Tailor-made for the fans: SF9 returns with 14th album 'Fantasy'

For a K-pop band that has released as many albums as SF9, it can be difficult to come up with something new for a 14th album. So, the boy band had a genius idea: Ask the fans what kind of album they want and name the album after the fan club.

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

For a K-pop band that has released as many albums as SF9, it can be difficult to come up with something new for a 14th album. So, the boy band had a genius idea: Ask the fans what kind of album they want and name the album after the fan club.

“We conducted a survey for the fans in tandem with our previous album,” member Yoo Tae-yang told the Korea JoongAng Daily on Tuesday, prior to the release of the band’s 14th EP, “Fantasy,” on Monday, at the headquarters of the band’s agency, FNC Entertainment, in southern Seoul.

“We really wanted to make something that the fans wanted and everyone really worked hard to make it happen,” Yoo said. “It wasn’t just about the music but the promotional content, concept and everything else, including the details in the album. I think the fans would immediately see it. But I really want to emphasize that the details are there.”

SF9 will release “Fantasy” on Monday at 6 p.m., seven months after its previous EP “Sequence” in January. “Fantasy” is a five-track album with a refreshing summer splash concept, most tellingly represented by the lead track “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”

“A ‘refreshing’ concept is quite vague, so we took the idea and turned it into something that suits us — a group that’s now into its ninth year in the industry,” Youngbin said. “We took the theme and made it a little calmer and more mature so that it suits us. We really talked about what we wanted and what we could do, so it felt really fulfilling for us as a group, too.”

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

Other tracks also go for an easy-to-listen, laid-back vibe, according to the members. B-side tracks “Cruel Love,” “Just,” “My Fantasia” and “Melodrama” — written by member Yoo — are included on the album.

“It felt so good to be able to participate in fulfilling the fans’ needs with a song that I wrote myself,” Yoo said, explaining his experience with directing the making of “Melodrama.”

“I really took the initiative and gave each member specific directions on how I wanted them to sound in the song, and they all delivered their best,” he said. “The song is now filled with all the members’ different colors, and I’m so grateful for that.”

“It really wasn’t easy. He didn’t let me out of the recording booth until he was satisfied,” Hwiyoung said, reminiscing the process with laughter.

“It was by far the longest recording session I have had in recent years. I couldn’t speak the next day. But after hearing how it came out, I was really pleased with how we all sounded and Tae-yang brought out the best in us. Chani took the lead in a vocal for the first time with ‘Melodrama’ and his voice was incredible, too.”

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

Only five members of SF9 took part in “Fantasy” — Yoo Tae-yang, Youngbin, Hwiyoung, Inseong and Chani — because of Dawon and Zuho’s personal schedules and Jaeyoon serving his mandatory military duty. Former member and actor Rowoon quit the band last year after his acting career took off.

Rowoon, Jaeyoon and Dawon are vocalists in SF9, making their absence all the more significant for the temporary quintet, but the members pushed through nonetheless.

“We really tried hard to fill the space of the missing members,” Inseong said. “Fortunately, our rappers are also good singers and you can tell that in the songs. That meant that all five of us made up for the absence of the two vocalists, and the new color we brought to the songs is amazing. Tae-yang has always been great, but the new harmony of our five vocals will surprise you all.”

Helping members overcome the challenge was the fact that all members of SF9 are active as soloists in different fields. Yoo and Inseong are esteemed musical actors, Chani has been establishing his acting career with major roles in famed drama series, including JTBC’s “SKY Castle” (2018-19) and tvN’s “Under the Queen’s Umbrella” (2022), Hwiyoung released his first solo single “Traveling Fish” in June this year and Youngbin has been taking part in various web dramas.

“The fact that I have experience working in a team really gave me the confidence to be on the stage for musicals,” Yoo said. “And at the same time, my solo career helped me develop personal skills, such as vocals and acting, which in turn I used for the group work. Musicals really helped me deliver the lyrics of a song better I think.”

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

Boy band SF9 [FNC ENTERTAINMENT]

“Being a part of the SF9 team has given us, in a way, a fence full of opportunities,” Inseong said. “We were given the chance to work with a lot of different people, and being surrounded by a lot of actors [at FNC Entertainment] helped us gain experience, which is the most precious asset in this field. It’s really broadened my perspective and given me new ideas.”

SF9 was the first K-pop boy band to have come from FNC Entertainment, which is a major acting agency that has focused on rock-themed bands, such as FT Island, CNBlue and N.Flying, in music. During SF9's debut, suspicions arose from the industry questioning whether the band and agency could pull it off. Eight years have passed and two more boy bands have come forward to follow in the footsteps of SF9: P1Harmony and Ampers&One.

“We came this far thanks to the great senior stars we had rooting for us,” Yoo said. “We were the first dance group [at FNC Entertainment] but we wanted to become the reliable seniors for the younger groups. That helped us become more mature and determined to make it work so that the people who come after us also look good. It was pressure but also something that gave us a sense of responsibility.”

“Fantasy” will be followed by two more albums tailor-made for SF9. The plans are set out but the members refrained from spilling the tea.

“The three-part series will definitely be different from the projects we’ve done before,” Hwiyoung said. “It will be both interesting to see and good to hear.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]