Teen Top

Teen Top
Teen Top in July 2023
Background information
OriginSeoul, South Korea
GenresK-pop
Years active2010 (2010)–present
Labels
Members
Past members
Websitewww.teentop.co.kr

Teen Top (Korean: 틴탑) is a South Korean boy band formed by TOP Media in 2010. The group is composed of four members: Chunji, Niel, Ricky and Changjo. Originally a six-piece group, L.Joe had filed for contract termination in February 2017, and former leader C.A.P. left the group on May 11, 2023. Teen Top debuted with their first single album Come into the World on July 9, 2010.

Career

Pre-debut

Teen Top members Ricky and Niel were both child actors. Niel debuted through the musical Please, where he played the younger version of Joo Won's role. Ricky debuted in Seo Taiji's music video for "Human Dream" and later portrayed the young version of Song Seung-heon's character in Love Song. Four of Teen Top's Members (Changjo, Niel, C.A.P and L.Joe) had an open Lotte World audition whereas the other two members (Chunji and Ricky) had a closed audition. It took L.Joe two auditions before he could train unlike the other members.[1]

2010–2012: Debut, Roman, It's, aRtisT and To You

In July 2010, Teen Top made their debut with the title track, "Clap", off their debut single album Come into the World. A remixed version of "Supa Luv" by A-rex became a promotional vehicle for the American film Beastly in Asia.[2]

Teen Top's mini-album Roman, along with its title track "No More Perfume On You" released in July[3]

Teen Top during an open-air Inkigayo performance in 2012

In January 2012, Teen Top released their second mini album It's. Brave Brothers produced, wrote, composed and mixed all of its six tracks.[4]

On February 3, Teen Top won their very first award on KBS Music Bank with "Going Crazy" since debuting on July 10, 2010.[5] Moreover, they received the honor of performing the ending stage on MBC Music Core, followed by another win on SBS Inkigayo.[6]

aRtisT, Teen Top's third EP, was released on May 30 as a digital download, followed by the release of the music video for its title track "To You". Physical albums were released on June 4, 2012. With this album, the group gained much attention, topping major music charts.

2013: European Tour, No. 1, and Teen Top Class

Teen Top in Petőfi Csarnok, Budapest, Hungary in April 2014

In February 2013, Teen Top held their first European tour, "TEEN TOP SHOW! Live tour in Europe 2013", making stops in Germany, England, France and Spain.[7]

The track "I wanna love (사랑하고 싶어) was released in February 2013.[8][9] They released their full album digitally and physically on the 25t.[10]

On August 25, Teen Top released their 4th mini album Teen Top Class with 장난아냐 (Rocking/No Joke) as the lead single.Teen Top won three music show trophies for "Rocking". The promotion cycle lasted shorter than usual, which led them to release another repackaged album titled Teen Top Class Addition on October 24 with 못났다 (Lovefool) as the lead single.[11]

2014: High Kick world tour, Éxito, and Snow Kiss

In February, Teen Top held their "High Kick in Seoul" concert in Seoul's Olympic Hall. They then proceeded with their "High Kick" world tour in various countries such as the US, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, and South American countries like Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Panama, and Peru.

In September, they released their fourth extended play, Exito with "Missing" as the lead single. They first performed "Missing" live at M Countdown on the 11th of September, prior to the album's release.[12] The promotion cycle lasted shorter than usual, which led them to release a repackaged album, titled 20's Love Two Exitoo on the 10th of November. "I'm Sorry" was the lead single for the album, in which it was not promoted on music shows.[13]

In November, they held their first concert and fan meet in Thailand, titled "My Dear Angels in Bangkok". In December, they held another concert but in four cities in Japan.

