Superstar girl group “aespa” are riding the wave of success straight into the Battle Royale game genre with an upcoming PUBG K-pop collaboration.
“Dark Arts” drops on July 15th in a landmark PUBG K-pop collaboration
After their recent single, “Dirty Work,” debuted at number 1 on Spotify’s “Top Songs Debut Global” chart, aespa has shifted their attention from being a global K-pop powerhouse to an innovative PUBG K-pop fusion founder.
Teasers for the collaboration began dropping on June 29th. PUBG: BATTLEGROUND’s YouTube published a video titled “PUBG x aespa Coming Soon,” described as “The collision of two universes.”
The collaboration aims to blend the futuristic, metallic-edged sound of aespa with the high-stakes world of Battle Royale games in a new track named “Dark Arts.”
On June 3rd, the full trailer for “Dark Arts” dropped online.
Playing into a darker aesthetic than people may associate with traditional K-pop, the video shows the girl band entering the in-game PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS universe. With them are aespa-branded weapons, although it is unclear thus far if they will be officially featured in-game.
Building trends in K-pop’s gaming and esports ties
K-pop bands have increasingly engaged with the gaming and esports industries, pushing boundaries and bringing music collaborations to new heights.
Recently, aespa also launched a collaboration with Street Fighter 6. This collaboration centred primarily around in-game cosmetics, unlike the PUBG K-pop music fusion.
Street Fighter character Juri will have an aespa-themed outfit available to use from July 4th, 2025, to July 3rd, 2026.
In other esports scenes, K-pop is commonplace enough to appear part of the furniture. The League of Legends virtual K-pop group K/DA is digitally comprised of four themed League of Legends characters, Ahri, Akali, Evelynn, and Seraphine.
The virtual K-pop group recently enjoyed a resurgence in popularity following the success of the K-pop-themed Netflix movie, Kpop Demon Hunters.
Meanwhile, in competitive PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS and PUBG Mobile, esports players are preparing for the upcoming esports world cup. Viewers will be heading to the EWC broadcasts, Esports Betting Sites, or even Riyadh itself to enjoy the action.
Hannah is a writer specialising in the esports, gaming, and technology sectors. Working for outlets such as Dot Esports, Esports Insider, and of course ENUK, she has developed a love for wider esports and Apex Legends, although it may never surpass her drive to passionately beat her friends in every game of Mariokart. You may have seen her at various esports and gaming events, including ESI London, EGX, Discover: Esports and many League of Legends watch parties.
