| “ |
Happiness~ Hello, we are Red Velvet. |
” |
| —Red Velvet | ||
Red Velvet (레드벨벳) is a five-member girl group under SM Entertainment. They debuted as four on August 1, 2014 with the single "Happiness". Yeri was added to the group in March 2015.
The group's name represents its concept, defined by two different images, "Red" and "Velvet". "Red" signifies their vivid and bold image, whereas "Velvet" reflects their classy and toned-down side. Songs like "Happiness", "Ice Cream Cake", and "Dumb Dumb" falling into the "Red" concept, in contrast to "Be Natural", "Automatic", and "One of These Nights" which falls into the "Velvet" concept, with "Russian Roulette" and "Rookie" falling in both "Red" and "Velvet" concepts.
History[]
Pre-debut[]
Before their debut, Irene, Seulgi, Wendy, and Yeri were previously part SM Rookies, SM Entertainment's pre-debut team of trainees under SR14G (SMROOKIES 2014 Girls).[1][2][3] The members appeared in multiple music videos and posted their own content using SM Rookies. Seulgi was the first to be recruited in 2007 through SM Saturday Open Audition and made a cameo in Henry's "Fantastic".[4] Irene became a trainee of SM Entertainment back in 2009, and made a cameo in Henry's "1-4-3 (I Love You)".[4] Wendy was recruited in 2012 during SM Global Audition in Canada, and released an OST for drama Mimi.[4] Joy was recruited through SM Global Audition in Seoul in 2012.[4] Finally, Yeri was casted from SM Global Audition in US in 2011.[5]
2014: Debut with "Happiness" and "Be Natural"[]
Promo for "Happiness"
On July 21, Irene, Seulgi, and Wendy were rumored to debut as a group, thus graduating from SM Rookies, which was confirmed by SM Entertainment,[6] with Joy being added to the group also.[7] Red Velvet's debut marked the company's first girl group in five years, after f(x). After multiple teasers, on August 1, the music video for "Happiness" was released, with member Yeri making a cameo, but due to the controversial imagery concerning the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the events of 9/11, the music video was taken down, on the same day, they made their official debut stage on Music Bank.[8][9] On August 4, the music video was replaced without the concerning images, and the digital single was released.
Promo for "Be Natural"
On October 13, the group released their first digital single, "Be Natural", which is a remake of their labelmate, S.E.S., song of the same title.[10] The song featured labelmate & member of SR14B or SMROOKIES 2014 Boys, Taeyong, and original choreography seen in a pre-debut teaser of Irene and Seulgi, which they performed as part of S.M. Rookies.[11][12] On the same day, they began promotions for the song with their first appearance on the music program M Countdown.[13]
2015: Addition of Yeri, "Automatic", Ice Cream Cake, The Red, and "Wish Tree"[]
Promo for "Automatic"
On March 10, it was announced that Red Velvet will make a comeback as a five-member group, with SM releasing an introduction video to their official YouTube channel to welcome the newest member of the group, Yeri.[14] On the same day, they announced that their first mini-album is named Ice Cream Cake, with the title song of the same name.[14] On March 14, the music video teaser was released for "Ice Cream Cake",[15] with the next day releasing the music video for "Automatic".[16] On March 16, Red Velvet released the music video for "Ice Cream Cake" and the album on the following day.[17] The song was a critical success, topping multiple charts and managed to grab their first music show win on March 27, on Music Bank, following with other wins as well.[18][19]
Promo for "Ice Cream Cake"
On August 2, the group had their first promotions in the United States at KCON LA at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. The group participated in a fan engagement session at the Los Angeles Convention Center and performed songs, "Ice Cream Cake", "Somethin' Kinda Crazy", and "Happiness" during the concert.[20]
Promo for The Red
On September 3, multiple red blocks were posted throughout the day onto their Instagram. It was then later revealed to be a massive grid of the track list of their upcoming album The Red, announcing their comeback.[21] The Red will focus on their vivid and strong "Red" image. The next day, it was revealed that the title track for the album will be "Dumb Dumb" and a teaser for the music video was released.[22] After multiple teasers, on September 9, the album came out while the music video for "Dumb Dumb" came out the day before at 10 pm KST.[22] The song was described as an uptempo pop dance track with a groovy beat and addictive hook, with the lyrics about a girl who can't help but act awkward around her crush.[23] The group made their comeback stage on M Countdown on September 10.[24] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard World Albums Chart and the Gaon album chart.[25][26] On December 18, the group took part in S.M. Entertainment's special winter project Winter Garden, alongside label-mates f(x) and BoA, releasing a digital single titled "Wish Tree".[27]
