Jaehwa Bernardo

Japanese boy band &TEAM performs at a media showcase in Seoul, South Korea, for their Korean debut with the EP 'Back to Life' on October 28, 2025. Photo courtesy of HYBE Labels Japan

Article (news)

With Korean debut, Japan's &TEAM embarks on new journey to bigger stage

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1761634293727&#x27;Back to Life&#x27; 무대(1)__&amp;TEAM 한국 미니 1집 &#x27;Back to Life&#x27; 발매 기념 미디어 쇼케이스 (1).jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Japanese boy band &amp;TEAM performs at a media showcase in Seoul, South Korea, for their Korean debut with the EP &#x27;Back to Life&#x27; on October 28, 2025. Photos courtesy of HYBE Labels Japan"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Japanese boy band &amp;TEAM performs at a media showcase in Seoul, South Korea, for their Korean debut with the EP &#x27;Back to Life&#x27; on October 28, 2025. <em>Photos courtesy of HYBE Labels Japan</em></span></span></span></div><p>Japan-based boy band &amp;TEAM made their South Korean debut on Tuesday, marking what the members see as a significant step forward in their careers and pursuit of greater global recognition.</p><p>At a media showcase in Seoul, which was livestreamed to the global press, member Harua acknowledged the worldwide popularity of K-pop, saying that debuting within the scene would help bring the group closer to achieving further popularity.</p><p>&quot;To know that we would get the opportunity to perform on a new stage, it made us feel like we were taking a step closer to our goal of becoming a global artist,&quot; Harua said through an interpreter.</p><p>His bandmate, Yuma, added: &quot;Debuting in Korea means it&#x27;s a big challenge to us, it&#x27;s a new step forward for us.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Our biggest goal is carving out our identity in the K-pop scene. And because we are debuting in Korea, I think this is the beginning of our new journey toward the global scene, so I think this is a very important time for us,&quot; Yuma said.</p><p>&amp;TEAM is managed by YX Labels, a Japanese company under HYBE, the South Korean music giant behind top acts such as BTS and SEVENTEEN.</p><p>Formed through the 2022 survival program &quot;&amp;AUDITION – The Howling –,&quot; the nine-member group consists of Korean leader EJ, Taiwanese member Nicholas, and Japanese members Fuma, K, Yuma, Jo, Harua, Taki and Maki. </p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1761634412789&amp;TEAM(1)_&amp;TEAM 한국 미니 1집 &#x27;Back to Life&#x27; 발매 기념 미디어 쇼케이스 (1).jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/></div><p>Since their debut in December 2022, the group has rapidly risen in popularity, topping Japan&#x27;s Oricon charts, embarking on an Asia tour, and surpassing one million sales with their 2025 single album &quot;Go In Blind.&quot; On Instagram, they now boast around 2.1 million followers.</p><p>Filipinos may also recognize &amp;TEAM from their performance of &quot;Gento&quot; with P-pop powerhouse SB19 at the <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/12/18/23/recap-9-favorite-moments-from-2023-asia-artist-awards"><strong>2023 Asia Artist Awards</strong></a>, held at the Philippine Arena.</p><p>&quot;Getting that million-seller status and doing an Asian tour and also topping the Oricon charts, [these are] just amazing milestones for us and it&#x27;s all thanks to LUNÉ, our fans,&quot; Maki remarked.</p><p>While such achievements have boosted the group&#x27;s confidence, their Korean debut &quot;means so much to us because it helps us move forward, it propels us forward to a bigger stage,&quot; Maki said.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KqE0P1qMtQg?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>The group&#x27;s Korean debut comes with &quot;Back to Life,&quot; a six-track extended play (EP) fronted by a song of the same title.</p><p>&quot;Our Korean debut album, &#x27;Back to Life,&#x27; really reflects all of our teamwork that we&#x27;ve built in the past three years and our growth. Just like the title says, it represents our fierce determination for a new leap forward,&quot; Maki said of the EP.</p><p>The title track, which &amp;TEAM pre-released on Monday alongside its music video, also reflects the group&#x27;s &quot;fierce determination,&quot; EJ noted, expressed through a blend of rock and hip-hop elements.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1761634432849&#x27;Back to Life&#x27; 무대(2)_&amp;TEAM 한국 미니 1집 &#x27;Back to Life&#x27; 발매 기념 미디어 쇼케이스 (1).jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>Many charms</strong></div><p>Jo said the Korean debut is also &quot;a great opportunity to share &amp;TEAM&#x27;s many charms to those who don&#x27;t know us yet.&quot;</p><p>Fuma, &amp;TEAM&#x27;s sub-leader, considers the group&#x27;s teamwork and diversity as their forte.</p><p>&quot;We&#x27;re very closely knit, we have different personalities [and] we come from different cultures, but I feel like we have great synergy when we come together. So we want to show that synergy to the fans and listeners out there,&quot; Fuma said.</p><p>Fuma said the group does not feel pressured to appear alongside other K-pop artists on music shows, which are expected to be packed in the coming month as many attempt to make a comeback before the end of the year.</p><p>&quot;I&#x27;m just happy that we get to promote and be on the stage with a lot of amazing artists, so I think this is a war with ourselves. It&#x27;s not a war with other artists,&quot; he said.</p><p>Moving forward, the group&#x27;s next goal is to go on a world tour.</p><p>&quot;Our end goal is going on a world tour so we can meet our fans all across the globe in person. I would also like to perform at Lollapalooza — that&#x27;s my personal goal,&quot; said Maki.</p>

<p>Japan-based boy band &amp;TEAM made their South Korean debut on Tuesday, marking what the members see as a significant step forward in their careers and pursuit of greater global recognition.</p>

Japan-based boy band &TEAM made their South Korean debut on Tuesday, marking what the members see as a significant step forward in their careers and pursuit of greater global recognition.

With Korean debut, Japan's &TEAM embarks on journey to bigger stage

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With Korean debut, Japan's &TEAM embarks on journey to bigger stage

Jaehwa Bernardo,

ABS-CBN News

Published October 28, 2025 05:00 PM PHT

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Updated October 28, 2025 11:50 PM PHT

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&TEAM

YX Labels

Back to Life

K-pop

J-pop

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