17 Highlights of SEVENTEEN’s 2024

A look back at the group’s massive year!

View the Substack version of this piece here!

#1: The JxW Subunit Debut
This past summer, JEONGHAN and WONWOO teamed up for a fascinating and thoughtful project: THIS MAN, which included a 3-song EP, an audiobook-like short film, and the “Last night” music video. The story of THIS MAN existed in a world separate from SEVENTEEN’s, one just as carefully curated but in completely different ways.

THIS MAN was a commercial success in addition to a narrative one, taking less than a week to break the previous record for highest Hanteo Chart first-week album sales for a subunit! 

#2: 17 IS RIGHT HERE
Corresponding with SEVENTEEN’s anniversary month, the 17 IS RIGHT HERE compilation album was released at the end of April, and the music videos for its new songs premiered throughout May. It was an extensive and deserved celebration of SEVENTEEN’s near-decade-long career, and the videos paid homage to their past while taking plots in interesting new directions!

#3: SPILL THE FEELS…
The SPILL THE FEELS era, like the 17 IS RIGHT HERE era, stayed true to SEVENTEEN’s core messages of perseverance, togetherness, and open communication, but in many other ways, it proved this group still has infinite tricks up its sleeves! They expressed their go-to messages in new ways, both lyrically and in their music videos.

SPILL THE FEELS was a commercial success, surpassing three million sales in record time for a 2024 release and two million sales on release day alone! Plus, it debuted in fifth place on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart!

#4: … and its Fun Marketing! 
The SPILL THE FEELS marketing campaign was massive in both style and scale. It spanned the globe and involved everything from pop-up shops to the chance to score an Airbnb-sponsored night in the house where the “LOVE, MONEY, FAME” video was filmed!

Social media also kept the buzz going, including through…

• Posts involving adorable cartoon alter egos and comic-strip-like adventures
• A special website to see how much fans’ music tastes aligned with SEVENTEEN’s
• A lengthy list of Target stores in America selling both SEVENTEEN’s new album AND light sticks!

After all this came “SEVENTEEN: THE CITY,” which took over LA in November. The Santa Monica Pier Ferris Wheel lit up in the group’s signature colors; SEVENTEEN-themed menu items, giveaways, billboards, and merchandise pop-up shops filled the city; and 200 raffle winners got to attend a rooftop party!

Lastly, JOSHUA received an appreciative plaque on the group’s behalf at LA City Hall, where he gave remarks about the “traces of [his] childhood” that are “all over LA” and compared SEVENTEEN to the vibrant city:

“We both thrive on the endless possibilities that diversity creates. LA stands tall as the capital of culture and creativity, fueled by the bustling energy created by people from diverse backgrounds. SEVENTEEN is like that, too.”

Note: It would be a mistake to talk about how incredible LA is without acknowledging the ongoing California wildfires. My thoughts are with everyone dealing with this devastation. Please check out these helpful resources for donating time, money, and/or resources: https://gfme.co/wildfire-relief-california-2025 (verified GoFundMe hub), www.vcahospitals.com (for animals), https://www.lafoodbank.org, https://lafd.org, https://www.redcrossblood.org, https://supportlafd.kindful.com, and https://www.disasterassistance.gov (where you can receive a one-time payment for even a single day of missed work if you had to evacuate your home due to the fires).

#5: Even More New Music!
In addition to OSTs from individual SEVENTEEN members and the BSS subunit, a handful of remixes, and a new Japanese single called “Shohikigen,” a new music video came out for the pre-2024 song “Headliner.” It was a tribute to CARATs (aka SEVENTEEN fans) and was released in honor of the band’s anniversary!

The group also stayed active with solo releases, both YouTube covers and original songs. These included… 

• DK’s covers of songs ranging from DAY6 to Adam Levine
• MINGYU’s cover of “Glimpse of Us” by Joji
• SEUNGKWAN’s “Dandelion”
• WOOZI’s “What kind of future” (a particularly touching release on the late Moonbin’s birthday)
• THE 8’s “Caught in Bloom, Caught on You”
• THE 8’s STARDUST EP

#6: The “FOLLOW” Tour’s Conclusion
SEVENTEEN ended the tour that started in 2023 with a May 26, 2024 show at Nissan Stadium in Japan. This put them in a rare position: Only two other K-pop acts have ever held a concert there!

A particularly special moment from the “FOLLOW” tour was the premiere of a new song in Macau, “The Meaning of Meeting."

#7: The “RIGHT HERE” World Tour
SEVENTEEN wasted no time before embarking on their next world tour after “FOLLOW”! The “RIGHT HERE” Tour started mid-October in South Korea and continues in 2025. Despite not being finished yet, the tour was able to top the list of the 10 highest-grossing K-pop tours of 2024, with a gross revenue of $98.4 million!

#8: Other Major Live Performances 
SEVENTEEN played some of their greatest hits while headlining Glastonbury! They made time for their signature “endless encore” bit, which they also did at Lollapalooza Berlin! The latter gig was especially bittersweet, since it was JEONGHAN’s last pre-military-enlistment show.

Other notable performances in 2024 included ones on…

• MTV’s “Fresh Out” series
• The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
• Good Morning America 
• Disney Parks’ Christmas Day Parade, plus the ABC special “The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular”!

#9: The UNESCO ambassadorship
As Goodwill Ambassadors for Youth, SEVENTEEN were invited to speak at UNESCO’s Paris headquarters on June 26. UNESCO General Director Audrey Azoulay had much praise for them:

“SEVENTEEN and UNESCO share the same commitment to empowering young people to drive change and address the challenges of our century. They continue to inspire and support young people around the world with their music and positive energy.”

