Stray Kids Kick Off 'RUN IT' With a Set Tracing Their 8-Year Journey

Stray Kids opened their new world tour in Seoul with a set that traced the group's full arc, from pre-debut songs to tracks off a mini-album that hasn't dropped yet. The eight members packed past, present, and future into a single night.

Stray Kids (Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N) held the Seoul stop of their "Stray Kids World Tour <RUN IT>" on Saturday at KSPO DOME in Seoul's Songpa district. It capped a five-night Seoul run that ran on July 25, 26, and 29, and August 1 and 2.

The group opened the show with "Wiindaeeon," "Hellevator," and "District 9." "Wiindaeeon" opened the first page of a book built around the group's story. Pre-debut track "Hellevator" and debut single "District 9" followed, walking the crowd back to where the group started. Drenched in sweat by the end of the opening block, the members greeted fans who had filled the arena. They shouted "Stay high!" and switched between English, Japanese, Chinese, and other languages to speak to fans watching from around the world.

The new staging of "Hellevator," a pre-debut song tied to the group's origin, carried extra weight. Columns of fire and other stage effects pushed the song's energy to a new level. "I wanted to show 'Hellevator' in a different way," Seungmin said. "Just like we've kept proving our own path through our pre-debut song 'Hellevator,' we'll work to make sure everyone can enjoy the road we've traveled and the road ahead through 'RUN IT.'"

The set list played out like a story. After looking back at the group's start through "Hellevator" and "District 9," the show moved through signature tracks and hits before rolling into new songs from "THIS & THAT," the mini-album out August 7. Pre-debut days, the current chapter, and the one about to open all sat on the same timeline.

The five shows unfolded during a heat wave. "I did five days of shows sweating like that, and I got eczema on my thumb," Hyunjin said, drawing a laugh. "That's how much passion we have." Other members jumped in. "It's not just Hyunjin. Our fingers are swollen too." As the members checked each other's hands, Changbin said, "Only the youngest is fine." Youngest member I.N shot back, "The calluses on my toes peeled off instead," startling the rest of the group.

The arena hit its peak during EDM-flipped versions of "DO IT," "락 (樂)," and "KARMA," rearranged for the tour. When the members yelled "Make some noise!" the crowd roared back. Fans ran and sang along in the heat and pushed the temperature in the room even higher. Looking out at the floor, the members smiled. "I can't believe what I'm seeing. You guys are crazy tonight. Absolutely crazy."

Stray Kids release their new mini-album "THIS & THAT" on August 7 at 1 p.m. KST (midnight ET). At the Seoul show, they previewed new tracks "I Do," "After you," and "RUN IT" before the official drop, raising fan anticipation. Near the end of the show, the members said, "Time is going by too fast," then asked, "Should we push the comeback back and add two more days?" Fans shouted "Yes!" in unison.

The members turned the mood personal at the close. "Thank you for letting me live this kind of life," Hyunjin said. "Getting this much love feels like a stroke of luck. Because we weren't a team that took off from the start, every moment feels even more precious. It feels like we built this by slowly adding more people who love us. My life is so happy." Felix added, "Thank you for being in my life, in our lives. Thank you for being born. The reason Skz can keep running is Stay."

Leader Bang Chan tied it to the tour name. "The title of this tour is 'RUN IT.' We've been running hard from the start and we still feel like we're running. I'm grateful to the members who ran with me and to Stay for showing us the way." He continued, "We're 'Stray Kids' by name, but thanks to Stay we've stayed on the right path. We're still running and we have no plans to stop. We'll keep bringing good music and good stages."

After Seoul, Stray Kids release "THIS & THAT" on August 7 to keep the momentum going. In September, the group performs at the major Brazilian music festival Rock in Rio. They will also visit three Latin American cities with "STRAYCITY," a new festival built around the group.