IU to Release New Single Sept. 10, One Year On

Retro computer boot-up screen graphic featuring a crescent moon and a glowing orb symbol, evoking IU's comeback teaser.

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As of September 4, 2026, singer IU is set to release a new digital single at 6 p.m. on September 10. Her agency, EDAM Entertainment, broke the news with a teaser video posted the same morning — landing almost exactly one year after her surprise single "Bye, Summer" dropped on the same date.

1 yearTime since last release, 'Bye, Summer'

9/10, 6 p.m.Scheduled release date and time for the new single

Key points

EDAM Entertainment posted a teaser video to social media at midnight on the 4th to announce the comeback.
The new single drops at 6 p.m. on September 10 across major music streaming platforms.
The teaser's background track matches music that quietly played in a video posted August 26 to "이지금" (Ijigeum), IU's YouTube channel — a pun on her real name, Lee Ji-eun — fueling fan speculation online.
Back in July, health issues forced IU to cancel a solo concert in Goyang and postpone her sixth studio album.

IU is coming back with new music. Her agency, EDAM Entertainment, posted a short teaser clip to its official social channels in the early hours of September 4 — no advance notice, no press release, just a sudden drop that sent fans scrambling to decode it within minutes.

The clip is styled like an old computer boot-up screen: a crescent moon, an orbiting ring, and a softly glowing orb icon, with a release date stamped in the corner. That's how fans confirmed the next single lands at 6 p.m. on September 10, rolling out simultaneously across streaming platforms.

What really caught people's attention, though, was the music underneath. It's the same melody that briefly played in a video IU posted August 26 to her YouTube channel, "이지금" (Ijigeum) — a wordplay on her real name, Lee Ji-eun. At the time, fans on Korean forums debated whether that snippet was a deliberate hint at new music. The teaser all but confirms they were right.

The timing stands out, too: this release lands exactly twelve months after last year's equally unannounced digital single. Same surprise-drop playbook, same week of September — it's starting to look like IU's signature move.

This summer, IU said a worsening inner-ear condition — in which the ear canal doesn't close properly — forced her to scrap a planned solo concert in Goyang. Her sixth full-length album, which had been timed to that tour, was pushed back as a result. It's not yet confirmed whether this new single is a preview track off that delayed album; song title, genre and other details are expected to roll out in the coming days.

In Korea right nowKorean fan communities lit up once it became clear that last month's YouTube background track was actually a comeback clue. For fans who'd been worried about her recovery since the concert cancellation and album delay, the new release feels like a reassuring sign. Speculation is also swirling online over whether the single ties into the still-delayed sixth studio album.