In December, they released their first seasonal single album, Snow Kiss with the same title as the lead single.[14]

2015–2016: Natural Born and Red Point

TOP Media announced that Teen Top would hold their exclusive overseas solo concert "My Dear Angels" in Los Angeles at the ORPHEUM TEATER on April 11.[15] This event was cancelled due to internal funding issues, and Team Angel took full responsibility for the cancellation.[16]

Their 6th mini album entitled "Natural Born Teen Top" was released on June 22. On the same day, they released the music video to the title song "Ah-Ah" - a song written and produced by Black Eyed Pilseung and Sam Lewis.[17][18] After its release, "Natural Born Teen Top" debuted at No. 1 on South Korean Gaon Albums chart as well as No. 13 on Billboard's World Albums chart.[19][20]

On July 4, Teen Top held their 5th Anniversary Concert in Tokyo, Japan, continued with stops in Seoul, Nagoya, Kobe and endend in Fukuoka on August 17.[21] The group also attended KCON in New York alongside Girls' Generation and other artists on August 8, 2015.[22]

On July 31, Teen Top released the digital single "Except for Me" for Brave Brothers 10th Anniversary album.[23]

Teen Top was a part of the 2015 Feel Korea in New Delhi tour in India, performing on August 29 at New Delhi's Sirifort Auditorium.[24]

On January 17, the music video for the title track, Warning Sign, came out. The next day on January 18, 2016, Teen Top released the mini album, Red Point. The album came in two versions: Chic ver. and Urban ver.[25]

2017–2019: High Five and L.Joe controversy

In early 2017, L.Joe cleared evidence of the group from his social media, deleting "Teen Top" from his Instagram username and turning his account private.[26] On February 10, it was revealed that he had requested a termination of contract with his agency, TOP Media, after L.Joe reportedly had wanted more solo activities and was subsequently restricted.[27]

On April 10, 2017, Teen Top released their second studio album titled High Five and continued to promote as five.[28]

On May 8, 2018, Teen Top released their eighth EP, Seoul Night, with the title track of the same name. The EP was released in two versions.[29] On May 11, Teen Top's first stage for this comeback was held on M Countdown, performing "Seoul Night" and "Let's Play".[30] On July 3, 2018, Teen Top released TEEN TOP STORY: 8PISODE, with the title track "Lovers".[31] This is the repackage of their eighth EP Seoul Night.

On June 4, 2019, Teen Top came back with their ninth EP DEAR. N9NE, with the title track "Run Away".[32]

2020–present: Resurgence, 10th anniversary, military service, C.A.P's departure, and 4SHO

Several of Teen Top's older songs received renewed spotlight in 2020, notably, No More Perfume on You (2011) and Crazy (2012) for its viral lyrics and crazy beats. Host Yoo Jae-suk regularly expressed his love for the group's music on his variety show MBC Hangout with Yoo and was singing and dancing to the group's tracks on the show.[33]

On July 10, 2020, Teen Top released a 2020 version of "To You", in commemoration of their 10 years since debut. Despite not releasing any new albums in the year, Teen Top was invited to perform their classic tracks on multiple music shows including KBS Music Bank and M Countdown. The group also performed at You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook for the first time since their debut.[34]

Teen Top held their first online concert titled "Teen Top 10 Live" on August 8, 2020.[35] This marked Teen Top's last concert as a full group in a while, with Chunji being the first member to enlist in the military shortly after on August 10, 2020, to fulfill his mandatory military service.[34] Ricky was accepted as part of the military band, and was the group's second member to enlist to the military on January 17, 2021.[36] C.A.P is the third member to enlist in the military on May 10, 2021.[37]

On December 28, 2021, it was announced that Niel and Changjo will not renew their contracts with TOP Media starting from January 10, 2022. However, they will still remain as members of Teen Top.[38] Chunji was discharged from the military on February 9, 2022, but took his final vacation and was not asked to return in January due to COVID-19 protocols.[39] Ricky also completed his service on July 17.[40]

On April 29, 2023, Teen Top announced that they would be making their first comeback in 4 years.[41] On May 11 however, it was confirmed that leader C.A.P would be leaving the group as a result of controversial behavior during a live broadcast, where he was smoking a cigarette which outraged fans.[42] On June 13, 2023, it was confirmed that the group's next album, 4SHO would be released on July 4.[43]

On December 28, 2023, it was announced that Chunji and Ricky had parted ways with TOP Media, though they would still continue with Teen Top.[44]

Members

Current

  • Chunji (천지)
  • Niel (니엘)
  • Ricky (리키)
  • Changjo (창조)

Former

  • L.Joe (엘조)
  • C.A.P (캡)

