Stray Kids to kick off 2026 comeback with self-produced EP 'THIS & THAT'

By Joonha Yoo Posted : July 31, 2026, 16:17 Updated : July 31, 2026, 16:17
Members of South Korean boy group Stray Kids pose for a group concept photo ahead of the release of their new EP, "THIS & THAT," in this image provided by JYP Entertainment on July 31, 2026. The eight-member group will release the album and its title track on Aug. 7. Courtesy of JYP Entertainment

SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) -  Stray Kids will return on Aug. 7 with "THIS & THAT," the group's first release of 2026, following a year of stadium tours, international festival appearances and record-setting success on the Billboard 200.

JYP Entertainment said Friday that the group will release the EP and its title track, "This & That," at 1 p.m. KST on Aug. 7.

The eight-track project marks another self-produced release for the group, with in-house unit 3RACHA — Bang Chan, Changbin and Han — credited across every song, including the pre-release single "Run It" and a festival remix of the title track. JYP said the album highlights the group's versatility while continuing the self-produced approach that has defined Stray Kids since its 2018 pre-debut single "Hellevator."

The rollout comes less than two weeks after Stray Kids opened its RUN IT world tour with five sold-out concerts at Seoul's KSPO Dome. The tour next heads to Japan, where the group is scheduled to become the first overseas male act to headline Tokyo's National Stadium, before continuing through Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka, Hong Kong, Taipei, Bangkok and Singapore into early 2027.
 
Members of South Korean boy group Stray Kids pose for a nighttime concept photo for their new EP, "THIS & THAT," in this image provided by JYP Entertainment on July 31, 2026. Stray Kids will release the eight-track EP, produced entirely by the group's in-house unit 3RACHA, at 1 p.m. KST on Aug. 7. Courtesy of JYP Entertainment


The group is also set to headline Rock in Rio in Brazil this September and launch STRAYCITY, a fan festival built around Stray Kids, with stops planned in Bogotá, Buenos Aires and Mexico City.

The comeback follows a milestone year for the group. Both of last year's releases — the fourth studio album "KARMA" and the mixtape "DO IT" — debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, making Stray Kids the first act to send eight consecutive releases straight to No. 1 on the chart. The group's dominATE world tour also finished No. 2 on Pollstar's year-end ranking of global concert tours and No. 10 on Billboard's Top Tours chart for 2025, the highest placements achieved by a K-pop act on either list.

That momentum has carried into 2026. In June, Stray Kids became the first K-pop act to headline New York's Governors Ball Music Festival, performing before a crowd of about 45,000.
Joonha Yoo

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