2016: The Velvet and Russian Roulette[]
Promo for The Velvet
While promoting their last album at a press conference on September 8, 2015, the members and the company hinted at a follow-up album to The Red.[28] A month later in an interview with Dispatch, Wendy confirmed the release.[29] On March 2, an SM Entertainment representative told Osen that Red Velvet had finished filming their music video and and plan on coming back in March.[30] Seven days later, an image of Yeri in a pink dress was posted, with a hashtag confirming the title of the album to be The Velvet.[31] On March 10, a couple teaser photos were posted which revealed that the album would be released on March 16.[31] Later that day, it was announced that the title track for the album is "One Of These Nights".[32] The album focuses on their smooth and soft "Velvet" image. 10 minutes before the album release, SM Entertainment announced the album and music video would be delayed to a day later to ensure better high quality of work.[33] On March 17, they released the album and the accompanying music video for the title song. The song was described as an R&B ballad with a polished rhythm, and was based on the Korean festival of Chilseok, which is celebrated on the seventh the day of the seventh month ("7월7일"), hence the romanization name.[32]
Promo for Russian Roulette
After many reports stated that the group would be releasing an album in July, on May 26, SM Entertainment told Newsen that Red Velvet are preparing their new album and the comeback schedule would be announced soon.[34] On August 19, it was announced that Red Velvet will make a comeback sometime in September.[35] On September 1, the group’s website changed to an animation of a heart that’s pierced by an arrow reading the words "Russian Roulette", and in their Instagram, they uploaded various pictures, forming a picture of Wendy.[36] On the same day, more teasers were released portraying the words "Russian Roulette"[37] From September 1 to September 5, individual teaser photos were released in the following order: Joy,[38] Irene,[39] Seulgi,[40] Yeri,[41] and Wendy.[42] After multiple teasers, it was revealed that the title song will be the same name as the album, with a comeback date of September 7.[39] The music video teaser was released on September 6 with the album and the music video being released on September 7.[43][44] The song "Russian Roulette" is described as a synthpop song that has an arcade sound feel with a retro 8-bit sound source. Its lyrics compare the process of winning someone's heart with a game of Russian Roulette.[45] On September 9, during the radio show, Super Junior's Kiss the Radio, Irene talked about how the group faced many difficulties and that the group became stressed and were physically and mentally tried because the comeback date kept getting pushed back and they weren't told why.[46] On September 13, the members revealed that they heard the song "Russian Roulette" when they were trainees. They didn't know at the time that they would end up releasing the song.[47]
2017: Rookie, "Would U", fandom name, The Red Summer, and Perfect Velvet[]
Promo for Rookie
On January 20, it was announced that the group will have a comeback in February.[48] Four days later, the first batch of teasers were released through SM Entertainment's official website and their official Instagram account, with the release date shown on one of the photos, with the comeback date at February 1 and the album title of Rookie, and it was confirmed that the title song was to have the same name as the album.[49] On January 24, teaser photos of the group and Seulgi were released with Wendy's being released the following day.[49][50] On January 26, the first teaser clip of the music video was released.[51] Teaser photos of Irene were released January 27, with the second music video teaser clip being released the next day.[51][52] Joy's and Yeri's teaser photos were released on January 29 and January 30, respectively.[53][54] The track list, along with two new group photos were released on January 31.[55] After multiple teasers, the album and the title song came out on February 1.[56] The song "Rookie" was described as a pop-funk single that draws on Red Velvet’s unconventional musicality to combine low-key sing-speaking and synth beats before blasting into the saccharine hook of a chorus.[57]
