In the world of K-pop groups, it’s no longer unusual to make it 10 or more years in. That, of course, creates its own issue. When it comes to pop music, the virtue of having a long run at it is often at odds with the demand for something fresh. That’s why it’s worth looking at SEVENTEEN’s case. They’ve chosen structural flexibility as their way of having their cake and eating it too. If the three best-known subunits—the vocal, performance, and hip hop teams—are the unshakable pillars of the group, then the mixed subunits formed between them are more variable mini-groups and can present new lineups and visions in step with shifting trends and listener demand. Thanks to this, SEVENTEEN’s famously large lineup isn’t a logistical burden but an asset that gives rise to these subunits that coexist alongside the larger group while enriching it in return.

The subunits have built up an impressive catalog over the years. The way listeners see SEVENTEEN has evolved from a single boy band into a collection of distinct artistic entities, giving the boys the chance to explore a wide range of ideas that might be taken as an abrupt change of direction if tackled in a single unchanging group. From SVT LEADERS’ confidence and authority to BSS’s balance of satire and pick-me-up tunes, JEONGHAN X WONWOO’s gothic noir, HOSHI X WOOZI’s earned confidence as creators, S.COUPS X MINGYU’s live-in-the-now party pop, and DK X SEUNGKWAN’s pure vocal bliss, it’s all here.

SVT LEADERS
The idea of a subunit made up of the leaders was inevitable. It’s easy to imagine a lineup made up of the three team leaders, S.COUPS, HOSHI, and WOOZI, so it only makes sense that what came out of that combination wasn’t just a song or two, but a grand showing that represents the entire group. “CHANGE UP,” released in 2017, was an idea born from youthful ambition. Five years later, as the group and all its members matured, SVT LEADERS celebrated the realization of that ambition with “CHEERS” in 2022. The blend of hypnotic flute notes and aggressive confidence has become a tribute to a group that’s got stage presence in spades, carried by the vocals of its three leaders. They went from wondering “what do we do for food” to being able to “build a building.”

The butt bounce choreography that appears exactly once at the very end of the song is pure fun and went viral, setting off a TikTok challenge, delivering a burst of pure fun. This moment takes the swag so commonly seen in hip hop and infuses it with the kind of easygoing humanity that’s unique to K-pop idols. At the same time, it quickly bridges the gap between the strong leadership role that drives the group and their reputation for being playful.

All of this goes to explain what was so meaningful about them performing “CHEERS” at Lollapalooza Berlin in September 2024. That performance marked a major turning point in SEVENTEEN’s career, where SVT LEADERS performed the song for the first time since late 2022. Even though festivals, with their tightly packed schedules, don’t usually allow for encores, it’s clear they were there to show off all the different things they’re capable of. At the same time, the unique energy of the song, which proudly boasts where the group started from and how far they’ve come, meant it naturally got placed in the middle of the set list, after which they unleashed a deluge of their hits.

BSS
BSS embodies the comedic, variety-show image most people associate with SEVENTEEN. SEUNGKWAN had been in the spotlight as a “variety show idol” ever since debuting, but it was only after he began putting out music with DK and HOSHI as BSS that people really understood his talent wasn’t just one person’s personality but more like a core trait of the whole group. It’s a natural conclusion to arrive at when you remember that the three of them were unofficially a subunit—a combo with undeniable chemistry—long before SEVENTEEN even debuted.

A good portion of their work takes place in something akin to a variety show workplace sketch. For example, their fashion choices, which start with suits and then fans out from there, feels more grounded in reality than the highly stylized, sometimes fantastical images and themes typical of most male idols. The video “Comeback Time #1,” released ahead of their 2023 single “Fighting,” leans into the variety show aesthetic in a full-on mockumentary as it blends the idols playing themselves and promoting a comeback with a fictional office routine. The video makes it clear that the song is an encapsulation of 10 years of laughs and infectious energy.

The friendly, tight-knit vibes, combined with the subunit’s positive energy, offer a message of support. It’s no coincidence that “Fighting” went beyond just being a fun soundtrack for a morning commute to become the official song of Team Korea at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The same goes for “CBZ (Prime time),” released in January 2025, which takes an old-fashioned toast over drinks and flips it into an affirmation of the now.

JEONGHAN X WONWOO
JEONGHAN X WONWOO stands in firm contrast to the bright, sunny image BSS possesses. The music video for “Last night” seems like a mash-up of the viral “This Man” creepypasta and Neil Gaiman’s “Sandman” series. The dream man of urban legend is linked to a godlike figure akin to Morpheus from “The Sandman,” luring people in with a promise of making their dreams come true. The sand slipping through his fingers and the crowd of people collapsing as if suddenly asleep are even more direct nods. Later in the video, the two of them are shown in a black-and-white montage, bringing us back to the This Man myth, and we find ourselves asking each other: Have you seen this man in your dreams?

The song also diverges from SEVENTEEN musically, with an approach that differs from the group’s poppier sound. Guitarist Juwon Park appears on the track, playing a Latin-inspired acoustic riff over modern synthesizers. The overall effect is one of heightened impact and atmosphere. The emotional core of the whole project relies on a seductive tension rather than explosive vocals or edgy rapping. The concept doesn’t leave their characters rendered as simple, vague images, though. Instead, they teamed up with novelist Cho Yeeun to turn the whole story into an audiobook. JEONGHAN traps people in a city of eternal, blissful sleep and wanders about in search of A, whose face he can’t even remember. WONWOO, meanwhile, wakes those people up and sends them back to the real world while giving JEONGHAN the gift of sleep. The same narrative runs throughout the song and the music video.

