MONSTA X's comeback lineup is five, not six

Who's Actually in MONSTA X's Comeback Lineup?

MONSTA X came back on September 4, 2026 with the mini album The Phase — but the group standing in the concept photos is five, not six. For anyone planning around the release or the North American tour dates, that distinction is the first thing worth getting straight.

MONSTA X's active comeback lineup for The Phase is five members: Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon and Joohoney. The EP, released September 4, 2026, is the group's 14th EP and their first Korean-language release in roughly a year . Maknae I.M is not part of this cycle — he began mandatory military service in February 2026 and does not appear on the recording or in promotions .

Quick Answer: Five members — Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon and Joohoney — recorded and are promoting MONSTA X's 14th EP The Phase, released September 4, 2026. I.M enlisted for mandatory military service in February 2026 and sits out the entire cycle, including the 10-date North American tour leg.

The confusion is easy to trace. General bios and some outlet write-ups, including Korea JoongAng Daily, still describe MONSTA X as a six-member group. That reflects the full roster since the group's 2015 debut, not the active promotional unit for this release . For The Phase and the accompanying 2026 world tour [THE X : NEXUS], the number on stage is five.

• On the release: Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon, Joohoney
• On military service: I.M, enlisted February 2026
• Physical editions: nine versions, including five individual member Digipaks — one per active member

No return date for I.M has been confirmed in any official Starship Entertainment material reviewed for this piece. Fans buying member-specific Digipaks or planning around tour stops should assume the five-member configuration holds through the current promotional cycle, and treat any unsourced discharge timeline circulating on social media as unverified.

What's on The Phase — Tracklist, Release Date and the Time Discrepancy

"The Phase" is a six-track EP released on September 4, 2026 . It is MONSTA X's 14th EP and their first Korean-language release in about a year, following "The X" from September 2025 . The title track is "MAGIC," which Starship Entertainment describes as layering the members' vocals over rhythmic guitar and heavy beats .

The release date is unanimous across sources; the release time is not. Star News reported in its release-day coverage that the EP went live on streaming platforms at 1:00 PM KST on September 4, while The Korea Times and several Korean outlets reported 6:00 PM KST at the announcement stage . The 1 PM figure appears in day-of reporting and the 6 PM figure in pre-release reporting, which is consistent with a schedule adjustment rather than an error, but no source reviewed here confirms one. Fans logging streaming times for chart-tracking purposes should record both and attribute them.

Member credits are concentrated rather than spread evenly. Joohoney wrote lyrics for four of the six tracks, including "MAGIC," and handled composition and arrangement on "SURVIVOR" and "Electric Heart" . Hyungwon self-composed the closer, "Sweet Night, Sweet Morning" . The listed genres are dance-pop, contemporary R&B and hip-hop, which tracks with a record that moves from a beat-driven title cut to a slower final song.

Starship framed the EP in terms of continuity rather than reinvention, saying the record shows the group's "deepened musical identity, solid journey as a band and polished performances," and that MONSTA X "is expected to create another special moment with Monbebe, who have long awaited its comeback" (source: Korea JoongAng Daily, 2026-08). That framing lines up with the narrative: "The Phase" continues the science-fiction storyline from the 2026 world tour [THE X : NEXUS], picking up after the members crossed into a new dimension .

The rollout itself was mapped in advance. Starship published a scheduler graphic on August 7, 2026 across the group's official channels, plotting a tracklist reveal on August 9, sequential story trailers from August 11–15, a full trailer on August 17, three concept photo waves between August 19 and August 29, a mood sampler on August 22, the "MAGIC" music video teaser on September 1, and an album preview on September 3 . Every listed beat landed on the announced date, which is worth noting given that the one item the scheduler did not pin down — the exact hour of release — is the single detail sources still disagree on.

Where to See MONSTA X on the [THE X : NEXUS] Tour

The 2026 MONSTA X WORLD TOUR [THE X : NEXUS] reaches North America with a 10-date leg running October 3 to October 24, 2026, promoted by Live Nation with tickets sold through Ticketmaster . The run opens at EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia and closes at WAMU Theater in Seattle, taking in New York's Infosys Theater at Madison Square Garden on October 6 and the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on October 20 . The five members promoting The Phase are the ones carrying this run: I.M, who began mandatory military service in February 2026, sits out the North American leg entirely .

The full North American routing, in order:

• Oct 3 — Fairfax, VA · EagleBank Arena
• Oct 6 — New York, NY · Infosys Theater at Madison Square Garden
• Oct 8 — Boston, MA · MGM Music Hall at Fenway
• Oct 10 — Toronto, ON · Great Canadian Toronto
• Oct 13 — Rosemont, IL · Rosemont Theatre
• Oct 15 — Irving, TX · The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
• Oct 17 — Phoenix, AZ · Arizona Financial Theatre
• Oct 20 — Los Angeles, CA · The Kia Forum
• Oct 22 — San Francisco, CA · Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
• Oct 24 — Seattle, WA · WAMU Theater

The tour began earlier in 2026 with three nights at KSPO DOME in Seoul, and it is the group's first large-scale outing in four years — the last was the NO LIMIT tour in 2022 . That gap matters for routing expectations: the North American dates are spread across arenas and mid-size theatres rather than a uniform arena run, so seat counts and sightlines differ sharply between, say, the Kia Forum and Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.

The tour is also the narrative frame for the new EP rather than a separate promotional exercise. [THE X : NEXUS] established the science-fiction storyline that "The Phase" continues, picking up after the members crossed into a new dimension . Fans attending an October date are seeing the continuation of the same arc the album advances — and, as on the record, performed by the five-member lineup.

