Very Nice Explained

Very Nice
Cover:Very_Nice_Seventeen.png
Caption:Promotional graphic
Type:Single
Artist:Seventeen
Album:Love & Letter Repackage Album
Language:Korean
Released:July 4, 2016
Length:3:12
Label:Pledis
Composer:
Lyricist:
Prev Title:Pretty U
Prev Year:2016
Next Title:Boom Boom
Next Year:2016

"Very Nice", also commonly known by its Korean title "Aju Nice", is a song by South Korean boy group Seventeen. It was released as the lead single from the reissue of their debut studio album Love & Letter on July 4, 2016. Despite initially peaking at only 22 on South Korea's Gaon Chart and winning no music show awards, "Very Nice" is now considered to be one of Seventeen's signature songs and has placed in multiple lists of best K-Pop songs domestically and internationally.

Background and release

On April 26, 2016, Seventeen released their first studio album Love & Letter, having debuted the year earlier.[1] "Pretty U", the lead single for Love & Letter earned the group their first win on a music show, with two consecutive wins at Show Champion.[2]

On June 25, Seventeen announced the reissue of their first studio album, to be released on July 4.[3] The tracklist was released on July 27, with "Very Nice" serving as the lead single.[4] A teaser for the music video was released on July 1.[5]

Composition

"Very Nice" was written by Seventeen members Woozi, S.Coups, and Vernon, alongside regular Seventeen collaborator Bumzu, and was composed by Woozi and Bumzu. Speaking about the track, Bumzu stated that he had worked on it for 48 hours, only speaking to Woozi during that time. He also mentioned that S.Coups proposed the idea of using the phrase "Very Nice".[6]

The song has been described as a "high-octane anthem", with the use of "circus-like horns, ramped-up crowd cheers, and even random slurping noises".[7] It was written in the key of D♯ minor with a tempo of 122 beats per minute.[8]

Music video

The music video was released on the same day as the album release, July 4, and was directed by South Korean video production company Digipedi, whom Seventeen previously worked with for the music video of "Q&A" with Ailee.[9] [10] [11] It depicts the group experiencing the exciting phase of liking someone during their youth, with scenes at a school, a basketball court, and a boxing ring. Throughout the video, confetti and flower petals explode from the members, portraying the intensity of adolescent love.[12] In the dance scenes, the group wears white shirts with suspenders, with "upbeat" and "well-coordinated" choreography, which Hoshi and the members took part in creating.[13]

Within one week, the video had accumulated more than five million views on Youtube.[14] In 2022, it became Seventeen's third music video to pass 100 million views on the platform, after the music videos for "Don't Wanna Cry" and "Clap", six years after it was released.[15]

Reception

IZMs Hong Eun-sol wrote that although the members "sing expressively as if they were acting", the song felt "somewhat disappointing" after the precedent set by "Pretty U". Nevertheless, Hong noted that it was encouraging to see Seventeen establishing their unique style.[16] In contrast, online Korean magazine Kultscene featured "Very Nice" on their list of the 50 best songs of 2016 at number 15, noting it as the group's best song that year. Alexis of Kultscene noted that "while 'Pretty U' was a lovely song [...] 'Very Nice' is like taking a big bite out of a cotton candy ice cream on a summer day. It's sugary, it's big, and it's fantastic."[17]

The song remains Seventeen's highest entry on Billboards World Digital Song Sales chart at number two, as of June 2024.[18] It peaked at number eight on the Gaon Downloads Chart[19] and 22 on the Gaon Digital Chart during its release week.[20] "Very Nice" often re-enters South Korean real-time music charts in conjunction with new Seventeen releases, having charted at number 123 next to the release of "Fighting", as well as charting within the top 100 after the release of "Left & Right".[21] [22]

Legacy

Part of the song's legacy is its place in Seventeen's encore performances. Following final speeches at a concert, Seventeen have become known to perform "Very Nice" on repeat, any amount of times from seven[23] to fifteen times,[24] occasionally taking breaks to encourage fans to sing the lyrics.[25] The encore has been dubbed as a "never-ending Aju Nice" and is often regarded to be a highlight of Seventeen's performances.[26] [27] [28]

Numerous other K-Pop groups have covered "Very Nice". Most notably, girl group Nmixx performed a cover at KCON LA in 2022.[29] Mamamoo and Golden Child have also performed covers.[30] [31] In 2023, "Very Nice" was featured on MNET competition show Boys Planet as a battle mission for two teams to sing.[32]

In 2021, South Korean music streaming service Melon ranked "Very Nice" at number 80 on their list of the top 100 K-Pop songs of all time.[33] In 2023, Rolling Stone placed "Very Nice" at number 68 on their own list of the 100 best Korean pop songs of all time, crediting the song for cementing the group as leaders of "the sweet, bubbly, boy-group concept". Billboard included "Very Nice" at number 15 in their best K-pop songs of the 2010s list.[34]

