3rd-generation K-pop powerhouse group Seventeen has cemented itself as one of the most popular self-produced groups in history. This feat is made possible by all thirteen members of Seventeen, who are heavily involved in the process of making their music along with their producers and composers. In fact, the key producer behind Seventeen’s music is Woozi, whose musical genius and talents greatly helped Seventeen achieve worldwide acclaim.
Early days as a producer
Woozi, born Lee Jihoon, is the producer, lead vocalist, and the vocal unit leader of Seventeen. These are responsibilities that Woozi has carried ever since he was a teen, especially the producer title. Woozi has been producing all of Seventeen’s music since their debut album, ‘17 Carat,’ which is shown in their pre-debut reality show “Seventeen Project.” During the filming of “Seventeen Project” back in 2015, Woozi was responsible for creating their debut album that would officially launch their group to the public.
At the time of filming, Woozi was both thankful and worried about the responsibility of bringing their group from a small company to potential superstar status. It felt like the future of all 13 members was depending on him, and that he was personally responsible for Seventeen’s fate. Among the songs that Woozi produced for their debut album, he created their first official song “Shining Diamond” and their debut song “Adore U” to introduce Seventeen’s youthful and powerful charms as a large group.
Fellow producer and songwriter Bumzu, who has worked with Woozi and Seventeen since the beginning, praised Woozi for his composing and producing skills starting from a young age. He expressed anticipation about Woozi making it as a leading producer in the music world, which eventually came true throughout the years of Woozi’s hard work. Shortly after “Seventeen Project” ended, ’17 Carat’ was released and ranked No. 9 on Billboard’s World Albums chart. Similarly, their debut song “Adore U” also made it to the 13th spot on Billboard’s World Digital Songs chart.
Songs for Seventeen and Beyond
After Seventeen’s successful debut as monster rookies, Woozi continued to write and produce the majority of Seventeen’s songs and albums to this day. Iconic Seventeen songs like “Very Nice,” “Pretty U,” “Don’t Wanna Cry,” “Hot,” and “Super,” are some of the several hits that he made for his group. As well as solo songs and sub-unit songs for Seventeen members such as The8’s “Hai Cheng,” Hoshi’s “Spider,” and BooSeokSoon’s (BSS) “Just Do It,” and latest comeback “Fighting.”
He also collaborated with artists for Seventeen songs such as “Q&A” featuring Ailee, which he worked on with fellow Seventeen members S.Coups and Vernon. Woozi has songwriting credits for fellow artists like I.O.I’s last song “Downpour,” fromis_9’s “LOVE RUMPUMPUM,” and NU’EST W’s “I’ve Been Happy Until Now.” Beyond writing for Seventeen and other singers, Woozi has also helped write “Miracle” for the Original Soundtrack of the K-drama series The Tale of Nokdu.
Billboard success and solo achievements
With each successful album and song that Woozi created, Seventeen started collecting more accolades with more to come. After a successful album debut in 2015, Woozi produced their next album ‘Boys Be’ which earned Seventeen their first No. 1 on Billboard’s World Albums chart. Following this impressive record, Seventeen’s ‘Attacca’ landed on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart at the No. 1 spot during its release in 2021. In the same year, Woozi also became the youngest recipient of the Best Producer award at the 2021 Asia Artists Awards. At such a young age, Woozi already has over 100 copyrights owned, making him one of the top idols with the most copyrights to their names.
In the succeeding year, Woozi released his first solo official song “Ruby” to start off 2022 strong. This long-awaited solo release comes years after Woozi’s previous solo song “Simple” in 2016, featured in Seventeen’s ‘Love & Letter’ repackage album. After overseeing the solo endeavors of his fellow bandmates, it was Woozi’s turn to show his charms with “Ruby,” a charismatic and energetic rock song. Months later, he produced ‘Face The Sun’ which earned Seventeen their 3rd entry in the No.1 spot on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart in 2022. Immediately following this, the repackage ‘Sector 17’ album ranked No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Starting and ending 2023 stronger
Between preparing for concerts and preparing for the next tour, Woozi has been steadily producing more exciting music for the year. Earlier in the year, Seventeen came back with the ‘FML’ album with “F*ck My Life” and “Super” as the double title tracks. This mini album reigned supreme at the No. 1 rank on the Artist 100 chart in the United States during its release.
Later this year, Seventeen accomplished another impressive feat with their latest album, ‘SEVENTEENTH HEAVEN.’ This album proudly continues Seventeen’s steady streak at the top 10 on Billboard, debuting on the No. 2 spot on the Billboard 200 chart. “God of Music” headlines their latest album, which has a festive and fun vibe that celebrates the universal power of music all over the world.
Woozi, whom Seventeen thinks of as their very own God of Music, continues to amaze Carats and listeners with great music that leaves strong impressions. He stands firm as an integral person in establishing Seventeen’s unique sound and helping orchestrate the group’s rise to stardom. Even with this year coming to a close, Woozi surely still has music magic up his sleeves. Whether for Seventeen, solo music, and beyond, there’s still more to look forward to in the future from this bright, young producer with the world ahead of him.
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