Boy band Stray Kids still hungry to prove that it can do 'This & That' and more

After a whirlwind, record-breaking year, what could Stray Kids possibly have left to offer? The group’s answer: this, that and plenty more.

“There’s always the safer option of doing what we’ve already done on previous albums,” member Han said during a press conference in western Seoul on Thursday, one day before the release of the band’s 10th EP, “This & That.”

“But we keep trying new things and taking on new challenges because that’s more fun.”

The upcoming album is a testament to that.

Stray Kids, which debuted under JYP Entertainment in 2018 and is known for writing its own music, consists of eight members: Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin and I.N.

“This & That” comes nine months after the group’s special album “Do It” (2025) and nearly a year after its fourth full-length album “Karma” (2025).

Once again with the octet’s songwriting subunit 3Racha at the helm of its production, “This & That” is Stray Kids’ first album since “Do It” debuted on top of the Billboard 200, which made the band the first act in the chart’s history to debut eight consecutive albums at No. 1.

The group also concluded its sprawling “dominATE” world tour — its largest to date — in October last year. The tour ranked No. 2 on Pollstar’s Top 20 Global Concert Tours list released that November.

But more than numbers, what the band remains hungry for is the chance to reach more people, visit more regions and take on new challenges.

“Whenever we prepare an album, a concert or a new project, we don’t begin with a particular result or achievement as our benchmark,” Seungmin said. “Instead, we always try to do our best and show our fans how sincere we are through both our music and performances.”

“Of course, we always hope that results worthy of those efforts will follow,” he added. 

But above all, he said, the group’s ultimate goal remains to have its music and messages reach STAY — the official name of Stray Kids’ fandom — and many other listeners.

The upcoming album comprises eight tracks: the lead single “This & That,” the prerelease single “Run It,” the B-sides “After You,” “Farming,” “I Do,” “Way Out” and “Back Then” and a festival remix of “This & That.”

“We’re now in our ninth year, and we’ve experimented with a wide variety of musical genres since the very beginning,” said Bang, the leader and one of the three members of 3Racha alongside Changbin and Han. “And with this album, as the title suggests, we’re prepared to show yet another color of Stray Kids.”

The lead single is a hip-hop-based track with what the members described as a “chill and cool” mood.

“The track has a very distinctive sound and may come across as a little chaotic, but we tried to balance that and make it more approachable through the simple repetition of ‘this and that’ in the lyrics,” Changbin said.

“If I had to define Stray Kids’ identity, I would say that it lies in the fact that we make our own music,” he continued. “We’ll continue searching for what we’re good at and taking on new challenges […] in a way that’s uniquely [us].”

The octet kicked off its new “Run It” world tour with five sold-out shows at KSPO Dome in southern Seoul from July 25 to Sunday. It is scheduled to headline StrayCity — a new touring music festival that will visit three Latin American cities — in September.

“To be honest, we’re still hungry,” Seungmin replied when asked why the group was launching its own festival series. “We want to travel around the world to meet STAY, including those we haven’t had the chance to see in person. We’re always longing to see them.”

“I’ve been looking forward to [the tour] so much,” Hyunjin said. “Performing the music that we’ve created ourselves makes us so happy. We worked incredibly hard to prepare for this, and I think that those efforts are already paying off.”

Given Stray Kids’ commercial and chart success in the United States, the band has been cited as a potential contender for the Grammys’ newly introduced Best Asian Pop Music Performance category since BTS announced that it would not submit any music for the upcoming awards to protest the region-based category.

Asked whether they planned to submit a recording for this year’s Grammys and what they thought of the new category, the members steered clear of addressing either point directly. Instead, they stressed that their focus remains on making music.

“We have never gone into an album promotion with an award, result or record as our goal, and this album is no different,” Hyunjin said, echoing Seungmin’s earlier comments. “With this album, we simply want to show — and prove to — as many people as possible that we can do this and that. We can do it all. That’s our biggest goal and also my [own] dream. Above all, our priority is making sure that our fans feel satisfied and happy.”

With Lee Know expected to begin his mandatory military service next year, the group is also likely approaching a hiatus as a full eight-member act.

Still, Lee Know expressed confidence that the members will eventually reunite and continue making music together.

“To be honest, we haven’t discussed our album plans after the military-service period in much detail,” he admitted. “But I’m certain that we’ll come back together.”

And that is because STAY will always be waiting for them.

“No matter how long we’re away for military service, we want to repay all the love that they’ve given us,” Lee Know continued. “So please wait just a little while. We’ll be back before you know it.”

BY SHIN HA-NEE [[email protected]]