Some of the most touching quotes from JOSHUA’s speech:

• “First, we want to tell our fellow youth that every unique dream that you have is important. Every single dream matters, whether it is big or small, loud or quiet, traditional or innovative, personal or public. Never let anyone, including yourself, belittle your dream.”
• “Second, when you pursue your dream, please know that you are not alone. Find companionship with your fellow youth, and also give your support to them… We could overcome… only because we had a supportive community who helped us build our dreams together. In this supportive community that we built with our fellow youth, not only did we share countless exhilarating moments, but we also stood by each other through the greatest sorrows in life, including loss of loved ones…. we are determined to use our voice to create a global youth community made stronger through mutual love and support.”
• “Today I’m speaking on behalf of the group, but I want to reassure you that all of us share the same vision… For your dreams, SEVENTEEN will stand by your side. SEVENTEEN will be ‘going together’ for your dream.”

UNESCO announced a “Going Together” campaign grant set to fund 100 youth-led projects worldwide:

“This initiative aims to empower young leaders to create positive change through music, art, sports, and mental health support. Together, we can uplift [youth] and foster creativity in communities everywhere”

In his speech, JOSHUA revealed that SEVENTEEN would make a million-dollar donation to the cause.

#10: Going Seventeen 
Going Seventeen stayed as entertaining as ever! New episodes ranged from bizarre debates (my personal favorites!) to a “Class President Election.” The world of the show was briefly mentioned during the “RIGHT HERE” Tour sketches, too, at least in Chicago!

#11: The MAMAs…
Besides performing, the MAMAs were epic for SEVENTEEN because of winning both grand prizes: Artist of the Year and Album of the Year! They won in three other categories as well!

#12: … and MANY More Awards!
SEVENTEEN scored wins at the Asian Artist Awards, Circle Chart Awards, Golden Disc Awards, Hanteo Music Awards, K-World Dream Awards, Korea Grand Music Awards, Melon Music Awards, Seoul Music Awards, and MTV Video Music Awards! Plus, BSS’s “The Reasons of My Smiles” won “Best OST” at the Seoul Drama Awards!

Other 2024 achievements included…

• Several songs being certified Gold in Japan - and “VERY NICE” being certified Platinum!
• Becoming the highest-ranking K-pop act on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums Mid-Year Chart
• Landing on the list of Best-Selling CDs of the first half of the year
• Winning their first BBMA, for “Top K-Pop Touring Artist.” They also performed at the show!

#13: VERNON earned full KOMCA membership 
Every year, the Korean Music Copyright Association Board approves a couple dozen junior members for an upgrade to full-time member status, and that group last year included VERNON!

#14: Contributing to a BBC Earth Asia special
BBC Studios announced an Asia-focused special narrated by Sir David Attenborough. The score for it was made with SEVENTEEN and Bleeding Fingers, the latter’s CEO calling the group:

“... the perfect fit, both authentically and creatively. They embraced the opportunity and brought so much passion and energy to the music, making it a truly memorable collaboration!”

“See the World,” sung by DK and SEUNGKWAN and co-written by WOOZI, is in a trailer for the series, and series producer Matthew Wright praised it:

“SEVENTEEN’s stunning vocals have combined with Bleeding Fingers’ amazing composition to create a truly magical track. Their music perfectly complements the beautiful imagery of animals and landscapes that our crews worked so hard to capture over the past three years.”

#15: Fashion and Modeling Gigs
SEVENTEEN members stunned throughout Fashion Month, appearing at shows for Dior, Louis Vuitton, Off-White, KENZO, LOEWE, and more. They also starred in ad campaigns that were hot topics - perhaps MINGYU’s the most! Just to name a few, he modeled for Dior, Bulgari, and Calvin Klein!

Sometimes in groups and sometimes individually, the members appeared on magazine covers throughout the year, including…

• Allure
• ARENA
• Cosmopolitan Korea
• DAZED Korea
• Esquire Korea
• GQ Korea
• Harper’s BAZAAR MEN China
• Men’s No-No
• Perfect
• Rolling Stone Japan
• W
• Wonderland
• Y
• And more!

#16: BSS
Although the group’s only new 2024 music was an OST, they stayed in the headlines because “Fighting” was South Korea’s official Paris Olympics cheering song! Also, the subunit started teasing their early 2025 comeback in late 2024!

#17: Everything Else!
Here are just a handful of SEVENTEEN’s other notable moments in 2024!

• VERNON filmed scenes for the upcoming comedy movie K-Pops!
• The “FOLLOW AGAIN” concert movie hit select theaters 
• They appeared in a boy band documentary on Paramount+ 
• They joined the 2025 lineup for Tecate Pal Norte in Mexico 
• DK threw out the first pitch at a Gocheok Sky Dome game
• SEUNGKWAN became an Honorary Ambassador of his birthplace, Jeju Island
• HOSHI was a judge on Synchro U
• SEUNGKWAN was a judge on Build Up
• There was a nearly 69% increase in blood donations after the Korean Red Cross announced they would give SEVENTEEN photo cards to donors!

Stay tuned for more “Year in Review” recaps, including…

• Revisiting 2024 predictions
• The year in Korean TV and movies
• Under-discussed stories from the world of K-pop in 2024
• YOUR “Best of 2024” picks!
• And more!