J-Hope of BTS is set to release his solo album Jack in the Box on July 15, 2022. J-Hope’s label, Big Hit Music, made the announcement on Weverse followed by a video posted by J-Hope on his Instagram announcing the upcoming album. The album’s first single will drop on Friday, July 1, however, there’s no official word yet on its title.
Soon after the news broke fans around the world showed their excitement on social media, with J-Hope and Jack in the Box trending worldwide on Twitter.
“Jack in The Box lends a voice to J-Hope’s aspirations to break the mold and grow further. The album represents J-Hope’s own musical personality and vision as an artist,” according to Big Hit.
The release of Jack in the Box will make J-Hope the first BTS member to embark on “BTS chapter 2.” On June 13, BTS held a dinner party to celebrate their nine-year anniversary and it was there they announced to fans the members will be releasing solo albums. BTS made it very clear this is not a breakup of the globally popular group, but instead they’re taking a break to find themselves individually. It was also made clear there will still be group activities as well.
The rap members of the group – RM, SUGA, and J-Hope – have previously released solo work they’ve called mixtapes, but this will be the first time the other members will release solo albums. BTS member and leader of the group, RM, noted these will be albums and different from mixtapes that were released in the past.
While it was announced J-Hope would be the first member to embark on the solo adventure, the group did not reveal which member will release next or what the proposed album release schedule looks like. However, BTS’ Jin did say he will probably be the last to release – but that wasn’t confirmed by their label.
J-Hope is set to make his solo stage debut at one of the world’s biggest music festivals, Lollapalooza, where he’ll be a headliner. His appearance will mark the first time a Korean artist will headline a major US music festival when he takes the stage on Sunday, July 31st. The news about his first solo stage show was announced on June 6, 2022, before the group announced their temporary break.
As reported by Variety, singer-songwriter/frontman for the band Jane’s Addiction and founder of Lollapalooza, Perry Farrell, commented on his excitement at having J-Hope perform at the festival.
“I’m happy to welcome J-Hope and Tomorrow X Together into the Lollapalooza family,” stated Farrell. “These artists have been given great gifts in communication. Their global audience speak different languages but possess an intense passion for their music. Lolla is the place where all music genres live in harmony. These are the superstars of the global phenomenon of K-Pop, and we are so excited to have them at this year’s festival.”
Tomorrow X Together are labelmates with BTS at Big Hit Music and will be performing Saturday, July 30.
j-hope 'Jack In The Box'#jhope #제이홉 #JackInTheBox pic.twitter.com/aVVBwH3QbT
— BIGHIT MUSIC (@BIGHIT_MUSIC) June 25, 2022
