From embarking on their first (and second!) tour to having a comeback in every season, 2024 has been a busy one for &TEAM! Their sophomore year has seen them reach new heights of (well-deserved) success and, as LUNÉ, we couldn’t be happier for them.
With &TEAM promoting in both Korea and Japan, it can be hard to keep track of everything they’ve been up to – seriously, why are all their Japanese TV appearances so hard to find? – but we have it covered. We have very graciously taken it upon ourselves to make sure we’re caught up on all things &TEAM, so we can share it with you and keep you updated too! You’re so welcome…
So here goes, with &TEAM’s 2024 Music Rewind.
FIRST PAW PRINT
First(!) of all, have you ever heard a better name for a debut tour, especially for a pack of wolves? It’s literally genius, and some of the best branding ever, TBH! Besides that, it was amazing to see &TEAM take to the stage for full concerts given what incredible performers they are. From OT9 versions of &AUDITION songs to every song from the First Howling series, First Paw Print was a total dream come true for both &TEAM and LUNÉ.
GO ONE!
If there was anything that LUNÉ were anticipating more than &TEAM’s first tour, it was them finally releasing a variety show! GO ONE! is everything we dreamed of and more, TBH. From styling battles to vacations to water sports, it’s got it all.
Samidare
With spring came &TEAM’s first comeback of 2024, and the first album in their seasons series! Samidare (which means May or early summer rain) was the perfect follow-up to 2023’s ‘War Cry,’ and allowed &TEAM to showcase new sides of their talents. From the intensity of ’Scar to Scar’ to the vocal dynamics of ‘Maybe,’ Samidare was the perfect start to &TEAM’s 2024 releases.
Aoarashi
Considering &TEAM were in the middle of their seasons series, it’ll be no surprise to you that their next release was at the height of summer! Aoarashi saw &TEAM reach new heights on the charts too, with title track ‘Aoarashi’ giving them their first ever number one single on both the Billboard Hot 100 Japan and Oricon Charts!
SECOND TO NONE
As if one tour wasn’t enough, and TEAM went on a second one! Literally… it was called SECOND TO NONE, and they outdid themselves on the tour names once again. We’re already dying to know what the next one will be… Third Time Lucky? Due to how quickly their fandom is growing, the theater tour they started 2024 with wasn’t enough, so SECOND TO NONE saw &TEAM headline arenas in Korea and Japan from July to September. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for even bigger tours, in more countries, in 2025!
2nd Anniversary Fan Meeting
Our teamies are two years old already… they grow up so fast! Somehow we’re already in September and it’s two years since &TEAM were formed on &AUDITION. They celebrated at Tokyo’s Garden Theater with a fan meeting, 縁 DAY. &TEAM treated LUNÉ to unit covers, and no. We’re not ready to talk about K and Fuma’s collab.
Jyuugoya
At the end of SECOND TO NONE in Aichi, &TEAM didn’t leave us hanging, wondering what their next plans would be. They announced autumnal digital single Jyuugoya and wintery full-length album Yukiakari, the next and final pieces of their series! Jyuugoya, being only a digital release, had a lot less fanfare than the other comebacks but, in our humble opinion, it gave us one of the best &TEAM b-sides to date, ‘Big Suki.’
Yukiakari
As far as their discography goes, &TEAM wrapped up 2024 with the finale of their seasons series, Winter’s Yukiakari. The aesthetic, with winter snow mimicking Samidare’s cherry blossoms, couldn’t have been dreamier. Featuring all of &TEAM’s songs from 2024 and several brand new ones, Yukiakari’s title track was one of the group’s best, and we know that LUNÉ are never going to recover from ‘Deer Hunter.’ (Neither are we!)
OSTs
Are you sick of new &TEAM music yet? No? Good, because neither are we! Not only did they give us four comebacks in 2024, &TEAM also released three OSTs! All included on Yukiakari‘s tracklist, ‘Beat the odds,’ ‘Feel the Pulse,’ and ‘MEME’ each offered new glimpses of the group. Our favorite, though, is easily ‘Beat the odds,’ thanks to its intensity and drum and bass influences.
Awards And Achievements
Still don’t believe us when we tell you how iconic this group’s sophomore year was? Don’t worry, we weren’t the only LUNÉ down bad for &TEAM in 2024, so we have backup. Their increased success saw their trophy cabinets get bigger too, with &TEAM winning the AAA Icon Award, the Fact Music Awards Global Generation Award, and Universal Superstar Awards Universal Next Generation (Male) to name a few!
All 903 Of Their Sidequests
Now that we’ve covered their main job, let’s talk about &TEAM’s mind-boggling number of sidequests! As they continue to be the most athletic group imaginable, we’ve had K running marathons on TV, Fuma returning to compete on SUSAKE, and that iconic performance at ISAC. K, not content with his 1021 jobs and regularly getting electrocuted on daytime TV, also starred in a J-drama as the sassiest grim reaper you could dream of. Is there a luckier fandom than LUNÉ?
So, what was your highlight of &TEAM’s 2024? Did you start stanning them this year? What do you think will happen next, now that the seasons series is completed? Let us know by tweeting us at @TheHoneyPOP or visiting us on Facebook and Instagram.
Need more K-Pop or J-Pop in your life? Look no further!
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