LISA is officially pressing play on her next solo era. The BLACKPINK star has announced her new EP PRESS PLAY, arriving October 23 via RCA Records under exclusive license from Lloud Co., with its first single “SaWaDiKa” set to drop September 3.
The six-track project follows days of cryptic teasers that sent fans searching for clues across LISA’s social media and a newly launched website. The campaign began with a deep-red site centered on the phrase “HELLO สวัสดีค่ะ,” combining the English greeting with the Thai “Sawadika,” before billboards carrying the same message appeared across Bangkok.
Now, the mystery has a title, release date and first song. “SaWaDiKa” will serve as the lead single from PRESS PLAY, giving fans their first official taste of the new project when it arrives September 3. Pre-orders for the EP are already available, while fans can also pre-save the six-track release ahead of its October 23 debut.
According to a press release, PRESS PLAY is a “celebration of how far she’s come, and a reminder of where it all began. It’s LISA at her most personal, honoring her roots in Thailand and her rise as a global icon.”
The announcement caps a carefully staged rollout that began last week with LISA updating her Instagram bio and directing fans to hellosawadika.com. The website featured a countdown ending August 24, alongside a country selector and email sign-up, while the word “hello” appeared in 11 languages, including English, Thai, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Portuguese and Italian.
Those details became increasingly significant as the campaign expanded into the real world. Promotional billboards appeared in Bangkok, including near Siam Paragon, reinforcing the Thai influence that now appears to be central to the new era. LISA had also previously teased fans with Instagram posts featuring unusual capitalization in phrases such as “hELLo uTaH,” sparking theories that the highlighted letters contained hidden clues.
PRESS PLAY arrives as LISA continues to build on a remarkably strong run as a solo artist. Her debut studio album Alter Ego was released in February 2025 and debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200, while singles including “Rockstar,” “New Woman” featuring Rosalía and “Born Again” with Doja Cat and RAYE expanded her global profile beyond BLACKPINK.
The new EP also lands ahead of another major chapter in LISA’s career. Her VIVA LA LISA Las Vegas residency is scheduled to begin in November, with the shows selling out within minutes of tickets going on sale. The singer has also confirmed that she has been working on new solo music, making PRESS PLAY the first concrete release announcement from that next phase.
Her momentum extends to awards season, too. LISA recently became the first K-pop soloist in MTV Video Music Awards history to reach 10 career nominations after earning four nods for the 2026 ceremony.
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