Amid April’s flood of new K-pop releases, boy band NEXZ is hoping to cut through the noise with a bang — or perhaps an “Mmchk.”

“'Mmchk’ represents the sound we make as we move,” said member Hyui, referring to the title of its latest single, during a press showcase held at Blue Square Woori WON Banking Hall in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Monday.

“And the dance moves for the song are intended to grab people’s attention,” he added, describing the choreography for the song.

“This word is like a sign of our presence, like saying, ‘Please look at us,’” member So Geon said. “So when we keep chanting ‘Mmchk, mmchk,’ it’s our way of asking people to notice our charms and energy.”

NEXZ, short for “Next Zeneration,” debuted in May 2024 as JYP Entertainment’s first boy band in six years since Stray Kids, with seven members: Tomoya, So Geon, Yu, Seita, Hyui, Haru and Yuki.

The group’s latest single, which comes six months after its third EP, “Beat-Boxer” (2025), features three songs including the title track, “Mmchk,” an English version of the song and a B-side, “Hypeman.”

The title track, “Mmchk,” is a fast-paced electronic dance pop aiming to “draw in listeners into NEXZ’s own world, where they become their own role models,” JYP said.

The song is designed to accentuate the group’s greatest forte: a perfectly synchronized, powerful performance.

As NEXZ has built its reputation for the members’ performance prowess, the group performed both “Hypeman” and “Mmchk,” back-to-back on Monday. It is a rare occurrence for a K-pop showcase where acts usually opt to perform one song, or split two songs into separate segments, to catch their breath.

Even though many K-pop acts are making their comebacks amid the warming weather, NEXZ is confident it has its own distinct weapon to stand out.

“Personally, I did feel some pressure to join so many great artists as part of the April comeback lineup, but we’ve been preparing to show what we have honed so far,” said So Geon. “So in that process, anticipation has come to outpace concerns.”

As NEXZ was formed through JYP Entertainment and Sony Music Japan’s joint audition program “Nizi Project Season 2” (2023), the seven-member group is almost entirely made up of Japanese members except for So Geon, a Korean national born and raised in Japan.

However, the members actively took part in writing lyrics, with members Yuki, Hyui and Tomoya credited for lyrics of “Mmchk,” and Yuki and Tomoya for “Hypeman.”

“There are some difficulties, to be honest, writing lyrics in Korean when most of us are Japanese,” admitted Hyui. “But we want to put our own message, our own stories in our songs. That’s why we worked hard on the projects, looking at dictionaries together.”

NEXZ, now nearing its second debut anniversary, was named the best rookies in various awards shows including the Golden Disc Awards in 2025. The group is set to launch its first arena tour in Japan in May, followed by its first Asian tour this year.

“Though I thought to myself, ‘Do we really deserve this?’ every time, winning rookie awards really motivated us to move forward,” said Hyui. “Since our debut two years ago, I can feel us growing more confident and relaxed on stage.”

“I can’t believe we are already nearing our second anniversary,” said Yu, who celebrated his 21st birthday on Monday. “We’ve grown a lot since the debut — and I wish we would be able to reach more audiences starting with ‘Mmchk.’”

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]