How will 13-member SEVENTEEN navigate military hiatus with just 5 members?
SEVENTEEN / Courtesy of Pledis Entertainment
For SEVENTEEN, a group that has built much of its identity around the chemistry and synchronized performances of all 13 members, the looming absence of eight members due to mandatory military service poses an unusual challenge.
Beginning in October, only five members will be available for activities as eight are either currently fulfilling their military duties or are set to begin service.
The scale of the absence could be particularly noticeable for SEVENTEEN. Since its debut, the group has emphasized the identity created by all 13 members performing together.
Last month, all 13 members renewed their contracts with Pledis Entertainment for a second time, reaffirming their commitment to remaining together as a group. SEVENTEEN debuted in 2015 and first renewed its contracts in 2021, with no member leaving the agency in either round.
The group's identity has long been closely tied to its 13-member lineup. Since their debut, the members have worn matching team rings, while their performances have become known for tightly synchronized choreography involving all members. Some productions have incorporated elaborate formations reminiscent of musical theater, creating spectacles made possible by the group's large lineup.
That cohesion has also played an important role in SEVENTEEN's rise to the top tier of K-pop.
Through its self-producing system, in which members participate directly in creating the group's music and performances, SEVENTEEN has developed a distinctive musical identity. The group has set records including the highest-selling K-pop album of all time and becoming the first K-pop act to surpass 5 million copies in first-week album sales.
SEVENTEEN / Courtesy of Pledis Entertainment
While the members have expanded their individual careers through unit and solo activities before regrouping as SEVENTEEN, the group could not avoid a prolonged period of disruption from mandatory military service.
Jeonghan, the first member to begin his service, completed his alternative service in June. Wonwoo is currently serving as a social service worker, while Hoshi and Woozi are serving as active-duty soldiers in the Army.
Vernon began alternative service on Aug. 20, while DK is set to enlist and Mingyu is preparing to begin alternative service. Seungkwan and Dino are scheduled to enlist in October as members of the Army military band.
That will leave five members available for activities from October: Jeonghan, leader S.Coups, who was exempted from military service, and foreign members The8, Jun and Joshua.
But rather than simply waiting for the military hiatus to end, SEVENTEEN is turning one of its defining characteristics — its large membership — into a strategy for navigating the period.
The group has long experimented with different combinations of members. In addition to its hip-hop, vocal and performance teams, SEVENTEEN has created units including BSS, consisting of Seungkwan, DK and Hoshi; Jeonghan and V8, consisting of The8 and Vernon. Members have also pursued solo projects, allowing them to explore musical identities beyond the full group's sound.
Those unit activities will continue during the military hiatus. In October, Jeonghan and Joshua will form SEVENTEEN's seventh unit. Individual activities will also continue as the group seeks to minimize the impact of the full lineup's absence while staying connected with fans.
"SEVENTEEN is showing each member's abilities and individuality more clearly through a wide range of unit and individual activities," a Pledis Entertainment official said.
"This goes beyond simply filling the gap left by the group's absence. It will provide an opportunity to broaden SEVENTEEN's musical spectrum while giving fans new tastes and experiences," the official added.
Unit activities, of course, cannot completely replace the full group. SEVENTEEN's intricate choreography, chemistry among the members and the sheer energy generated by 13 performers are difficult to replicate.
But having spent years creating different combinations within the framework of a 13-member group, SEVENTEEN may already have part of the answer to navigating its military hiatus.
The group has consistently allowed its members to develop their individual identities before bringing those different colors back together under the name SEVENTEEN. While full-group performances will temporarily pause, the group has built a system designed to keep its music and activities moving.
Attention is now on whether SEVENTEEN can turn the flexibility of its large lineup into an advantage and offer a new model for how K-pop boy groups navigate the disruption caused by mandatory military service.
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.