aespa return with 2nd studio album 'LEMONADE,' two years after 'Armageddon'

aespa released LEMONADE on May 29, two years after Armageddon (May 2024).

The 10-track album features pre-release single "WDA (Whole Different Animal)" and title track "LEMONADE," an electronic dance song built on an intense, trendy synth bass sound the group describes as their new direction. Lyrically, it riffs on the proverb "If life gives you lemons, make lemonade" and signals a fresh chapter in aespa's worldview—the core message: turn hardship into opportunity. The music video deepens the lore. A "lemon bug" rolls into aespa's parallel world, cracks open a P.O.S (Portal of Souls), and the group crosses through to transform a dark realm. Two new concepts debut here: the multiverse "Complexity" and the parallel-world idea "Crack." Giselle pointed out that lyrics from "Next Level" thread all the way through to this album.

At a May 28 press conference at Sofitel Ambassador Seoul in Songpa-gu, Karina said the first album's response left her "excited but also burdened." The group "put a lot of thought" into the sequel. She also reframed the sonic shift as moving away from their signature metallic edge toward something sourer and fresher. Winter brought up the fan-coined term 쇠콤달콤 (a blend of "metallic" and "sweet-and-sour") with obvious delight.

Promotion runs through June 7. Popup events hit IFC Mall in Yeouido and Banpo Hangang Park in Seoul, with stops in Los Angeles, New York, Shenzhen, and Tokyo. The marquee event: August 7–8 at Gocheok Dome. Winter said she still can't believe it's happening.