Artist Highlight: SEVENTEEN’s VERNON
Growing up from a child star to debuting and being a part of one of the biggest bands in the world, VERNON has a lot to be proud of. If you have yet to hear of him or his group, SEVENTEEN, here's a quick intro to what he has achieved.
Pre-Debut
Being born in New York allowed VERNON to experience life outside of Korea, but as he mentioned in the PSICK SHOW, he moved out of the States at the age of four to live in Korea and that's when his career started. Appearing on variety shows at a young age is what brought him his start of fame before becoming a trainee with Pledis Entertainment, ultimately leading him down the path to where he is now.
VERNON appeared and competed on Show Me the Money 4 and despite his efforts, he was eliminated in the third round. His rendition of Drake’s “Headlines” is a video that people can go back to and see the large difference he has made in his rap and performance skills.
SEVENTEEN and After Debut
VERNON debuted with SEVENTEEN under Pledis Entertainment with the rest of his 12 band members on May 26, 2015. Throughout these eight years as a group, he has shown constant improvement but has also been unafraid to show his true passion and sound in music.
Throughout his eight years as an idol VERNON has branched out and tried new genres, but the one that will always stick with him is pop-punk. I think these three songs will be a great introduction to the unique sound he expresses in his music but if you want to hear it in SEVENTEEN too, listen to “GAM3 BO1!”
VERNON has been very vocal about his musical inspirations and the artists he looks up to. One of those artists is Charli XCX. A year ago, VERNON was featured on her remix for “Beg For You.” The song is a perfect example of the grunge 2000s pop music category that I place his music in. In a series of tweets, Charli XCX expressed her desire for a collab and personally, it's one of my favorite collabs a K-Pop artist has done.
Two years ago, VERNON released his third single “BANDS BOY” which uses lyrics to express the hardships he endured to get him where he is today. While having a unique and enticing beat, VERNON also uses lyrics to connect listeners to the journey it took to become a part of SEVENTEEN, “Seal the deal we’ve been grown yeah, 10 years we’ve been bros.” While this is not my personal favorite by VERNON, this is another example of how diverse he is with the music he releases whether it be solo or with his group.
His most recent release also happens to be my favorite, “Black Eye.” This song perfectly embodies the pop-punk vibe VERNON holds both musically and personally. A constant theme in VERNON’s music is the idea of either loneliness or growth and “Black Eye” speaks on the feeling of being lonely but also the desperation to find someone that can get you out of solitude.
This is also his first release in which he has released a music video to accompany the song. While showing his edgier side, VERNON also perfectly encapsulated the feeling of being lonely by being the only person in the video and often being shown in a large cage. Not only was there a music video, but also a band live session which I personally had on repeat.
Being able to see the growth in confidence VERNON has shown in the past eight years as an idol is amazing. Although he just released a new mini-album with SEVENTEEN, CARATS are anticipating new solo projects. But until then, we have plenty of solo work to enjoy!
Edited by Cara Musashi