SEOUL – K-pop idol Taeyang from boy band BigBang has his fans in a frenzy after deleting all posts on Twitter and Instagram earlier this week.

The move is rumoured to be part of a digital marketing blitz to build up anticipation for his solo comeback after five years. Singers such as Adele and Beyonce had done the same in the lead-up to their album releases.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Taeyang, 34, went dark on his active social media accounts, not only deleting all previous posts but also changing his profile photo to black.

Eagle-eyed netizens also noticed that he briefly changed his bio on his Instagram account, which has 13.9 million followers, to “Renewal” before it went blank.

Speculation is rife for a big announcement on his contract renewal with management agency YG Entertainment or the release of new music.

Since completing his military service in 2019, he has released only a single, Still Life, with the other three remaining members of BigBang in April.

His last solo release was 2017’s White Night, which was accompanied by a 19-city concert tour that included Singapore.

One of the most influential acts in K-pop, BigBang was formed in 2006 with five members – Taeyang, G-Dragon, T.O.P, Daesung and Seungri.

Seungri left in 2019 after becoming embroiled in the infamous Burning Sun scandal, which involved sex, drugs and police protection at a nightclub of the same name.

In recent years, Taeyang has been keeping a low profile, but his appearance in September on the cover of Marie Claire Korea sparked talk of a comeback among his fans.