Boy band ONF to release special album on Aug. 16

Boy band ONF performs during the 27th Dream Concert in Seoul's Worldcup Stadium on June 26, 2021. [NEWS1]

ONF’s label WM Entertainment announced Wednesday that the boy band will be dropping a special album on Aug. 16. It comes as a surprise to fans as all five Korean members are currently serving their mandatory military service.

The label released a teaser video of the upcoming album “Storage of ONF” on the boy band’s official social media channel on Wednesday and said the special album is ONF’s surprise gift to its fans. The release comes about eight months after the band’s sixth EP “Goosebumps.”

“The members prepared for the album before starting their mandatory military service so the fans can enjoy their music while they are away,” the label said.

All five Korean members of ONF decided to serve simultaneously to minimize the group's time away from the entertainment industry. They began their service last December. It is uncommon for band members to synchronize their enlistments.

MK enlisted on Dec. 21, J-US and Wyatt enlisted on Dec. 27 while Hyojin and E-Tion enlisted on Dec. 28. U is the sixth member of the band but does not have to enlist because he is Japanese.

The teaser video features an old cassette tape player laying on snow-covered ground. It plays a part of the band’s new song for a few seconds, heightening the anticipation of what the album will sound like.

ONF debuted in 2017 as a seven-member band with the EP “On/Off.” The group’s youngest member Laun left the group in 2019 for personal reasons.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]