It has been five years since Seventeen made their bold debut with forever trendy track ‘Adore U’ and now they have become the 2nd ever kpop artists since BTS to sell over 1 million albums during the first-week of sales. Seventeen now has two million-selling albums after its latest special album "Semicolon". "Semicolon" has sold more than 1.06 million copies since its release on October 19 (to be updated). Their first million hit album was ‘Heng:garae’ with 1.37 million sales.
People when they first hear about Seventeen tend to think Seventeen has 17 members because of its name but surprisingly Seventeen has only 13 members, that’s why SVT is considered as a big group comparing to other K-pop groups. The members are, S.Coups, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seungkwan, Vernon & Dino. The reason behind their group name is, they have 3 units which are Hip-hop, Performance & Vocal unit, 13 members & 1 large group. Besides Korean members, Joshua & Vernon are American and The8 & Jun are Chinese. The cultural diversities help them to reach to out their fans even more. Seventeen is a self-producing group with a large fandom called ‘CARAT’. Speaking of Carat, Bangladeshi Seventeen fans are waving from here and there, we have met two of them through online and asked them a few questions.
Tasmim Tabassum, a 1st year student, studying LL.B in Maritime Law at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Maritime University said that she had met Seventeen through her YouTube recommendation of their catchy song ‘Very Nice’, she instantly fell in love with their colourful amazing choreography and singing skills, she added, “Their songs give me energy when I’m down or pressurized with certain activities, songs like Smile Flower and Left & Right give me chills everytime I listen to them.” Talking about Seventeen’s undying synchronization Tasmim added, “They’re kings of synchronization, even Non-Carats cannot deny it. Their choreography is so catchy. I’m so proud of their creativity” She continued, “They just made their comeback a few days ago with “Semicolon” which was definitely a blast so I’m really looking forward to their next album.”
Hoshi, the leader of the performance unit talked about how much they really care about Carat in an interview, "Through our music, I wish to give CARATs joy and happiness, and if I may go a little further, I wish it could also comfort them. CARATs are the reason why SEVENTEEN exists."
Another fan, 2nd year student Nusrat Jeba from Government Safar Ali College talked about how Seventeen has positive impact in her life, agreeing with Tasmim she added, “In a sentence, Seventeen is like my home where I feel comfort, I got to know them after watching one of their all time hit songs ‘Don’t Wanna Cry’, this song is soulful and trendy, the lyrics really can talk. After meeting them, I’ve found my better self. It’s just impossible to explain what they are to me.”
We asked her how all 13 personalities’ boys attract the fans to stick with them, she replied with a smile, “Well I think it's really amazing how 13 people are staying together for a long time when all of them have different personalities. For example Wonwoo, The8 & Woozi are clam while Seungkwan, Jun, DK & Hoshi who are the funniest members. They’re super chaotic just like any normal boys’ in 20’s who try to live their life to the fullest & give us happiness. They teach us to value the life in an amazing way.”
Same as Carats, SVT member Jun said, “We hope that our fans take some time to think about their dreams while listening to our songs. Just do whatever your heart desires! For me, CARATs are my source of confidence.”
While their naturally powerful stage presence impressed many, Seventeen's bold edge has not rusted even a bit. On top of "Ador U", "Pretty U", "Mansae", "Don't Wanna Cry" "Clap", "Home", "Fear", "Getting Closer", "HIT", "Left & Right" and the most recent retro style "Home;run" the mind smoothing ride they send their fans suggests that there will be many more pleasant surprises to come. They also have their own reality show ‘Going Seventeen’ to be connected with the fans all the time.
Thirteen multi-talented artists, three powerful sub-units, one internationally renowned K-pop boy group that stirs out hit after hit and has thirteen brains in every element of content creation, from the songwriting & producing to the hard choreography, this is SEVENTEEN. The leader S.Coups has already said with confidence, “Once you fall for Seventeen, there will be no next.”
Woozi, the leader of vocal unit who is known to be one of the genius producers of K-pop industry has already produced over 100 songs in 5 years said in an interview with 1883 Magazine about how they think of the message they try to deliver the fans, “One of the most important things for us is the group’s identity and what message we’re trying to convey, and I think this is closely related to the authenticity of the music. So to step up our game, we self-produce. Telling our stories is something very natural and important. To those who are writing and composing music, I’d like to tell them that we’re in this together.”
To talk more about their confidence and dedication to their work LA guy Joshua said in Paper Magazine, "Whenever we do something, we try to have a mindset like, 'It's just the beginning,' rather than, 'We've come this far’. We hope to express what we've prepared so far in a variety of ways in different environments."
So any Non-Carat or Non-Kpop who wants to explore more about K-pop, yes you can try Seventeen.