V is doubling down on holiday releases this year, with the BTS star announcing a new seasonal duet with Park Hyo Shin titled “Winter Ahead” Thursday (Nov. 21).
Arriving Nov. 29 ahead of V’s highly anticipated “White Christmas” collaboration with Bing Crosby, “Winter Ahead” is described in a release as a jazz-pop collaboration inspired by the 28-year-old K-pop star’s “wish for his fans to have a warm and joyful winter.” It’ll add to a long line of Christmastime releases from V, who has previously rung in the festive season with the tracks “Snow Flower” and “Christmas Tree.” The star also covered “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” in 2022.
V has long been open about his love of jazz, and personally reached out to Park — with whom he has a “longstanding friendship,” according the release — to record “Winter Ahead” together. The track was written by Jesse Harris, the songwriter behind Norah Jones’ contemporary jazz-pop staple “Don’t Know Why.”
The collaboration will come just one week before another festive duet from V, who teamed up with the Crosby estate to release a brand new version of “White Christmas.” Produced by Gregg Field, the track will blend the “FRI(END)S” singer’s voice with a restored, isolated recording of one of the late legend’s archival performances of the famous track.
“I’m so grateful to have had the chance to be featured in a song with my all-time favorite jazz artist, Bing Crosby,” V said in a statement when the project was first announced Nov. 6. “I grew up listening to his song ‘It’s Been a Long, Long Time’ countless times a day, and I feel incredibly fortunate and honored to have sung along on ‘White Christmas’ with the voice of someone I consider an idol.”
V is currently finishing out his mandatory service in the South Korean military, as are four of his BTS bandmates: SUGA, RM, Jimin and Jung Kook. Earlier this year, Jin and J-Hope separately finished their service obligations, and full-band activities are expected to resume in 2025.
Just a couple months before he enlisted, V dropped a six-track EP titled Layover in September 2023. The project reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
