The Boyz is back with “Christmas In August,” an easy-listening summer tune that welcomes the boy band's fans to its fantasy-like world.

“Christmas In August” is the first part of The Boyz’s second full-length album “Phantasy,” which will be released in the form of a trilogy made up of three smaller albums. “Christmas In August” features six new tracks, including the lead track “Lip Gloss.”

“It’s our second full-length album that comes three and a half years after our first full-length album was first released," member New said at the boy band’s press conference held on Monday at the CGV Yeongdeungpo multiplex in Yengdeungpo District, southern Seoul.

"It will be filled with the sexy side of The Boyz, the cool side of The Boyz, the cute side of The Boyz and all the sides of The Boyz that you can think of!”

“We are releasing it as a trilogy, as we simply could not include all the different kinds of fantasies in one album. We wanted to unpack it one by one,” New's bandmate Hyunjae added.

The first entry in the trilogy is about the dream of a Christmas in August, a miracle and a dream that cannot happen in reality, which member Sangyeon described as “The Boyz’s real-romance fantasy.” The following two entries in the trilogy, all basing their album names on popular films, will be released by the end of 2023.

The lead track for the album, “Lip Gloss,” is an energetic score that mixes the house and synth-pop genres, and one that shows the distinct color of “Christmas In August.”

“Lead track ‘Lip Gloss’ is about the moment of finally meeting and kissing someone that you only dreamt of, which feels like a Christmas [even in the summer],” New explained.

Another highlight of the album is in the music video for “Lip Gloss,” a six-minute long clip that the boy band shot at Siargao Island in the Philippines. Members explained that the music video, the longest-ever music video shot by the boy band, features an interesting storyline and a plot twist that the viewers can look forward to.

“You know, my all-time favorite film is ‘The Notebook, ' but from today onwards, this is my new all-time favorite film,” member Sunwoo said with a laugh.

For the 11-member boy band, which is already in its sixth year, coming up with a fresh concept has been a tough but worthwhile challenge.


“I’m not going to say that nothing has changed since our debut,” Hyunjae said with a chuckle.

“I was smiling and singing my parts during the recording, but our director kept telling me to sing it in an even brighter tone […] While my voice may have changed, we have tried our best to keep our appearances as unchanged as possible from our debut.”

“I think we have fans that prefer the cooler side of The Boyz and fans that prefer the more refreshing side of us,” member Eric said. “I think The Boyz is good at both and that’s why we can release an album that is ‘refreshing’ even in our sixth year as a band.”

“And the good thing about a trilogy is that we can show fans a completely different color of us before the year ends, so we hope you look forward to it,” he added.


To find out more about The Boyz, visit Celeb Confirmed!

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]