Special guests have been announced for the upcoming Stray Kids headline gig at BST Hyde Park.
READ MORE: Stray Kids – ‘5-Star’ review: cementing their superstar status
The South Korean pop group will be headlining the 2024 edition of BST Hyde Park later this summer, in what will be their only show in the UK this year. Find remaining tickets here.
Their slot will take place on Sunday, July 14, and sees them close out this year’s series. This comes as they’re the last of numerous headliners set to perform across this summer – others include SZA (June 29), Kings Of Leon (June 30), Morgan Wallen (July 4) Andrea Bocelli (July 5), Robbie Williams (July 6), Shania Twain (July 7), Stevie Nicks (July 12), Kylie Minogue (July 13).
Now, with just over a month to go until the gig, the first wave of artists joining the K-pop stars on the night have been announced.
Rising pop star Maisie Peters is among the first newly announced artists who will be joining the band on the night. She broke onto the scene with her 2021 debut album ‘You Signed Up For This’, which she wrote across London, LA and Nashville alongside the likes of Ed Sheeran, Fred again.. and more.
Her emotive and heartfelt lyrics soon put her on the map, and she has since gone on to sell out Wembley’s OVO arena. Her second album, ‘The Good Witch’ arrived in 2023 and made her the youngest solo British female artist in almost a decade to chart number one on the UK Albums Chart.
BST Hyde Park Stray Kids poster. CREDIT: Press
Also joining Stray Kids is singer-songwriter Alec Benjamin, who had his breakthrough back in 2021 when he went on a huge tour across North America. He is widely known for the tracks from his sophomore album ‘(Un)Commentary’, which he shared in April 2022, and contained tracks like ‘The Way You Felt’, ‘Older’, ‘Shadow Of Mine’, and ‘Speakers’.
His latest album ‘12 Notes’ arrived last month, and has already seen tracks ‘Sacrifice Tomorrow’, ‘Pick Me’, ‘In a Little’ and ‘By now’ become fan favourites.
South Korean girl group NMIXX is also joining the line-up. They were formed by SQU4D, a sub-label of JYP Entertainment, and broke out onto the scene back in February 2022 with their debut ‘AD MARE’. It contained the massive single ‘O.O’ and gathered the highest debut sales recorded by a girl group ever in K-pop history. Since then, they have shared a follow-up single ‘Entwurf’, debut EP ‘Expérgo’, and single album ‘A Midsummer Nmixx’s Dream’. Their sophomore EP ‘Fe3O4:Break’ is arrived earlier this year.
Finally, solo artist KIRE completes the first wave of support acts for the July 14 show. Formerly a member of the popular hip-hop idol band BOI!, KIRE is a singer, songwriter and producer. Before venturing into a solo career, he wrote for numerous esteemed artists, and ultimately launched his own discography with 2020’s debut single ‘Beautiful.
Earlier this year, KIRE embarked on a new venture by launching his own brand, ‘The Kid Who Flew’. It draws inspiration from his personal journey, and sees him aim to forge meaningful connections with others who relate to it.
Stray Kids performs onstage during the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards. CREDIT: Jason Kempin/Getty Images
“We’re so excited to welcome international superstars Stray Kids to BST Hyde Park in July for the first time,” said Jim King, CEO of European Festivals at AEG Presents. “We’re honoured to bring Stray Kids to the stage in 2024, as this genre only continues to grow from strength to strength.”
Last year Stray Kids achieved their first Billboard Hot 100 entry with ‘Lalalala’, a single from their 2023 EP ‘Rock-Star’. They became only the second-ever K-pop boyband to do so, following BTS.
The group’s latest studio album, ‘5-Star’, was released last June. In a glowing five-star review of the record, NME wrote: “Stray Kids are flying so high above the crowd that they’re in a galaxy of their very own, where the parties are endless and the vibes are always five-star.”
Meanwhile, Stray Kids picked up the Global K-pop Artist prize at the 2024 Golden Disc Awards earlier this month. They also put on an explosive performance of ‘Megaverse’, ‘S-Class’ and ‘Hall Of Fame’ at the ceremony.
In 2023, Blackpink became the first K-pop band to headline a major UK festival with their set at BST Hyde Park.
The post Special guests announced for Stray Kids’ London BST Hyde Park show appeared first on NME.