Why the Five-Member Comeback Matters for Monbebe

For Monbebe, "The Phase" is the first Korean-language release the group has recorded and promoted without its youngest member, and that changes what the era looks like on stage. I.M enlisted for mandatory military service in February 2026 , so Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon and Joohoney carry the six-track EP and the tour that frames it. The practical result is visible in choreography, formations and broadcast stage cuts — a five-point layout where fans have spent eleven years reading six.

The record is also a continuation rather than a reset. "The Phase" is the direct successor to "The X," the group's previous Korean release from September 2025 , and it advances the science-fiction lore built out on the 2026 world tour, resuming the story after the members cross into a new dimension . That continuity gives the reduced lineup a narrative reading: the gap sits inside an ongoing arc instead of interrupting one.

Timing matters too. MONSTA X debuted in 2015 and is now in its 11th year — the 12th by Korean counting . Starship Entertainment described the release as showing the group's "deepened musical identity, solid journey as a band and polished performances," and said MONSTA X "is expected to create another special moment with Monbebe, who have long awaited its comeback" .

What that means for fans planning around this era, concretely:

• Live and recorded versions match. The five-member arrangement on the EP is the same one performing the October tour dates, so there is no separate "full lineup" show to wait for in this cycle.
• Member-specific purchases are limited to five. The album's individual Digipak editions cover the five promoting members .
• Writing credits shift inward. Joohoney wrote lyrics for four of the six tracks, and Hyungwon contributed his self-composed "Sweet Night, Sweet Morning" — the smaller lineup is more visible in the credits than in any statement about it.

How to Get The Phase and Tour Tickets

"The Phase" is sold in nine physical versions — four photobook editions plus five individual-member Digipaks — and North American tour tickets run through Ticketmaster under Live Nation promotion . The photobook editions are OFFSET, REFINED, HYPER and PHASE, each with its own packaging format and photocard set; the Digipaks are split one per promoting member .

The four photobook versions differ enough that it is worth reading the spec before ordering rather than picking by cover art:

• OFFSET — 88-page photobook, CD-R, one random photocard of five, one unit photocard of four .
• REFINED — outbox and dust jacket, 76-page photobook, CD-R, photocard, unit photocard and a print photo .
• HYPER — PET sleeve, 84-page photobook, CD-R and photocards .
• PHASE — envelope format, CD-R, a 15-piece print photo set, photocard and a folded lyrics poster .

Pre-order inclusions are not standardised. Retailers add their own posters, print sets or benefit photocards, and those extras change from seller to seller, so the seller's own listing is the only reliable description of what ships in a given box. Anyone buying for a specific photocard should confirm the inclusion list on that page before paying, and treat third-party summaries as unverified.

For the tour, the 10 North American dates run Oct 3 in Fairfax, VA through Oct 24 in Seattle, WA, sold via Ticketmaster , with the routing confirmed by promoter Live Nation. No comeback showcase, fan meeting or Seoul-based fan event tied to "The Phase" has been confirmed in any published source, so a trip planned around one would be planned on speculation.

The concrete takeaway: the album dropped September 4, 2026 , the nine editions are the collecting decision, and the tour — not a Seoul event — is where the five-member lineup is currently performing it.

Frequently asked questions

Is MONSTA X still a six-member group?

Officially the group remains six members, but the active promotional lineup is five. Maknae I.M enlisted for mandatory military service in February 2026 , so "The Phase" was recorded and is being promoted by Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon and Joohoney. Some outlets still describe MONSTA X as six-member in general terms Korea JoongAng Daily, which is accurate as a roster fact but not as a description of who is on stage in 2026 .

What time did The Phase actually release on September 4?

The date is unanimous across sources — September 4, 2026 — but the hour is not. Star News reported the EP went live on streaming platforms at 1:00 PM KST , while The Korea Times and other Korean outlets reported 6:00 PM KST . The 1 PM figure appears in release-day coverage and the 6 PM figure in announcement-stage coverage, which is consistent with a schedule adjustment. Treat the date as fixed and the time as unresolved.

What is MONSTA X's title track on The Phase?

The title track is "MAGIC," the opening song on the six-track EP . Starship Entertainment described it as layering the members' vocals over rhythmic guitar and heavy beats, and the record is listed across dance-pop, contemporary R&B and hip-hop . Joohoney wrote lyrics for four of the six tracks, including "MAGIC" .

When and where is MONSTA X touring in North America?

The North American leg of the 2026 MONSTA X WORLD TOUR [THE X : NEXUS] runs October 3–24, 2026 across 10 dates, promoted by Live Nation . Cities include Fairfax, New York, Boston, Toronto, Rosemont, Irving, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle, closing October 24 at WAMU Theater . Tickets are sold through Ticketmaster. The tour opened earlier in 2026 with three nights at KSPO DOME in Seoul. I.M does not join this leg, as he is completing mandatory military service .

How many physical album versions of The Phase are there?

There are nine physical editions : four photobook versions — OFFSET (88-page photobook), REFINED (outbox and dust jacket, 76 pages), HYPER (PET sleeve, 84 pages) and PHASE (envelope format with a 15-piece print photo set) — plus five individual-member Digipaks, one per active member. Photocard and print-photo inclusions differ by retailer and by pre-order window, so confirm the contents on the seller's own product page rather than assuming a universal set.

Official Sources

• livenation.com

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This article was written using information collected and analyzed by NAMANE's in-house K-pop research AI engine. We use AI technology to bring you faster, broader coverage, and in the process some details may occasionally differ from the latest facts. For important information such as dates, venues, and prices, please double-check with official sources.