Stray Kids Are Already Running: Inside the RUN IT Comeback, the New World Tour, and the Countdown to THIS & THAT
It has barely been two weeks since Stray Kids made history at Governors Ball, becoming the first K-pop act to headline the New York festival. Most groups would take a beat after a moment like that. Stray Kids did the opposite. They turned around and announced an entirely new era — a single, a full album, and a world tour — all inside a single week.
For STAY, the timeline has been relentless. For everyone else, it’s a reminder of just how much momentum this group is currently carrying.
A Comeback Announced in One Breath
On June 22 at midnight KST, JYP Entertainment laid out the next several months of Stray Kids’ schedule in one coordinated reveal. Rather than trickling out details over weeks, the agency confirmed three things at once: a pre-release single called “RUN IT,” a full album titled “THIS & THAT” arriving roughly six weeks later, and a new world tour sharing the “RUN IT” name.
The announcement landed alongside a black-and-white teaser that leaned into the group’s history, framing the eight members as a unit pushing forward together — visually tying their past achievements to whatever comes next. It was light on specifics and heavy on momentum, which turned out to be the entire point: the real details arrived fast.
“RUN IT” Drops, Right on Schedule
True to the announcement, Stray Kids released “RUN IT” on June 24 at 1 p.m. KST, music video included. The track was written and produced with input from 3RACHA — the group’s in-house production unit made up of Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han — continuing the self-produced identity that has defined Stray Kids’ sound since their debut.
According to JYP Entertainment, “RUN IT” is meant to function less like a typical pre-release single and more like an anthem — a statement of momentum for both the group and STAY heading into this new chapter.
Early critical reaction has been notably warm. The K-pop review outlet The Bias List described it as a more anthemic, stadium-sized departure from some of the group’s recent catchphrase-driven singles, praising its theatrical use of brass and percussion, even while noting the closing rap as a particular highlight.
It’s worth being clear about what “RUN IT” actually is in the rollout: a lead-in single, not the centerpiece of the era. The real meat of this comeback arrives six weeks later.
THIS & THAT: The Album Behind the Single
Stray Kids’ new full-length project, “THIS & THAT,” is scheduled for release on August 7 at 1 p.m. KST. Reports point to an eight-track listing, marking the group’s first major album of 2026 and their first new full project since the mixtape “DO IT,” which closed out 2025 by debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 — the group’s eighth consecutive chart-topping entry in the U.S., a feat no act had achieved before.
That run alone says a lot about where Stray Kids currently sit in the global market. “DO IT” reportedly moved north of two million copies in its opening week alone. “THIS & THAT” now carries the job of proving that streak wasn’t a fluke, arriving into a year that’s already been defined by festival headlines and record-setting tour grosses.
The RUN IT World Tour: Seoul First, Tokyo History Next
The tour announcement didn’t stay vague for long. On June 23, JYP Entertainment confirmed the first leg of the “RUN IT” world tour, and it starts close to home.
Stray Kids will open with five shows at KSPO Dome in Seoul — July 25, 26, and 29, followed by August 1 and 2. From there, the tour heads to Japan, kicking off with two nights at Tokyo’s MUFG Stadium on August 29 and 30.
Those Tokyo dates carry extra weight: they’re set to make Stray Kids the first overseas male act to hold a solo concert at the venue, which is one of Japan’s national stadiums. JYP Entertainment projects the seven announced Japan shows — spanning Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Fukuoka through late October — will draw roughly 370,000 concertgoers combined.
The tour then continues into Hong Kong and Taipei in December, with Bangkok and Singapore dates following in January and March 2027. JYP has indicated more cities and venues are still to be announced, meaning this is very much a “Part 1” rollout rather than the full map.
This new trek follows “Dominate,” the group’s previous world tour, which wrapped in October 2025 after 56 shows across 35 cities — already the largest tour of Stray Kids’ career. “RUN IT” appears designed to top it.
Festivals Are Now Part of the Plan, Not the Exception
Governors Ball wasn’t a one-off detour into the festival circuit — it looks increasingly like a deliberate strategy. Stray Kids are confirmed to headline Rock in Rio in Brazil this September, and the group is also launching its own festival concept, STRAYCITY, which will run across Colombia, Argentina, and Mexico that same month.
Pairing a traditional arena-and-stadium tour with festival headline slots and a self-branded festival IP is a notably aggressive structure, even by the standards of top-tier K-pop acts. It suggests JYP Entertainment is treating 2026 less like a typical comeback cycle and more like an attempt to lock in Stray Kids’ position across multiple touring markets — North America, Latin America, and Asia — simultaneously.
What About Seungmin?
One open question hanging over all of this is Seungmin’s health. As of the most recent update from JYP Entertainment on May 21, Seungmin remains in treatment for the stress fracture in his left ankle first reported in March, with doctors advising him against long flights and extended travel while he recovers. That advisory kept him off the Governors Ball stage, where the group performed as seven.
There’s been no new public update on his condition since that May statement, and JYP has not said whether he’ll be cleared in time for the Seoul or Tokyo dates. For now, the safest read is that his participation in the upcoming “RUN IT” tour legs is simply unconfirmed — something STAY will likely be watching closely as the Seoul shows approach in late July.
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3RACHA Hasn’t Slowed Down Either
Even outside the group’s main schedule, June has been busy. Stray Kids marked their debut’s 3,000th day on June 10, a quiet but meaningful milestone for a group whose entire identity has been built on longevity and self-production. Han, meanwhile, kept his own momentum going with the solo release “back to life” on June 11, followed by a featured verse on indie act can’t be blue’s track “can’t love,” released June 20.
None of it is incidental. Between solo drops, anniversary moments, and now a full comeback rollout, the group’s individual members are clearly being kept just as visible as the unit itself heading into the bigger August release.
The Bigger Picture
Two and a half weeks ago, Stray Kids were being written about as the group that proved K-pop belonged on a Governors Ball headline slot. Today, the story has already moved on to what comes next — a new single drawing some of the group’s best reviews in years, a tour built around a record-setting Japan stadium run, and an album positioned to extend an already unmatched Billboard streak.
It’s a lot to track, and that’s by design. Stray Kids and JYP Entertainment aren’t treating the Gov Ball moment as a peak to be savored. They’re treating it as a launchpad. Whether “THIS & THAT” can match the commercial weight of “DO IT” remains to be seen, but if the speed of this rollout is any indication, nobody around this group is interested in slowing down to find out.
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