On March 22, it was announced that Red Velvet would be releasing a single as the first artist to release music through STATION 2.[58] After releasing multiple teasers,[59][60] they finally released the single and music video, "Would U" on March 31. The song is described as a medium tempo pop song and features the actor Kim Min Jae in the music video.[61] On April 21, they released the acoustic version of the song, which did not include Joy due to scheduling conflicts.[62] Finally, on April 26, on their 1000 day anniversary, the group's fanclub name was announced to be "ReVeluv" which has dual meanings, as it sounds like the combination of the words “Red Velvet” and “love,” and “Level Up".[63]
Promo for The Red Summer
On June 23, it was announced that Red Velvet would be releasing a mini album in July for a summer comeback, which signifies the group's summer-esque concept since the "Happiness" era.[64] Around midnight on June 30, the first set of teasers were released through the company's official website, the group's official Instagram, and the group's official Twitter account which was created in the same month for more promotions.[65] Later that day, they posted another set of teasers which revealed the album title and the full track list which includes the title track, "Red Flavor".[65] From June 30 to July 4, the teaser photos for the then upcoming mini album in the following order: Irene,[66] Yeri,[67] Joy,[68] Seulgi,[69] and Wendy.[70] A music video teaser for the title track "Red Flavor" was released on July 8 with the album packaging preview being released on the next day.[71] The mini album and music video for "Red Flavor" was released digitally on July 9[72] and had its physical release on July 10. Around 2 hours after the release of The Red Summer on July 9, the song "Red Flavor" topped 7 Korean digital music charts along with the rest of the songs ranking high on the charts.[73] Internationally, the mini album was well received as they rose to first in eight different iTunes Worldwide Album Charts along with topping the iTunes Kpop charts in eight additional countries.[74]
Promo for Perfect Velvet
On November 8, they released the first teasers for the new album, Perfect Velvet, which was released on November 17, this new album is focused on the group's Velvet side.[75] In this album, each member was represented by a weapon: Irene's weapon is an axe, Seulgi's a knife, Wendy's a pair of scissors, Joy's a submachine gun, and Yeri's a beast.[75] On the same day, the group's official twitter launched a "timeline" that said that from the 8th until the 17th they would have teasers (of image and video) until the release of the album.[75] Finally, on the 17th, the album released along with the video-clip of its title track. The track is described as an uptempo pop dance, the album amounted to almost 36,000 copies sold on Hanteo in a week.[75]
2018: The Perfect Red Velvet, Japanese debut, Summer Magic, and RBB[]
A promotional picture for The Perfect Velvet
On January 24, the group's Twitter released teasers indicating that a new album called The Perfect Red Velvet would be released on the 29th of the same month.[76] This album is a repackage of their last album and the concept of this album is the mix of the Red side with Velvet.[76] The album consists of 3 new songs including the title, "Bad Boy", totaling 12 songs.[76] On March 29, during the second day of their first concert, Red Room, the group announced that they would be making their official debut in Japan in a couple of months.[77]
On April 1, Red Velvet performed at the inter-Korean concert titled Spring is Coming in Pyongyang, North Korea. They were one of the 160 South Korean artists selected to performed.[78] Joy was unable to make it due to schedule conflict as filming for her drama, Tempted was still ongoing.[79]
Red Velvet made their debut in Japan on July 4, with their first mini album, #Cookie Jar. The album had three new songs, "#Cookie Jar","Aitai-tai", and "Cause It's You, and three Japanese versions of previous Korean releases, "Dumb Dumb", "Russian Roulette" and "Red Flavor".[80]
Summer Magic was Red Velvet's second summer album
On July 23, a source from SM Entertainment revealed that Red Velvet would be coming back with the album, Summer Magic. The group had finished filming the music video for their new song. The album features seven songs in total.[81] The group performed the songs from the album at their second concert, REDMARE, on August 4–5.[82] Their first summer mini album was released on August 6 with the title track, "Power Up"[83] After the release, the song "Power Up" quickly soared the top of the charts and earned the group its first real time all kill and perfect all kill.[84]
On November 22, group teaser photo were posted which revealed that the group would be coming back with their fifth mini album, RBB, on November 30.[85]
2019: "Sappy", "Sayonara", and 'The ReVe Festival' trilogy[]
