ARrC are back — and they’re here to turn the chaos into something beautiful.
Just five months after dropping nu kidz: out the box, the multinational K-pop boy group under MYSTIC STORY have unveiled their third mini album, HOPE. This latest release continues to embody the group’s core message — “Always Remember the real Connection” — and digs even deeper into themes of optimism, connection, and growth in uncertain times.
“We’re very thrilled and excited to be back with a new album,” shared HYUNMIN, who also stepped up as a lyricist for the first time. “HOPE conveys the youth’s complicated emotions with honesty and depth… We’re confident that we have created an album with a great level of completeness.”
Fronting the five-track release is ‘awesome’, a title track that fuses early 2000s hip-hop nostalgia with ARrC’s modern sensibility. The song delivers a playful reminder to embrace rough days by simply declaring them ‘awesome’—an attitude shift that sets the tone for the whole album. Its music video leans into symbolism and multicultural storytelling, with nods to Korea, Japan, Indonesia, and Portugal. Mythical Korean Dokkaebi, inspired by traditional masks from Barong, Careto, and Hahoetal, appear as mischievous reminders of youth’s power to transform misfortune into magic.
The rest of HOPE carries just as much sonic and emotional weight:
-
‘dawns’ captures the surreal glow of late-night phone scrolls and the thrill of digital connection, blending nu jazz, soul, and funk. (HYUNMIN and CHOI HAN both earn their first lyric credits here.)
-
‘kick back’ is an anthem of resilience, with lines like “We’re flowers blooming on asphalt.”
-
‘vitamin I’ surges with electro-punk energy, declaring self-belief as the most essential vitamin.
-
‘night life’ slows it down with G-funk and neo-soul grooves, painting the quiet hustle of youth dreaming in silence.
“This album expresses what ARrC thinks and feels these days with much sincerity,” said DOHA. “We shared many conversations about how we can convey certain emotions through music.”
Always ones to keep fans—known as ARrCer—in the loop, ARrC also teased the next chapter with preview track 'SKIID', continuing their tradition of bridging one album to the next. They’ve also teamed up with global character brand Karafuru for a multimedia collaboration exploring the theme of hope—through exhibitions, merch, pop-ups, and more.
Like what you read? Show our writer some love!
-