History of K-Pop: TVXQ and DBSK

Whether they’re known to you by the moniker TVXQ or DBSK, there’s no question that as a K-Pop fan, you’re at least familiar with the impact this group has left on K-Pop as a whole. Whether it be early domination of the industry or the first major reported company dispute and resulting split, you’ve certainly heard tales of the group. This month we’ll be taking a deep dive into TVXQ’s formation, dispute, and current whereabouts.

TVXQ came to fruition under SM Entertainment in 2003 with five members, Yunho, Changmin, Jaejoong, Junsu and Yoochun. The group was originally meant to fill a boy group hole that had opened up with the disbandment of H.O.T. in 2001 and Shinhwa’s departure from SM in 2003. Before the official debut of TVXQ, the members participated in a number of project groups with other trainees who would later come together to form Super Junior. Their debut single “Hug” initially didn’t gain much traction, but upon increased TV appearances, more recognition came to the group and they achieved their first music show win with “Hug” on Inkigayo. 2004 saw their first debut at No.1 with album Tri-Angle, which became one of the best selling albums of the year. That year also marked the group’s Japanese debut, but it was not as successful as the label had anticipated and in 2005, they returned their focus on Korea. 

TVXQ’s first major breakthrough in popularity came in 2005 with the release of album Rising Sun, the lead title of the same name became  the group’s signature song.

Embarking on an international tour in 2006, the sextet was the first Korean artist to hold international concerts in Malaysia. While continuing activities in both Japan and Korea, they saw more success in 2006 in their home country with "O"-Jung.Ban.Hap, an album that resulted in the group gaining four highly coveted grand prize award, including but not limited to, “Album of the Year” at the Golden Disk Awards. Just three years into their career, TVXQ was already at the top of the K-pop world.

International recognition came with “Mirotic” in 2008. Now considered a classic K-Pop song known by all, the title caused quite a stir in Korea for being outwardly provocative in a way many hadn’t seen before. Despite that, “Mirotic” became the uncontested, most successful single release of the group’s career, giving them nine music show wins and surpassing half a million sales. If there’s one way to get all K-Pop fans on the same page, it’s to play “Mirotic” and watch the entire group passionately sing the lyrics and perform the choreography. The track may even be considered the single staple of K-Pop, even ten years later.

But being on top of the world doesn’t last forever. In mid-July of 2008, members Jaejoong, Junsu and Yoochun sued SM Entertainment over contract length and unfair profit distribution. The lawsuit brought a wave of shock for many fans, creating a rift that would never be resolved. Even as the group continued activities as five in Japan, the trio with complaints were not able to resolve their issues with SM, and thus split from the group entirely in 2010. Things got a bit messy as Japanese agency, Avex, announced the formation of trio JYJ under the guise of a “special unit,” which lead to Changmin and Yunho ceasing Japanese activities at that time. More lawsuits followed, with SM suing JYJ for violating their contracts, and in turn JYJ to void their exclusive contracts with SM. When the trio signed with C-JeS Entertainment, SM attempted to denounce the agency while all the legal proceedings were going on. Fans noted that Yunho and Changmin remained dead silent through the whole debacle. Yes, messy is an understatement. 

The future of the remaining duo was left in limbo during all of these proceedings. But after returning to the public eye in August 2010 to perform at the SM Town Live 10 World Tour and receiving a positive response from the crowd, the duo decided to continue their activities as TVXQ. There was a very brief time that SM considered adding new members to the group, but they ultimately decided to keep Yunho and Changmin as a duo moving forward. At the beginning of 2011, they made their first return since the debacle with “Keep Your Head Down.” 

There were some allegations that the track was directed at the members of JYJ, especially considering the duo spoke up about the incident for the first time during its promotional period. It’s important to mention, however, that TVXQ denies that rumor. They gained even more media attention for participating at the 2011 SMTown concert at Madison Square Garden, their first Western appearance.

Riding into 2012, TVXQ saw a meteoric rise in Japan, breaking records previously held by artists such as the Backstreet Boys and Michael Jackson. September saw the release of their sixth Korean album Catch Me and it’s repackage Humanoid, along with the end of the dispute between SM Entertainment and JYJ. Despite the lawsuits being dropped, JYJ still faced a ban from the three major Korean broadcasting stations that continued to affect them and their solo activities for years to come. 

At the beginning of 2014, the duo released their ten-year anniversary album Tense, an album that would later go on to be critically acclaimed and even referenced to as the best album put out by the duo. As expected, it peaked at the  No.1spot on both the Gaon and Hanteo Album Charts. Lead single “Something” was the duo’s highest charting single to date, even with the change in sound to a swing theme. Before taking a hiatus for military duty, TVXQ released special album Rise as God as a farewell, and both entered into military service in 2015.

Both members returned to the music industry in 2017 after completing service and focused on Japanese activities for that year before releasing a new Korean album in 2018, New Chapter #1: The Chance of Love followed by New Chapter #2: The Truth of Love in December. Title tracks “The Chance of Love” and “Truth” follow in the footsteps of “Something” with a more modern twist, showcasing the duo building on their previous success in musical shift before hiatus. That’s the last activity we’ve seen from TVXQ, but who knows what the new decade will hold for them. 

As for the three former members of the group, JYJ is still technically an active group, though Yoochun was lost along the way after testing positive for drug use and retiring from the business. Meanwhile, Jaejoong explores just about every artistic pursuit possible, from acting to directing to writing, and has just recently made his return to the K-Pop scene after four years. Junsu has his own solo career as well, and is currently acting in musicals. Both have had successful solo careers in this time, but it is yet to be seen whether they will return together under the name JYJ. 

TVXQ’s long and storied history is quite a lot to comprehend, but it’s also a story of success despite a number of complications. While three members left with a lawsuit, they still had successful careers in Korea, even with the major network ban that challenged them. Excluding Yoochun who fell from grace, the four remaining members have all returned from their military hiatus and have not lost any success. We can only imagine what the future will hold for these idol pioneers.