The characters and their story are present across the entire single album “THIS MAN,” making each of the subunit’s solo tracks on it feel like excerpts from the same universe. JEONGHAN’s song “Beautiful Monster” is clearly sung from the perspective of the man in white from “Last night.” WONWOO’s track “Leftover,” meanwhile, gives the man in black more backstory.

S.COUPS X MINGYU
So what happens when a duo subunit forms under the hip hop team? The team already has tracks under its name, like “TRAUMA” and “Back it up.” S.COUPS and MINGYU deliberately step away from the intense rap style that most readily differentiates the hip hop team from the rest of SEVENTEEN. Instead, they blend hip hop, rock, and EDM, focusing on their carefree attitude and overflowing confidence stemming from their tight physiques. The same vibe is captured in the title “HYPE VIBES,” the name given to their six-track mini album.

“5, 4, 3 (Pretty woman)” (feat. Lay Bankz) doesn’t stubbornly cling to their hip hop team roots, instead going for a disco–pop hybrid that reinterprets the Roy Orbison song “Oh, Pretty Woman.” Lay Bankz adds her own unique twist on the familiar melody with a modern flow. What Orbison’s original ultimately does here is less about lending its prestige and more about serving as a bridge between the duo’s upbeat energy and Lay Bankz’s sound.

On the whole, the choreography works similarly, eschewing a show of technical prowess and instead emphasizing the simple, laid-back mood of the song. It’s still more than enough to let their star power shine, while still having its own power to make you want to hop onto social media to vibe to the dance challenge your way. What better encapsulation of a party? And that party led to the duo putting on a concert where they performed a number of songs not on the mini album. The S.COUPS X MINGYU subunit really is a fully functioning, independent creative vehicle in its own right.

HOSHI X WOOZI
If the leader of the hip hop team’s at a party, what are the other two leaders up to? Both born in 1996, HOSHI and WOOZI are SEVENTEEN’s creative engine. Performance team leader HOSHI shapes the visual aspect, while vocal team leader and producer WOOZI works on the sound. Their pairing traces back to “BRING IT,” a track off the 2017 album “TEEN, AGE,” but they made their official debut as a subunit eight years later with “BEAM.” In the meantime, “BRING IT” and the aggressive EDM sound driving it evolved into a kind of metatext boasting the catalog of artistic achievements they’ve built up over the years.

In the “96ers” music video, the two artists are depicted as new pieces of art arriving at a museum. It’s a metaphor in praise of their status as idols—objects of observation and enjoyment. The song smoothly covers their entire careers, referencing lyrics and melodies from early hits (“MANSAE”), subunit tracks with their names on them (“CHEERS”), and the group’s breakaway hits (“Super”). Like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this kind of cross-referencing is a thrilling reward for longtime fans and solidifies their own legacy at the same time. The two claim their place as creative auteurs in the K-pop lineage, singing about how they’re “next after the dragon boys,” conjuring up BIGBANG members GD and TAEYANG.

In that same vein, the other tracks off “BEAM” represent opportunities for each of them to independently explore new possibilities. “PINOCCHIO,” featuring So!YoON! of indie band SE SO NEON, is an experiment in alternative R&B that lets WOOZI lean into a different kind of groove that might not easily find a place in a group release. Meanwhile, the club track “STUPID IDIOT” gives HOSHI the space to focus entirely on choreography.

DK X SEUNGKWAN
And finally, most recently, there’s DK and SEUNGKWAN. The combination of the two main vocalists as a ballad duo had already been hinted at with “Say Yes” in 2016. As with most such duos, narrowing the scope to just two people draws the listener’s focus squarely on the vocals, but by giving their contrasting styles plenty of room to breathe and stand out, the emotional effect is one that’s even richer and more nuanced, which is why DK’s bright, powerful voice and SEUNGKWAN’s emotional crooning make such a compelling match.

“Blue,” the lead single off “Serenade,” is what you could call a winter ballad. With rising piano and a gradually building orchestral arrangement in the background, the centerpiece isn’t vocal showmanship but a restrained emotional depth. The music video tells the tragic story of a love hard fought for but ultimately lost in the face of great emotional turmoil, with the leads played by Lee You-mi and Steve Sanghyun Noh. DK and SEUNGKWAN don’t step on the story’s toes the way singers often do in typical music videos, providing enough space for the characters to come alive in detail. It feels like you’ve stumbled upon part of the soundtrack for a TV drama that doesn’t actually exist. They still love each other, but they can no longer stay by each other’s side.

There’s likely more to the way DK X SEUNGKWAN’s performance focuses entirely on the harmony between them, without any flashy effects or choreography, than just the fact that the song’s a ballad. The more complete the deep sadness of “Blue,” the better for the pair’s solo tracks, with DK’s positive vibe in “Rockstar” and SEUNGKWAN’s quietly comforting voice in “Dream Serenade” taking on more meaning. It might feel like this particular duo’s the furthest from SEVENTEEN’s image, but another way to look at it is that one segment of the group shines in a way we’ve never seen before. There are still countless untapped possibilities ahead. SEVENTEEN isn’t just eating the cake they have—they’re single-handedly redefining what it means to be fresh and original.