SM Entertainment has unveiled its lineup of upcoming music releases for the first quarter of 2027, headlined by full-length albums from Red Velvet’s Seulgi, NCT’s Jaehyun, and RIIZE.
The plans were shared on November 4, when SM presented its third-quarter 2026 business results. According to Soompi’s report on that presentation, the first quarter of 2027 will bring a diverse slate spanning solo albums, group comebacks, unit singles, and a busy concert schedule.
The three full-length albums anchor the quarter. Seulgi is set to release a full-length solo album, Jaehyun is also listed for a full album, and RIIZE are scheduled to return with their second full-length album. No exact release dates within the January-to-March window were given in the presentation summary, so fans are still waiting for the individual comeback calendars.
Beyond the full albums, Hearts2Hearts will return with a new mini album, while SUPER JUNIOR-83z will drop a new single. NCT JNJM is preparing a Japanese single CD, and NCT’s Chenle will unveil a new Chinese single. The spread covers Korean, Japanese, and Chinese-language releases, reflecting how SM now staggers its artists across markets rather than concentrating every comeback in Korea.
The concert schedule is just as packed. SM listed concerts in the first quarter of 2027 for NCT 127, NCT WISH, aespa, Yesung, WayV, Changmin, and Minho. Reporting on the same presentation added detail on two of those runs: aespa are scheduled to play nine shows across Europe, including dates in London, Paris, and Stockholm, while NCT WISH have 17 shows planned across Asia on their second concert tour.
The lineup arrives against a softer quarter for the company. SM reported consolidated revenue of 291.1 billion won for the third quarter of 2026, down 9.5 percent from the same period a year earlier, and operating profit of 35.5 billion won, down 26.4 percent. The company swung to a net loss, which reporting attributed in part to foreign-exchange losses from the stronger won. Music Business Worldwide noted that concert revenue at the parent company fell 34.2 percent year on year, while physical album and digital music revenue fell 51.3 percent as new-release volumes dropped.
That context helps explain why the early-2027 slate leans so heavily on established names. In the third quarter, the biggest new release was NCT 127’s seventh full-length album, BLINGY, with 970,000 copies, followed by WayV’s Vision Wings at 240,000 copies, SUPER JUNIOR-83z’s Promise at 150,000 copies, and Red Velvet’s Velvet Summer at 140,000 copies. The fourth quarter has already brought NCT WISH’s fourth mini album, I SPY, which sold 1.56 million copies in its first week after its October 12 release, according to Hanteo Chart figures cited in the coverage.
The fourth-quarter schedule also sets up the first-quarter rush. NCT DREAM are due to release a full-length album on November 9, Taeyeon is also set for a full album, and an EXO unit mini album is planned, alongside releases already out from NCT WISH, Yesung, Changmin and Xiaojun, RIIZE, and Red Velvet’s Irene and Seulgi. In other words, the first quarter of 2027 is positioned as a continuation of a run that began in the autumn, not a cold restart.
For Seulgi, the planned full album marks a new chapter in her solo career. Her previous solo releases were the mini albums 28 Reasons in 2022 and Accidentally On Purpose in 2025, so a full-length record would be her most substantial solo project to date. Jaehyun’s full album follows his solo debut album J in 2024, led by Smoke, and later releases including Unconditional and 99 Degrees, which arrived in July 2026 after his military discharge in May.
The unit releases also carry their own backstories. SUPER JUNIOR-83z is the pairing of Leeteuk and Heechul, while NCT JNJM features NCT Dream members Jeno and Jaemin. Both formats let SM keep veteran and mid-career artists active between full group cycles, and both have already shown they can move meaningful numbers: SUPER JUNIOR-83z’s Promise was among the quarter’s top new releases.
SM said it plans to roll out new releases and global activities from its major artists starting in early 2027, while expanding activities for legacy artists, growing its younger artists, and entering new markets to build a more balanced portfolio. If the first-quarter slate lands as presented, the opening months of 2027 will test that strategy quickly, with three full albums, a mini album, three singles across three languages, and seven concert runs all landing in the same window.