Discography

Main article: Teen Top discography

Concerts and tours

  • Teen Top 1st Concert In Japan (2012)
  • Teen Top 1st European Tour "Teen Top Show!" (2013)
  • Teen Top 1st Asia Tour Concert (2013)
  • Teen Top Summer Special Concert (2013)
  • Teen Top Zepp Tour "Fly Hight" (2013)
  • Teen Top 1st World Tour "High Kick" (2014)
  • Teen Top 5th Anniversary Concert (2015)
  • Teen Top 1st US Live Tour "Red Point" (2016)
  • Teen Top Concert "Put Your Teen Top 7" (2017)
  • Teen Top 2nd US Tour "Night in USA" (2018)
  • Teen Top European Tour "Party To.N9ne" (2019)
  • Teen Top 10 Live Online Concert (2020)

Ambassadorship

  • Public Relations Ambassador for the Blue Tree Foundation (2023)[45]

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Teen Top

References

  1. ^ "TEEN TOP's Niel & Ricky share their childhood photos" Archived 2011-08-23 at the Wayback Machine Official AllKPop News Website
  2. ^ "틴탑, 할리우드 대작 홍보대사 발탁 '화제' (TEEN TOP, Chosen as Hollywood Ambassadors becomes a 'Hot Topic')" Archived 2012-06-14 at the Wayback Machine Star News. 2 March 2011. Retrieved 2012-10-02. (in Korean)
  3. ^ "TEEN TOP returns with "No More Perfume On You" on Inkigayo" Archived 2012-10-11 at the Wayback Machine Official AllKPop News Website.
  4. ^ "TEEN TOP releases second mini-album, 'It's'" Archived 2012-01-08 at the Wayback Machine Official AllKPop News Website.
  5. ^ "TEEN TOP wins 'Music Bank' K-Chart + Performances from February 3rd!" Archived 2012-02-05 at the Wayback Machine Official AllKpop News Website.
  6. ^ "TEEN TOP wins 'Inkigayo' mutizen + Performances from February 5!" Archived 2012-02-07 at the Wayback Machine Official AllKpop News Website.
  7. ^ "Teen Top announces 5 city European tour" Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine AllKpop. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 2017-11-07.
  8. ^ elliefilet (8 February 2013). "TEEN TOP to release album later this month". Allkpop. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
  9. ^ "설날맞이 서프라이즈 뉴스를 전해드립니다!". TEEN TOP Official Website. Archived from the original on 13 April 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
  10. ^ neefa (24 February 2013). "TEEN TOP makes a manly transformation for new 12-track album 'No. 1' + release "Miss Right" MV". Allkpop. Archived from the original on 26 February 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
  11. ^ "(공지) 틴탑 'TEEN TOP CLASS ADDITION' 리패키지 앨범 발매 안내". TOP Media. Archived from the original on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  12. ^ 틴탑, 1년 만의 컴백 목 빠지게 기다렸어(엠카운트다운). ent.hankyung (in Korean). September 11, 2014. Archived from the original on July 9, 2015.
  13. ^ "TEEN TOP leave hearts fluttering with Niel and C.A.P's images for upcoming repackaged album". Allkpop. November 6, 2014. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  14. ^ "TEEN TOP release Christmas themed digital single, 'Snow Kiss'". Allkpop. December 9, 2014. Archived from the original on November 12, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  15. ^ "TEEN TOP My Dear Angels in LA". onehallyu. 2 February 2015. Archived from the original on 4 February 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  16. ^ "Teen Top My Dear Angels in LA Cancellation". ANGEL UNITED. 10 April 2015. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  17. ^ "Teen Top Release Individual Teasers And Album Art For 'Natural Born'". Archived from the original on 11 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  18. ^ "Teen Top drop track list for 'Natural Born'". Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  19. ^ 틴탑 새앨범, 한터차트 이어 가온차트 음반부문 1위. The Star (in Korean). June 2, 2015. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  20. ^ "BTS, Sistar, AOA or Teen Top: Who Won the Summer's First Rush of K-Pop Comebacks? | Billboard". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2015-07-05. Retrieved 2015-07-04.
  21. ^ "【7/4 開催決定！】TEEN TOP 5th ANNIVERSARY LIVE in Japan 2015". Archived from the original on 2015-07-13.
