Eight years ago today, ATEEZ 에이티즈 released Treasure EP.1: All to Zero, with "Pirate King" as its lead single. KQ Entertainment was not one of the big agencies, and a debut concept built around a pirate crew searching for treasure was a bold thing to open with. It also turned out to be a very good idea. The story gave every release that followed something to belong to, and it gave fans, soon to be called ATINY, a world to dig into.
The eight of them had been working together for a while already. As trainees they performed as KQ Fellaz and even filmed a web series in Los Angeles, and Mnet followed them up to debut in Code Name is ATEEZ. By the time the cameras turned on for real, they knew each other's habits on stage. That shows in every live performance since.
Four eras, one story
ATEEZ think in series. Treasure ran from 2018 to early 2020 and produced "Wave", the song that won them their first music show trophy, on M Countdown in June 2019, and "Wonderland", still a concert favourite. Zero: Fever followed through the pandemic years. The World brought "Guerrilla", their first release to sell more than a million copies, and then The World EP.Fin: Will, their first No. 1 on the Billboard 200, in December 2023.
Since May 2024 it has been Golden Hour. Part.1 opened with "Work", and we liked it more than its title track suggested (our review). Part.2 went to No. 1 in the US again, "Lemon Drop" gave them their first Billboard Hot 100 entry in 2025, and Part.5, led by "Bad", had their biggest American week yet in July 2026.
A debut about pirates was a bold opening move. It gave every release since something to belong to.
The year they went big
2026 might be the year ATEEZ stopped being described as "rising". In June they won the Grand Prize at the Seoul Music Awards, and a week later they headlined BST Hyde Park in London. Their third Billboard 200 No. 1 followed in July. Two years earlier they had already been the first K-pop boy group on the Coachella lineup. The thing that keeps coming up in all of it is the stage: ATEEZ built their name by touring, starting with The Expedition Tour across North America, Europe and Australia in 2019, and they still do.
The line-up has also held. In July 2025 all eight members renewed their contracts with KQ Entertainment for another seven years, as a full group. In an industry where the seven-year mark often splits groups up, that matters.
What comes next
Golden Hour: Part.6 is due on 13 November. In January 2027 a new tour opens in Incheon, and its name is a nice full circle: Zero to All, their 2018 debut title turned around. After Korea it goes to Japan, Europe and the Americas.
New to ATEEZ? Our ATEEZ page has the members, every album and five songs to start with. And this week the Daily is all ATEEZ, so you can find out how much of this you remembered.
Sources The Korea Times: all ATEEZ members renew, Korea JoongAng Daily: Golden Hour: Part.6, The Korea Herald: Zero to All tour, Sports Kyunghyang: Seoul Music Awards.