On January 4, without any warning, SM posted on their YouTube channel a music video teaser for their new Japanese single "Sappy". The official music video came out two days later on the 6th.[86] On February 20, they released another Japanese single "Sayonara".[87] On April 29, a teaser was posted on the girls social media accounts announcing the release of their second Japanese mini album, Sappy.[88] On May 29, Red Velvet released their second Japanese mini album, Sappy. Both previous Japanese singles were on the album including the Japanese versions of "Peek-a-Boo", "Power Up", "Rookie", and a new song "Swimming Pool".[89]
Promo for ‘The ReVe Festival’ Finale
On June 12, individual member teasers along with song snippets began being teased on the group's official twitter account. On June 19, Red Velvet released their sixth mini album 'The ReVe Festival' Day 1, along with the title track "Zimzalabim". It is the first entry of "The ReVe Festival" trilogy.[90] The mini album debuted atop the South Korean Gaon Album Chart. The mini album sold 185,821 copies in the first month.[91]
Two months after the release of The ReVe Festival: Day 1, 'The ReVe Festival' Day 2, their seventh mini album, with its title track "Umpah Umpah" on August 20 was released.[92] The final release of the trilogy, 'The ReVe Festival' Finale, was released on December 23, with the title track "Psycho".[93] To promote The ReVe Festival trilogy, the group embarked on their third concert, La Rouge, which began in Seoul on November 23 and 24.[94]
2020: Irene & Seulgi unit debut, "Our Beloved BoA #4"[]
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Promotional photo for Monster
Following the reports, SM Entertainment confirmed that members Seulgi and Irene were preparing to debut in the groups' first sub unit unit, with the debut date set for June 15, 2020.[95] However it was postponed, on the grounds that it needed additional production on the album, in order to achieve a higher quality of music.[96] On June 21, it was announced that Red Velvet - Irene & Seulgi will make their debut on July 6 with their first mini album Monster.[97]
Promotional photo for "Our Beloved BoA #4"
On August 19, 2020, individual teaser photos for the group's cover of BoA's "Milky Way", as part of the 20th anniversary project Our Beloved BoA, were released. SM confirmed Wendy's return explaining that she has recovered significantly and will be participating in group activities at a level that does not strain her.[98]
On October 15, tvN confirmed Red Velvet as being the first artist for the OST lineup of the Korean drama Start Up.[99]
2021: Solo debuts, Queendom[]
On March 10, SM Entertainment announced that Wendy would be making her solo debut in April.[100] On March 24 a teaser photo was released, confirmed that she would release her first mini album, Like Water, on April 5.[101]
Promotional photo for Queendom
On May 12, Star News reported that Joy would be releasing her first solo album at the end of the month. Her agency, SM, confirmed that she is working on a remake album and that a detailed schedule will be announced soon.[102] The digital single "Je T'aime" was pre-released on May 26, and the solo special album Hello was released on May 31, with the title track of the same name.
On June 9, Herald POP reported that Red Velvet is preparing for a comeback in August. It would be their first comeback in almost a year and a half after the release of 'The ReVe Festival' Finale.[103] On August 16, Red Velvet released their eighth mini album Queendom.[104]
2022: The ReVe Festival 2022 - Feel My Rhythm, Bloom, The ReVe Festival 2022 - Birthday[]
On December 11, 2021, it was announced that the group would be releasing their first Japanese full-length album Bloom on February 2, 2022.[105] However, on January 14, it was announced that the album would be postponed to a later date due to production reasons.[106]
Promotional photo for The ReVe Festival 2022 - Feel My Rhythm
On February 18, as part of an exclusive, Xports News reported that Red Velvet would be making a comeback in March.[107] Less than an hour later, SM Entertainment confirmed themselves that Red Velvet are preparing an album with the goal of releasing it in March.[108] On February 21, it was announced that Red Velvet would be hosting a special live, The ReVe Festival : Prologue, on March 19 and March 20.[109] On March 2, it was announced that the group would be coming back on March 21 with their ninth mini album, The ReVe Festival 2022 - Feel My Rhythm.[110][111] The album contains six songs in various genres.[111]
On March 12, it was announced that the new release date for Bloom would be April 6.[112] On March 13, SM released a statement stating that Irene, Joy, and Yeri had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and the upcoming concert, The ReVe Festival : Prologue, has been postponed tentatively and all ticket sales would be refunded.[113]
On September 14, SM C&C Studio revealed that Level Up Project! would be returning for a fifth season. The season has 12 episodes and started airing on September 23 at 11 am through Wavve.[114]
Promotional photo for The ReVe Festival 2022 - Birthday
