcoming Apple TV+ film Tetris on March 31.
On April 14, Spot TV News reported that aespa will be having their comeback on May 8 and that they are in the final preparations. Later on that day, SM confirmed the reports and added that the promotion schedule will be announced soon. On April 17, it was announced that aespa will be releasing their third mini album, My World, on May 8. A pre-release single for the album titled, “Welcome To My World”, was released on May 2.
On June 15, SM Entertainment revealed to Ilgan Sports that Giselle’s health has improved and that she will be retuning to group activities.
On July 31, it was announced that aespa will be releasing the English digital single, “Better Things”, on August 18.
On September 7, it was announced that aespa will release their first Japanese OST single “Zoom Zoom” for the anime BEYBLADE X on October 6.
On October 11, it was announced that aespa will be releasing their fourth mini album, Drama, on November 10.
On November 22, it was announced that aespa will be releasing a new version of “Jingle Bell Rock” on November 24.
2024: “Regret of the Times (2024 aespa Remake Version)”, “Get Goin’”
Through SM Entertainment’s 3Q23 earning release, it was revealed that aespa will be releasing an English full-length album and a single in early 2024.
On January 8, 2024, SM Entertainment announced that aespa will release the digital single “Regret of the Times (2024 aespa Remake Version)” as part of the STATION project.
On February 8, SM Entertaiment revealed that aespa will be releasing their first full-length album in the second half of the year.
On March 7, it was revealed that aespa would be releasing a new song, “Get Goin’”, for the original soundtrack of the upcoming Apple TV+ series Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock – Season 2 on March 29.
On March 20, Rolling Stone revealed that aespa will appear on the EP inspired by the characters from the Netflix film Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver.
Members
| Name | Avatar | Symbol | Position(s) | Years active | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Korean | Japanese | ||||
| Karina | 카리나 | カリナ | æ-Karina | 💙 | Leader, Dancer, Rapper, Vocalist, Visual | 2020–present |
| Giselle | 지젤 | ジゼル | æ-Giselle | 🌙 | Rapper, Vocalist | 2020–present |
| Winter | 윈터 | ウィンター | æ-Winter | ⭐ | Vocalist, Dancer, Visual | 2020–present |
| Ningning | 닝닝 | ニンニン | æ-Ningning | 🦋 | Vocalist, Maknae | 2020–present |