Riize

Riize (Korean: 라이즈; RR: Raijeu; stylized in all caps; pronounced as "Rise") is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment. The group consists of six members: Shotaro, Eunseok, Sungchan, Wonbin, Sohee, and Anton. Originally a seven-piece ensemble, Seunghan departed from the group in October 2024. They debuted on September 4, 2023, with the single album Get a Guitar.

Name

The group's name, Riize, is a name created by combining "Rise", which means "growth", and "Realize", which means "a team that grows together and realizes dreams".

History

Pre-debut activities

Members Shotaro and Sungchan previously debuted in SM's boy group, NCT, being unveiled as part of the lineup in October 2020. On July 1, 2022, SM Entertainment introduced Shohei, Eunseok, and Seunghan as part of their SM Rookies lineup. In November 2022, it was announced that they would star in the reality show Welcome to NCT Universe, hosted by Shotaro and Sungchan.

The first mentions of SM's new boy group came on February 3, 2023, when SM released a video detailing the company's future plans with SM 3.0. In the video, they explained that the group would be debuting in the fourth quarter of 2023, with the project led by SM Entertainment COO Tak Young-jun.

On May 24, 2023, SM released a video regarding their future plans for the group, announcing that Shotaro and Sungchan would leave NCT to join the lineup and that Eunseok and Seunghan would be making their debut, and that Shohei would not be debuting. On July 11, it was reported that the seven-member boy group were filming their debut music video for a projected September debut. In response to media reports about Yoon Sang's son Anton Lee joining the group, SM stated that they would begin revealing information about the group on August 1. On July 31, SM confirmed that the group would debut as "Riize" in September. On August 1, the member profiles of all seven members were revealed, alongside the group's Instagram.

2023: Debut, "Talk Saxy", and Seunghan's hiatus

On August 7, 2023, SM Entertainment announced that the group would be making their debut on September 4 with the release of their first single album, Get a Guitar. The album sold over a million copies in the first week of its release, earning the second most first-week sales of a rookie group's debut album.

On August 19, Riize released the web novel Rise & Realize ahead of the group's debut, in collaboration with Kakao Entertainment. Ahead of its release, Riize performed "Memories" and "Siren" at KCON LA on August 20. Riize released their pre-release single "Memories" on August 21. On September 4, SM Entertainment announced that Riize had signed a contract with RCA Records for their promotion and activities in the United States. At the debut showcase "Riizing Day: Riize Premiere", Riize announced their official fan club name to Sunz, which changes to Briize two days later due to potential negative interpretations of the name "Sunz." On September 7, the group made their official broadcast debut on Mnet's M Countdown where they performed "Get a Guitar", "Memories", and "Siren".

On October 22, it was announced that Riize would have their first comeback with the single "Talk Saxy" on October 27.

On November 22, SM announced that Seunghan would be put on indefinite hiatus due to rumors surrounding him. Due to this issue, SM said that they plan to submit a complaint to the police and are considering taking further legal measures against the leakers who are said to have spread false information to intentionally cause misunderstandings.

2024: "Love 119", Japanese debut, Riizing , and Seunghan's departure

On January 5, 2024, Riize released their single "Love 119", and achieved their first music show win on January 18 episode of Mnet's M Countdown, as well as January 21 episode of SBS' Inkigayo. The group also released a Japanese version of the single on January 24, which marked their Japanese debut.

Riize released the full version of their pre-debut teaser "Siren" on April 3. The single is part of their first EP Riizing, which was released on June 17. They have released four more singles ahead of the EP's release; "Impossible" on April 18, and "9 Days", "Honestly", and "One Kiss" on April 29. The group also announced the dates for their fan-con tour Riizing Day, with shows scheduled between May 4 to August 31 across 9 countries.

On September 2, SM announced that Riize would be releasing their first repackage EP Riizing: Epilogue on September 4, 2024, along with its lead single "Combo". This date also marks the group's first debut anniversary.

On October 11, SM confirmed that Seunghan would be returning to group activities, including the group's "next chapter", scheduled to begin in November. Seunghan had been on hiatus from group activities since November 2023 due to released photos and videos showing him with a woman and smoking a cigarette prior to his debut. Two days after, amid backlash from South Korean fans, SM announced that Seunghan would be leaving the group and that Riize would continue as a six-member ensemble. The announcement was met with counter-backlash, mainly from international fans of the group, who criticized a perceived toxic cancel culture among South Korean fans and organized boycotts of the group's music and merchandise, with many K-pop stores joining.

2025–present: Odyssey

In April 2025, it was announced that Riize would release their first studio album, titled Odyssey, on May 19, 2025. A concert tour Riizing Loud was announced to be scheduled between 2025 and 2026 across ten Asian countries.

On November 24, 2025, Riize released their second single album Fame.

On June 15, 2026, Riize released their second extended play II.

Other ventures

Endorsements

On August 16, 2023, Riize was selected by the Korean online fashion store Musinsa as its new ambassador. On August 25, domestic skincare brand UIQ selected Riize as its exclusive model. On December 11, luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton selected Riize as its house ambassadors.

On March 25, 2024, the Korean cosmetics brand Etude House selected Riize as its new models for "Overglow Tint". On April 18, The Coca-Cola Company's beverage brand Fanta selected Riize as its new brand model. In May, Riize has been selected as an ambassador for Nabati Richeese.

On March 6, 2025, Riize was selected by the lifestyle brand National Geographic Apparel as its 2025 spring campaign model. On the same day, Riize became the brand ambassador for footwear brand Crocs in Japan.

Philanthropy

On January 21, 2025, Riize donated ₩100 million (US$87,416) to Walking with Us, a social welfare corporation that supports arts and culture programs for underprivileged children and youth, under the group's fanclub Briize. In November, Riize pledged HK$250,000 for victims of the 2025 Tai Po apartment fire in Hong Kong.

Public image

Riize was introduced as a group who focuses on the genre of "emotional pop", a unique genre that expresses a variety of emotions through songs, which takes inspiration from everyday experiences in music.

Members

Timeline

Discography

• Odyssey (2025)

Videography

Music videos

Other videos

Concerts and tours

Concert tours

Concert participation

• SM Town Live 2023: SMCU Palace (2023–2024)
• SM Town Live 2025: The Culture, the Future (2025)

Opening acts

• IU – H.E.R. World Tour (2024)

Accolades

Awards and nominations

State and cultural honors

Notes

External links