On October 28, Star News reported that Red Velvet will be releasing an album at the end of November.[115] A couple hours later, SM put out a statement stating that Red Velvet are preparing an album with the aim for it to to be released late November.[116] On November 7, it was announced that Red Velvet will be releasing their 10th mini album, The ReVe Festival 2022 - Birthday on November 28.[117][118]
On December 9, it was announced that Red Velvet will be releasing a collaboration single, "Beautiful Christmas", with aespa on December 14. The song will also be featured on SMTOWN's ninth winter album, 2022 Winter SMTOWN : SMCU Palace.[119]
2023: Fourth concert, Chill Kill[]
On March 3, 2023, SM Entertainment announced that Red Velvet will hold their first offline concert in three-and-a-half years, titled R to V, on April 1st and 2nd at KSPO Dome in Seoul.[120]
On April 26, SM Entertainment released a statement stating that Joy will be taking a break from scheduled activities for the time being due to health reasons.[121] On June 20, SM released an updated statement and announced that Joy will be be resuming her activities.[122] On August 1, it was announced during their ninth anniversary live stream that Red Velvet will be releasing their third full-length album during the second half of 2023.[123]
On September 18, it was reported that Red Velvet will be having a comeback with their third full-length album in November. Later in the day, SM confirmed the reports.[124] On October 18, it was announced that they will be releasing their third full-length album, What A Chill Kill, on November 13.[125] On October 23, they changed the title of the album to Chill Kill.[126]
2024: Upcoming mini album[]
In a interview on December 31, 2023, Red Velvet announced that they will be releasing a special album in 2024 to commemorate their 10th anniversary.[127] On February 8, 2024, SM Entertaiment revealed that Red Velvet will be releasing a mini album in the second half of the year.[128]
Members[]
| Name | Position(s) | Color | Years active | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Korean | Japanese | |||
| Irene | 아이린 | アイリーン | Leader, Main Rapper, Lead Dancer, Vocalist, Visual, Center | Pink | 2014–present |
| Seulgi | 슬기 | スルギ | Main Dancer, Lead Vocalist | Yellow | 2014–present |
| Wendy | 웬디 | ウェンディ | Main Vocalist | Blue | 2014–present |
| Joy | 조이 | ジョイ | Lead Rapper, Vocalist, Maknae (2014–2015) | Green | 2014–present |
| Yeri | 예리 | イェリ | Rapper, Vocalist, Maknae (2015–present) | Purple | 2015–present |
Units[]
- Red Velvet - Irene & Seulgi (2020–present)
Discography[]
Korean[]
Japanese[]
Studio albums[]
Mini albums[]
|
Digital singles[]
|
Concerts[]
Solo concerts[]
- Red Velvet 3rd Concert – La Rouge (2019)
- The ReVe Festival : Prologue (2022; cancelled)
Asia tours[]
- Red Velvet 1st Concert – Red Room (2017–2018)
World tours[]
- Red Velvet 2nd Concert [Redmare] (2018–2019)
- Red Velvet 4th Concert : R to V (2023)
Japan tours[]
- Red Velvet Hall Tour in Japan "Red Room" (2018)
- Red Velvet Arena Tour in Japan "Redmare" (2019)
- Red Velvet Arena Tour in Japan "La Rouge" (2020)
Concert participation[]
- SMTOWN Live World Tour IV (2014-2015)
- SMTOWN Live World Tour V (2016)
- SMTOWN Live World Tour VI (2017-2018)
- a-nation online 2020 (2020)
- SMTOWN Live "Culture Humanity" (2021)
- SMTOWN Live 2022 : SMCU Express@Kwangya (2022)
- SMTOWN Live 2022 : SMCU Express@Human City Suwon (2022)
- SMTOWN Live 2022 : SMCU Express@Tokyo (2022)
- MIK Festival London 2022 (2022)[129]
- SMTOWN Live 2023 : SMCU Palace@Kwangya (2023)
- Primavera Sound Madrid (2023) (cancelled)[130]
- SMTOWN Live 2023 : SMCU Palace@Jakarta (2023)
- SMTOWN Live 2024 : SMCU Palace@Tokyo (2024)
- KCON Japan 2024 (2024)[131]
Fanmeetings[]
- inteRView vol.5 with ReVeluv (2019)
Online fanmeetings[]
- inteRView vol.7 : Queendom (2021)
Filmography[]
Reality shows[]
- Level Up Project! (2017-2022)
Variety shows[]
- Two Yoo Project - Sugar Man (JTBC, 2016) - guest (Ep. 13)
Photobooks[]
- Red Velvet 4th Concert : R to V Concert Photobook (2024)
Endorsements[]
On April 1, 2023, Azarine Cosmetic, an Indonesian make up brand,, announced Red Velvet as their new brand ambassador.[132]
- Lotte Pepero (2014)
- Baskin Robbins (2015)
- Meters/bonwe (2015–2016)
- BLACK Martine SITBON (2015–2016)
- Red Cross (2016)
- The SAEM (2016–2017)
- Toreore Chicken (2016–2017)
- Lineage Red Knights (2017)
- Korean Red Cross Youth (2017)
- Skechers (2017)
- Pro Baseball H2 (2017)
- The Shilla Duty Free (2017–present)
- Columbia Sportswear x Sorel Footwear (2017)
- Etude House (2018–present)
- Mobile Game 'Eternal Light' (2018–present)
- LG V50 ThinQ (2019)
- GMarket (2019–present)
- Azarine Cosmetic (2023)
Awards and nominations[]
- Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Red Velvet
Gallery[]
- Main article: Red Velvet/Gallery
References[]
Official links[]
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