SM Entertainment has revealed an ambitious lineup for the end of 2025 and the start of 2026. The K-pop agency confirmed a series of massive comebacks, solo debuts, and world tours happening in the rest of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026.
On November 5, SM Entertainment revealed earnings for the third quarter of 2025 and the upcoming lineup. RIIZE, Hearts2Hearts, Taeyeon, EXO, WayV’s Ten, Red Velvet’s Irene, and more will make comebacks in the coming months. After Wendy and Yeri’s departure from SM Entertainment, Red Velvet has not made a group comeback this year. It also appears that a group return won’t be happening in the first quarter of 2026 either.
SM Entertainment Comeback Lineup 4Q 2025
The final quarter of 2025 will be one of the busiest periods for SM Entertainment’s artists. The company has lined up a rich mix of group and solo releases with a strong focus on both Korean and Japanese markets.
After a year of multiple million-sellers and major tour successes, SM is closing out the year with a bang. It features long-awaited albums, first-time solo debuts, and celebratory projects from its biggest names.
- Taeyeon (Girls’ Generation) – Full album celebrating the 10th anniversary of her solo debut
- U-Know Yunho (TVXQ) – Full album, marking his first solo comeback in more than two years
- NCT DREAM – Mini album, following their million-selling full-length released in July
- WayV – Second mini album of the year
- Hearts2Hearts – First mini album from SM’s rookie girl group
- Yuta (NCT 127) – Japanese full-length album
- Chanyeol (EXO) – Japanese mini album, his first-ever solo release in Japan
- RIIZE – Single album
- Max Changmin (TVXQ) – Japanese single, his first in almost four years
- Minho (SHINee) – Digital single
- Jungwoo (NCT 127) – Solo debut single, becoming the ninth NCT member to debut as a soloist
The live performance schedule for the end of 2025 will be equally intense. aespa, RIIZE, and NCT DREAM will continue their world tours. On the other hand, Super Junior will mark their 20th anniversary with SUPER SHOW 10.
NCT WISH will kick off their first concert tour titled INTO THE WISH: Our WISH, with multiple stops in Asia. Meanwhile, NCT 127’s Yuta and Doyoung are preparing to meet fans through solo concerts. More importantly, Doyoung and Jungwoo will enlist in early December and discharge in June 2027.
Comeback Lineup for First Quarter of 2026
SM Entertainment confirmed several big releases for the year’s first quarter. Iconic names from SM’s roster, EXO and Red Velvet’s Irene, and global fan favorites like NCT and RIIZE, will make musical comebacks.
- EXO – 8th full-length album
- Irene (Red Velvet) – First full solo album
- NCT U – Mini album
- Ten (NCT) – Mini album
- NCT WISH – Japanese mini album
- Hearts2Hearts – New single
- HYO (Girls’ Generation) – Single
- RIIZE – Japanese single
Among these, EXO’s comeback stands out the most as it is happening around 3 years after their last release.
The return of EXO will be one of the biggest events of 2026. The group will release their eighth full-length album featuring six members — Suho, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, Sehun, and Lay. Lay will participate in his first official group activity in four years. Fans can expect to hear a preview of the album during EXO’s EXO’verse fan meeting in December, ahead of its official release early next year.
Meanwhile, fans are already guessing about which lineup will take part in the NCT U’s mini-album. The group’s comebacks are always loved for their experimental concepts and ever-changing members’ combinations.
Global Tours and SMTOWN’s Grand Return
SM Entertainment is also set to continue an extensive tour schedule that will carry over from late 2025 into early 2026.
RIIZE will continue their first-ever world tour, RIIZING LOUD, performing in major Asian cities including Jakarta, Manila, Singapore, Macao, and Tokyo. NCT WISH will also embark on their INTO THE WISH: Our WISH tour, covering Japan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Macao, and Indonesia. aespa will continue their third major tour, SYNK: aeXIS LINE in Asia in the coming months.
In addition, the legendary SMTOWN LIVE concert series will make its return for the 2025–2026 season. Other major events include Super Junior’s 20th anniversary world tour, solo tours from SHINee’s Key and Minho, and fan meetings from EXO, TVXQ, and other senior acts.
SM Entertainment’s 3Q 2025 Earnings
SM Entertainment’s big announcement follows strong financial results this year. In the third quarter of 2025, the company reported ₩321.6 billion in sales (about USD 230 million), up 32.8% from last year. Operating profit rose by 261%, and net profit jumped more than tenfold to ₩44.7 billion.
Hits from NCT DREAM, aespa, and NCT WISH — all million-sellers — helped drive album and digital sales. Concerts and merchandise also performed well thanks to the popularity of groups like Super Junior, RIIZE, and Hearts2Hearts.
SM has also been reorganizing its structure by merging subsidiaries and selling non-core assets. It now focuses on music and IP-centered business under its SM 3.0 strategy.