Leaving behind a brilliant 2025, Stray Kids are ushering in the opening of yet another historic chapter.


At midnight on January 1, Stray Kids unveiled a video titled “Stray Kids ‘STEP OUT 2026’” via their official SNS channels, introducing the ambitious new projects they plan to carry out in the year ahead. Looking back on 2025 alongside SKZOO—the animal characters symbolizing the group’s eight members—the year was marked by an unprecedented string of milestones.


To celebrate their seventh debut anniversary, Stray Kids released the digital single “Mixtape : dominATE.” They followed this with their fourth full-length album KARMA, which achieved a seventh consecutive No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and recorded triple-million first-week sales. They also released SKZ IT TAPE “DO IT,” a project that once again rewrote the 70-year history of the Billboard 200, with its title track “Do It” earning the group their fifth cumulative entry on the Billboard Hot 100. In total, Stray Kids released two albums and one digital single during the year.


Their world tour, “Stray Kids World Tour ,” which kicked off in Seoul in August 2024, also continued throughout 2025. Beginning in Hong Kong in January, the tour spanned Latin America, Shizuoka in Japan, North America, and Europe, with a total of 35 solo concerts across 23 regions. Most shows were held at major stadiums representative of each region, setting numerous first-ever and record-breaking milestones in K-pop. Notably, the encore concerts marking the finale of their largest-scale world tour to date—covering 35 regions and 56 shows—were held at Incheon Asiad Main Stadium, making Stray Kids’ first solo entry into a domestic stadium venue just seven years after debut.


In recognition of these achievements, Stray Kids claimed grand prize awards at multiple music ceremonies. Fans, known as STAY, were also treated to a wide array of content, including signature series such as “2 Kids Room,” “RACHA LOG,” and “SKZ CODE,” all of which garnered high view counts on YouTube and widespread acclaim. The group also held their fifth official fan meeting and launched various SKZOO collaborations.


After filling the past year with extraordinary records, Stray Kids are poised to further solidify their status as “K-pop champions” through an ambitious lineup of projects in 2026. These include a new album, a new tour, the return of their signature content “♥ Kids Room Returns,” their sixth official fan meeting, SKZOO activities across domestic and international locations, “SKZ-REPLAY 2026,” the documentary film “Stray Kids: The dominATE Experience,” and appearances at major music festivals worldwide.


With 2025 serving as a defining milestone in their growth, Stray Kids are set to soar higher and farther in 2026—drawing global attention to the next stage of their remarkable journey.




Written by Kim Su Jin
Translated by Lee So Yun