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Seventeen shows who is the ‘Maestro’ of K-pop in greatest hits album

By Hong Yoo

Published : April 29, 2024 - 21:12

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Seventeen introduces a new album, Seventeen introduces a new album, "17 Is Right Here," during a press conference in Seoul on Monday. (Pledis Entertainment)

Seventeen unveiled its greatest hits album, “17 Is Right Here,” on Monday to celebrate its ninth debut anniversary and promise forever with its fans.

“We tried to go over our experience as Seventeen from the day of our debut to this day. This album wraps up our past chapters and announces a new beginning for Seventeen,” Dino of Seventeen said when introducing the group’s new album during a press conference in Seoul on Monday.

The 33-track album includes some of the beloved Korean and Japanese singles by the group and four new singles — the lead track “Maestro,” “Lalali,” “Spell” and “Cheers to Youth.”

“Maestro” is an R&B number that opens with piano.

“We sing about how we hope to conduct the world as a maestro who leads the music trends. If you listen to the song carefully, you will find out that there are some familiar sounds used in it. We used the sounds from seven of our past songs including ‘Adore U’ to create this new song,” explained member Woozi, who took part in composing and writing the lyrics of the song.

In the music video for “Maestro,” Seventeen shows what it is to create genuine music in a world where virtually everything can be made with AI and other advanced technologies.

Woozi, who has produced various hit singles for the group, said the music video reflects the group’s experiences experimenting with AI while creating music.

“We practiced making songs with AI, as we want to develop along with technology rather than complain about it. Through these experiments, we discovered the strengths and weaknesses of composing music with AI," said Woozi. "We also contemplate how to protect our musical identity in this world where music can be created by AI,” he said.

Seventeen hinted that the group will release one more album this year.

“We have another new release coming up. We also plan on holding a fan concert after completing our stadium tour in Japan. We have a lot on our plate, but we are doing our best hoping that Carats (fandom name) will enjoy them,” said Mingyu of Seventeen.

The group's first-ever stadium tour in Japan will kick off at the Yanmar Stadium Nagar in Osaka on May 18-19.