  22. ^ Benjamin, Jeff. "Teen Top & AOA Join KCON 2015 New York Lineup". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2015-08-10. Retrieved 2015-08-04.
  23. ^ "TEEN TOP drop 'Except For Me' as part of Brave Brothers' 10th anniversary album!". allkpop. July 31, 2015. Archived from the original on August 2, 2015. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  24. ^ "India is about to receive their love for the Hallyu Wave with 2015 Feel Korea concert in New Delhi". HELLOASIA. Archived from the original on 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2015-08-04.
  25. ^ "TEEN TOP introduce track list to "Red Point" comeback". allkpop. January 12, 2016. Archived from the original on July 7, 2016. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  26. ^ "L.Joe worries fans by deleting Teen Top out of his Instagram ID and turning his account private". AllKpop. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  27. ^ Choi, R (9 February 2017). "Teen Top's L.Joe Revealed To Have Requested Contract Termination From Agency". Soompi. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  28. ^ "Teen Top Is Tired Of Heartbreak In "Love Is" MV". soompi. April 10, 2017. Archived from the original on April 18, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  29. ^ "Teen Top Gets The Party Started With "Seoul Night" MV". soompi. May 8, 2018. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
  30. ^ Lee, Ha-na-gi (10 May 2018). "'엠카' 틴탑, 타이틀곡 '서울밤' 컴백···화려한 '서울지앵' 퍼포먼스". Naver (in Korean). Sedaily. Archived from the original on 28 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  31. ^ "Watch: Teen Top Celebrates 8th Anniversary With Dashing MV For "Lover"". Soompi. July 3, 2018. Archived from the original on 2019-09-22. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  32. ^ "Update: Teen Top Displays Chic Moves In Performance Version Of "Run Away" MV". Soompi. June 4, 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-09-22. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  33. ^ "'놀면 뭐하니?' 유재석, 드디어 최애 아이돌 만났다! "우리 틴탑이!"". iMBC 연예 (in Korean). 2020-08-08. Archived from the original on 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2020-08-22.
  34. ^ a b Choi, Seunghye (August 15, 2020). "틴탑 "'향수 뿌리지마'로 역주행, 3대 숨듣명 영광"(스케치북)[결정적장면]". Newsen. Naver. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  35. ^ "Teen Top Celebrates 10 Years With A Special Online Concert "TEEN TOP 10 LIVE"". hellokpop. 2020-08-09. Archived from the original on 2020-09-30. Retrieved 2020-08-22.
  36. ^ Jeong, Heeyeon (November 27, 2020). "틴탑 리키, 내년 초 입대...천지 이어 두 번째 [공식입장]" [Teen Top Ricky to enlist early next year... second after Chunji]. Donga Sports (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  37. ^ Kim, Miji (April 27, 2021). "틴탑 캡, 5월 10일 軍 입대...천지·리키 이어 3번째[공식입장]". Xportsnews. Naver. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  38. ^ Yoon, Sanggeun (December 28, 2021). "틴탑 니엘·창조 티오피미디어 전속계약 종료 "팀 활동 유지"[전문]". Star News. Naver. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  39. ^ "틴탑 천지, 오늘 현역 제대...코로나19로 미복귀 전역 속 "활동 관심 부탁"" [Teen Top Chunji discharged from active duty today... "Please pay attention to activities" after non-return due to COVID-19]. Donga.com (in Korean). February 9, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  40. ^ "Teen Top Ricky Discharge Notice". Teen Top Twitter (in Korean). July 17, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  41. ^ ""컴백 준비 중"..틴탑, 5人 완전체 활동 예고" (in Korean). April 29, 2023.
  42. ^ "'욕설 논란' 캡, 결국 틴탑 탈퇴...4인조 재편[공식]" (in Korean). May 11, 2023.
  43. ^ "틴탑, 7월 4일 완전체 컴백 확정". Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). June 13, 2023.
  44. ^ "Teen Top's Chunji, Ricky part ways with TOP Media after 13 years". Korea JoongAng Daily. December 28, 2023.
  45. ^ Cha, Hye-young (May 14, 2023). "틴탑, 푸른나무재단 홍보대사 위촉 "뜻깊은 일 함께하게 돼 영광" [Teen Top signs on as ambassadors for Blue Tree Foundation "Honoured to be a part of such a worthy cause] (in Korean). Ten Asia. Retrieved June 12, 2023 – via Naver.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Teen Top.