Right now, in the final week of June 2026, tickets for BIGBANG’s “20/26 World Tour” are about to go on general sale — and BLACKPINK’s 10th debut anniversary is less than seven weeks away. Both of those sentences would have felt surreal even two years ago. Two of the groups that shaped what K-pop is, both at major inflection points at the same time.
The last thirty days have made that very clear. On June 11, BIGBANG officially named and launched their world tour — 31 stadium shows across Asia, North America, Europe, and Oceania, kicking off August 21. VIP presales opened June 24; general tickets for Oakland, East Rutherford, Paris, and London go on sale June 26. Meanwhile, The Korea Herald reported that YG Entertainment is gearing up for both the BIGBANG tour and BLACKPINK’s August 8 anniversary, with the latter expected to bring pop-up events, previously unreleased content, and potentially new group music. Two milestones. One summer.
That’s what I want to walk through here — what the background looks like, why this moment matters, and what’s actually happening right now. Because the context is what makes it land.
BLACKPINK at Wembley: The Milestone That Set All of This Up
Let’s go back to where the current chapter started: August 15 and 16, 2025, when BLACKPINK headlined Wembley Stadium in London. Two sold-out nights. About 78,000 fans per show.
That sentence sounds like straightforward concert news. But here’s what makes it significant: BLACKPINK became the first K-pop girl group to ever headline Wembley Stadium. Not just headline a UK venue — headline Wembley. The one with 90,000 seats and a list of headliners that reads like a greatest-hits of twentieth-century music history.
For a four-member group from Seoul to be in that company is genuinely unusual. And if you know anything about how the global music industry historically treated non-English-language pop, it’s the kind of milestone that would have seemed implausible ten years ago.
The shows were part of BLACKPINK’s DEADLINE World Tour, which started in South Korea in July 2025 — running through Paris, Milan, and Barcelona before the London dates, and eventually wrapping in Hong Kong in January 2026. They opened the Wembley sets with “Kill This Love,” moved through “Pink Venom” and “How You Like That,” and reportedly surprised the crowd with a cover of the Spice Girls’ “Wannabe.” Which is peak BLACKPINK energy — big, a little cheeky, absolutely committed. That setlist choice alone probably converted more casual music fans into BLINKs than any album rollout could.
If you want to understand why this is a big deal historically, Clash Magazine’s review covers it well. 2026 is shaping up to be one of the most consequential years K-pop has had on the global stage — which is something I get into more in my piece on why 2026 is a once-in-a-decade year for K-pop.
BLACKPINK’s New Music and What’s Coming This Summer
The Wembley run was followed by the February 2026 release of Deadline, BLACKPINK’s first group project since their second studio album Born Pink dropped in 2022. The four-year gap wasn’t unusual given the members’ solo schedules, but it meant the comeback arrived with serious pent-up demand.
Deadline is an EP — five tracks. The lead single “Jump” had debuted at number one on the Billboard Global 200, making it their third chart-topper there. When the full EP landed in February, it sold over 1.4 million copies on its first day, setting a new first-day sales record for a K-pop girl group on the Hanteo Chart.
But that was February. The more immediate story right now is what happens next. BLACKPINK debuted on August 8, 2016 — which means August 8, 2026 is their 10th anniversary. According to The Korea Herald, YG Entertainment has been preparing anniversary projects for that date, including pop-up stores and unreleased video content. Reports have also circulated that a new full-length album is in preparation, which would mark another step forward from where the Deadline EP left off. For a fanbase (BLINK) that already pushed first-day EP sales to record highs, the anticipation around that August window is considerable.
For anyone just getting into K-pop: the combination of a milestone anniversary and potential new music from one of the genre’s biggest acts — that’s the kind of moment the whole ecosystem pays attention to.
BIGBANG at Coachella: A Very Different Kind of Comeback
Now for the other half of 2026’s K-pop story, and it’s a different vibe entirely.
BIGBANG performed at Coachella on April 12 and April 19, 2026. If you know K-pop history, you already felt something reading that sentence. If you don’t — some context.
BIGBANG debuted in 2006. They were one of the first K-pop groups to break through internationally in a serious way, well before BTS or BLACKPINK made that leap. G-Dragon, Taeyang, Daesung, T.O.P — the group shaped what K-pop sounded like and looked like for a decade. Then a combination of member military service, personal controversies (primarily involving T.O.P), and a long creative pause meant BIGBANG went quiet for years. Their last major tour was in 2017.
So: a group that hasn’t toured in nearly a decade, performing at Coachella in 2026 with three of their four original members (G-Dragon, Taeyang, Daesung). Their 18-song set opened with “Bang Bang Bang” and “Fantastic Baby.” They performed solo songs — Taeyang did “Ringa Ringa,” G-Dragon did “Power,” Daesung brought Korean trot to the Coachella desert with “Look at Me, Gwisun.” They performed the iconic G-Dragon and Taeyang duet “Good Boy.”
Korea Times reported on the buildup, noting that fans had been anticipating this as BIGBANG’s first major festival appearance in years. Billboard covered the world tour announcement that came in the weeks that followed.
