K-pop girl group Kep1er may extend their contracts and promote together for a longer time.
On September 22, SpoTV News reported that WAKEONE, the company managing Kep1er, recently held meetings with executives from the members’ respective agencies to discuss a potential extension of their contract.
The girl group was formed in late 2021 through the project girl group series Girls Planet 999, which saw trainees from music agencies in Korea, Japan and China competing to win a spot in Kep1er. At the time, the girl group singed a contract to promote as a group for two-and-a-half years.
In response to reports, WAKEONE confirmed that it had started discussions. “It is true that we pre-emptively held a meeting to establish a roadmap and strategy for the artists’ long-term activities as the Kep1er project has passed its halfway mark, and we made the same proposals to all agencies,” it said, as translated by Soompi.
The agency added that this round of negotiations had not been successful, though it intends to discuss the matter further as Kep1er approach the end of their current contracts.
“Although we did our best to reach agreements with all the agencies, it did not work out this time,” WAKEONE added. “As there is still some time left [for the project group’s] promotional period, we will continue to coordinate with each other.”
If Kep1er are unable to extend their contracts, the nine-member act will disband sometime in mid-2024, having made their debut in January 2022.
The group are set to make a comeback next week with their fifth mini-album ‘Magic Hour’, which will be led by the single ‘Galileo’. Their most recent music was their fourth mini-album ‘Lovestruck!’, which they released in April this year.