TWICE leader Jihyo is teaming up with Grammy nominated Jamaican star Shenseea for the global single Distant Lover, a K-pop, rap, dancehall, and Afrobeats blend dropping worldwide on July 10 along with its music video. The cross-genre collab is part of Musicow’s fan-owned FANDOM project and instantly puts Jihyo in one of the summer’s most unexpected lineups.
For ONCEs, Distant Lover is more than just another release date. It is Shenseea’s first collaboration with a K-pop act and another major international move for Jihyo, arriving right after her World Cup track Follow Me and a string of solo features and OSTs that signal a full “collab era.”
Inside Jihyo and Shenseea’s ‘Distant Lover’ Release
The single and its official music video arrive July 10, 2026 on all major streaming platforms, with a same-day YouTube premiere. The Jihyo Shenseea Distant Lover collaboration is framed as a summer release, designed to live on global playlists rather than just K-pop charts.
Sonically, the track layers a smooth, sultry mood over Afrobeats and dancehall rhythms, topped with pop polish. Jihyo’s rich, powerful vocals are set against Shenseea’s unmistakable Caribbean flow and dancehall swagger, creating a call and response between Seoul and Kingston that feels both fresh and instantly catchy.
Lyrically, Distant Lover leans into one of Gen Z’s most familiar situations: the situationship. The song explores mixed signals, dating apps, and the moment when something that felt like a real relationship reveals itself as something far less. The project describes the track as confident, playful, and empowering, turning emotional limbo into a sing-along hook.
Why Jihyo x Shenseea Matters for ONCEs
For Jihyo, this collab continues a very global run. On June 12 she appeared on Follow Me, a World Cup campaign song produced by RedOne with French Montana, Ludmilla, and AdrianaC, tied to the 2026 FIFA North American World Cup. Recent projects also include OST work such as Stardust Love Song and TAKEDOWN with Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung, plus a feature on Jenevieve’s single Hvnly (feat. JIHYO of TWICE).
Shenseea brings serious credentials from the dancehall and pop worlds. She has a Grammy nominated album, Never Gets Late Here, appeared on Kanye West’s Donda, earned MOBO Awards, and teamed with artists like Megan Thee Stallion, 21 Savage, and Sean Paul. Seeing her choose a TWICE member for her first K-pop collaboration highlights how far Jihyo’s name now travels outside of Korean music circles.
For ONCEs, that means a new entry point into Caribbean and Afrobeats sounds, and a chance for Shenseea’s listeners to discover Jihyo’s vocals and, by extension, TWICE’s catalog.
FANDOM Project: How ‘Distant Lover’ Puts Fans in the Mix
Distant Lover is the latest single from FANDOM, a fan-owned album created by Musicow in partnership with Roc Nation Distribution. The project connects artists from different scenes and gives fans a way to participate in revenue sharing tied to specific releases, positioning listeners as stakeholders rather than just streamers.
Earlier FANDOM singles already show the model’s reach. Two Car Garage by Jon Bellion and Swae Lee has drawn about 4.9 million streams, while Something Special by Ahn Hyo Seop and Khalid has surpassed 7.2 million streams and generated tens of millions of views across TikTok and Instagram clips.
For Distant Lover, FANDOM and Musicow are planning unique box sets with limited edition photo cards and posters, aligning the project with familiar K-pop collecting culture. ONCEs in participating regions can watch for FANDOM announcements around how to take part in the fan-owned side, while globally, the most direct support will still be simple: pre-save the track, stream on release, and run the music video on repeat.