vivie's blog: History SuperJunior

Super Junior (슈퍼주니어) is a thirteen member Korean boy band under the SM Entertainment label and production agency. They debuted in 2005 with the single "TWINS (Knock Out)" as a twelve member group but added a thirteenth in May of 2006 with the release of their single U. Super Junior's popularity has spread across Asia and they have held concerts in such places as Thailand and Japan. Several of the members had previous jobs as VJs, actors and models previously, which helped to boost the group's popularity. Super Junior is composed of 12 Korean members and 1 Chinese member.

History

When SM Entertainment announced the formation of a 12 member pop group, the news was met with much speculation and rumor on the Internet. Many of the members chosen by SM were already well known for their other works such as Kim Hee Chul, Choi Shi Won, and Kim Ki Bum, who all had prior experience as drama and movie actors.

Super Junior first performed as a group on November 6, 2005 on SBS Inki Gayo, where they performed songs from their debut single, "TWINS (Knock Out)". Their debut single was released digitally on November 11th and their debut album Super Junior 05 was released in December. Soon after the release of their album, Super Junior collaborated with fellow SM Entertainment group Tong Vfang Xien Qi and released the single Show Me Your Love. At the same time Super Junior continued to promote songs from their first album.

On May 23, 2006, SM Entertainment announced the addition of Jo Kyu Hyun to the group. Now at an unprecedented 13 members, Super Junior relaunched itself with a new style and their first physical single, U three days later. U became Super Juniors' first number one hit. Super Junior has recently received much criticism for their large size and frequent use of lip-syncing but their large fanbase keeps the groups' sales up.

Special Units

Along with the regular 13 member formation, Super Junior has a host of special units. In November of 2006, members Kyu Hyun, Ryeo Wook and Yeh Sung debuted as the trio Super Junior K.R.Y. On February 23rd, 2007, another unit Super Junior T (Super Junior Trot) released a single titled Rokkuguh (Rock On). The mini groups are said to be SM Entertainment's attempt to not limit the members to performing as the large Super Junior group, which can be seen as many of the members have continued appearing as individual artists.

Accident and Aftermath

On April 18th, 2007 Super Junior members Lee Teuk, Eun Hyuk, Shin Dong, and Kyu Hyun were involved in a car accident. Kyu Hyun was severely injured and suffered from a fractured hip, broken ribs, and various abrasions on his face. He was discharged 78 days later on July 5th, 2007. Lee Teuk had glass impaled in his back and face and had operations to remove the glass done by a plastic surgeon. He will probably have operations to remove the scars at a later date. Eun Hyuk was also reported as having glass in his back, while Shin Dong walked out of the accident with only minor injuries. All activities were canceled for these four members. All the members, except Kyu Hyun, managed to attend the 2007 Hollywood Bowl appearance in the United States.

Second Album and Beyond

On September 20th Super Junior released their second album Don't Don!. With this release they launched their new, much harder image, including shaved heads, black clothing, and lots of hair dye. Their first single from the album, the song "Don't Don!" featured a violin solo performed by Henry Lau, a new SM recruit raised in Canada. For a while there was much speculation that Henry would be added to Super Junior. Instead it was announced that Henry along with Super Junior member Han Kyung would be important members of a new group Super Junior China, to debut early next year in China. SM further expounded on the fact that Super Junior's name should be considered a brand searching to unearth new talent worldwide. 1

From October to December Super Junior will be working on the project "Make the world a happy place with Super Junior" (슈퍼주니어와 함께 행복한 세상만들기) in which they will be participating and promoting various charity events including blood drives.