And during the weekend two set at Coachella, they dropped the news that a 20th anniversary world tour was coming — the formal shape of which became clearer in June.
The “20/26 World Tour”: What We Know Right Now
On June 11, 2026, BIGBANG officially announced the full details of the “20/26 World Tour.” The name itself is clean — 20 years since their 2006 debut, playing in ‘26. It’s a 31-show stadium run across Asia, North America, the UK, Europe, and Oceania. Their first tour since 2017.
The tour opens August 21 at Goyang Stadium in South Korea — three shows there to start. Then it moves: Oakland on September 5, East Rutherford on September 11, Paris on September 19, London on September 26. After that, a run through Asia and Australia, wrapping up February 28, 2027 at Kaohsiung National Stadium in Taiwan.
As of this writing, VIP presale tickets opened June 24. General sale for the North America and European dates goes live June 26 via Ticketmaster and AXS. Consequence has a full breakdown of how to get tickets. SeatGeek and Variety have confirmed the full 31-show schedule.
G-Dragon also confirmed, earlier this year, that album preparation is complete — making the tour the backdrop for what could be BIGBANG’s first significant new music in years.
Why Both of These Matter Together
BLACKPINK and BIGBANG represent two very different eras of K-pop going global, and in the summer of 2026, both of them are at major moments simultaneously.
BIGBANG is legacy. They proved that K-pop could exist internationally before the genre had a lane for it. G-Dragon as a producer and fashion figure, Taeyang as a vocalist — they built credibility that opened doors for everyone who came after. 2026 is their 20th year. The fact that a Coachella crowd in April was going wild for “Fantastic Baby” tells you something about how that music has held up. And now those same fans are trying to get tickets for stadium shows in September.
BLACKPINK is the current peak of K-pop’s global reach. Wembley Stadium, sold out, twice, as the first K-pop girl group to headline it. A world tour that spanned four continents. A comeback EP with first-day sales that broke chart records. And now a 10th anniversary summer on the horizon, with hints of more music to come.
Neither of these is a niche story. These are mainstream music headlines — the kind that reach people who don’t usually follow K-pop at all.
If you’re just getting into K-pop and wondering whether this moment is a good time to start paying attention — it genuinely is. The genre is more accessible than it’s ever been, and moments like Wembley and Coachella give you real anchor points for understanding why people care. I wrote about that more in getting into K-pop in 2026 if you want a practical starting point.
What to Watch For in the Coming Weeks
For BLACKPINK: the August 8 anniversary is the main event. Whether YG follows through with new group music around that date — a full-length album, a single, or a larger project — will define the second half of BLACKPINK’s 2026. The EP era has been commercially strong; if a full album is coming, it would be the first since Born Pink in 2022.
For BIGBANG: the tour is imminent. General ticket sales for Western dates go live June 26, and the first show is August 21. The combination of new confirmed tour dates, potential new music, and G-Dragon’s album announcement makes this a pivotal stretch for understanding what BIGBANG’s second chapter actually looks like in practice.
Both storylines are moving quickly right now. And if this is your entry point into K-pop, late June 2026 is a surprisingly good time to start paying attention.
FAQ
Was BLACKPINK really the first K-pop girl group to headline Wembley Stadium? Yes. Their two-night stand on August 15–16, 2025 made them the first K-pop girl group to headline Wembley Stadium in London, performing to approximately 78,000 fans per show as part of their DEADLINE World Tour.
What is BIGBANG’s “20/26 World Tour”? Officially announced on June 11, 2026, BIGBANG’s “20/26 World Tour” is a 31-show world stadium tour celebrating their 20th debut anniversary. The tour begins August 21 at Goyang Stadium in South Korea and runs through February 28, 2027, covering Asia, North America, the UK, Europe, and Oceania. It is their first tour since 2017, featuring G-Dragon, Taeyang, and Daesung. General tickets for North America and European dates go on sale June 26.
What is the BLACKPINK EP “Deadline”? Deadline is BLACKPINK’s first group release since their 2022 album Born Pink. Released in February 2026, the five-track EP broke first-day sales records on the Hanteo Chart for a K-pop girl group, with over 1.4 million copies sold on day one. The lead single “Jump” reached number one on the Billboard Global 200.
What is BLACKPINK’s 10th anniversary and what’s planned? BLACKPINK debuted on August 8, 2016, making August 8, 2026 their 10th anniversary. According to The Korea Herald, YG Entertainment has planned anniversary projects including pop-up stores and previously unreleased video content. Reports also indicate new group music may be in preparation for the milestone.
Is 2026 a good time to get into K-pop? It’s a great time. Between BLACKPINK’s Wembley milestone, their approaching 10th anniversary, BIGBANG’s comeback and new world tour, there are plenty of entry points. If you’re not sure where to start, check out getting into K-pop in 2026 for a step-by-step guide, or K-pop fandom slang if you want to decode the language you’re seeing in fan spaces.
About the author — Jae is a Seoul-based writer at K-Culture Log, helping newcomers get into Korean culture without the overwhelm.