Billboard2019100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of the 2010s15
Melon2021Top 100 K-pop Songs of All Time80
Rolling Stone2023100 Greatest Songs in the History of Korean Pop Music68

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the Love & Letter Repackage Album lyric book.[35]

Location

Credits and personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2016)! scope="col"
Peak
position
South Korea (Gaon)22
US World Digital Song Sales (Billboard)2

Monthly charts

Chart (2016)! scope="col"
Position
South Korea (Gaon)[36] 41

Notes and References

  1. Benjamin . Jeff . Seventeen Send Their 'First Love&Letter' to Top 5 of World & Heatseekers Album Charts . 25 June 2024 . Billboard . 5 May 2016.
  2. News: Park . Jeong-hyeon . 세븐틴, '예쁘다'로 '쇼 챔피언' 2주 연속 1위 . 25 June 2024 . 스타뉴스 . 11 May 2016 . ko.
  3. News: Kim . Sun-woo . 세븐틴, 리패키지 앨범 첫 컴백 티저 이미지 공개 '아주 NICE' . 25 June 2024 . www.xportsnews.com . 25 June 2016 . ko.
  4. News: Han . In-gu . 세븐틴 리패키지 타이틀곡은 '아주 NICE' . 25 June 2024 . 매경ECONOMY . 27 June 2016.
  5. News: '컴백' 세븐틴, 짧지만 미친존재감..'아주 NICE' . 25 June 2024 . 조선일보 . 23 July 2020 . ko.
  6. Benjamin . Jeff . BUMZU Breaks Down His K-Pop Process & Creating Music With 'An Unchanging Set of Values' . 25 June 2024 . Billboard . 16 December 2022.
  7. The 100 Greatest Songs in the History of Korean Pop Music . 25 June 2024 . Rolling Stone. 20 July 2023.
  8. Web site: Key, tempo of VERY NICE By SEVENTEEN Musicstax . 2024-06-25 . musicstax.com . en .
  9. News: [K-스토리] 세븐틴 ′아주 NICE′ 뮤비, 공개 일주일 만에 500만뷰 돌파 ]. 25 June 2024 . m.thesegye.com . 11 July 2016 . ko.
  10. News: [Hallyu Power] Digipedi, the duo behind some of K-pop's oddest videos ]. 25 June 2024 . The Korea Herald . 8 March 2016 . en.
  11. Love & Letter Repackage . Seventeen . 2016 . Credit . photobook . LOEN Entertainment . South Korea.
  12. News: RESPECT. Review: SEVENTEEN Shouts "Very Nice" in Comeback MV . 25 June 2024 . RESPECT. The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture . 6 July 2016.
  13. News: Lee . Sang-won . [V Report Plus] Seventeen releases 'Very Nice' music video ]. 25 June 2024 . kpopherald.koreaherald.com . 4 July 2016.
  14. News: [K-스토리] 세븐틴 ′아주 NICE′ 뮤비, 공개 일주일 만에 500만뷰 돌파 ]. 25 June 2024 . m.thesegye.com . 11 July 2016 . ko.
  15. News: Lee . Tae-soo . 세븐틴 '아주 나이스' 뮤비 1억뷰 돌파…통산 세 번째 . 25 June 2024 . Yonhap News . 2 May 2024 . Korean.
  16. Web site: Hong . Eun-sol . July 2016 . 아주 NICE Single Review . 2024-06-26 . IZM . ko .
  17. News: 50 Best Korean Songs of 2016 Best Kpop songs 2016 . 25 June 2024 . KultScene . 26 December 2016.
  18. Seventeen Chart History (World Digital Song Sales). Billboard. July 30, 2023.
  19. Web site: CIRCLE CHART - 써클차트 . circlechart.kr . 26 June 2024 . en.
  20. Web site: Digital Chart – Week 28 of 2016. Circle Chart. ko. June 26, 2024.
  21. News: 세븐틴(Seventeen), 써클차트 19회 랭크·차트점유율 1.2%로 공동 11위·상위 3.0%…대표곡은 'HOT'(2023년 3주차) . 25 June 2024 . 톱스타뉴스 . 26 January 2023 . ko.
  22. News: [음원차트] 청량하게 돌아온 세븐틴, 'Left & Right'로 헹가래 준비 OK! ]. 25 June 2024 . digitalchosun.dizzo.com . ko.
  23. News: Bell . Crystal . Seventeen's 'Be The Sun' World Tour In 9 Unforgettable Moments . 25 June 2024 . Nylon . 7 September 2022 . en.
  24. News: Webster . Abby . SEVENTEEN live in Seoul: unbeatable energy from K-pop's peerless performers . 25 June 2024 . NME . 25 July 2023.
  25. News: Lee . Jan . Concert review: K-pop boy band Seventeen mount a stellar sold-out show . 25 June 2024 . The Straits Times . 14 October 2022 . en.
  26. News: SEVENTEEN bring the heat with 'BE THE SUN' Seoul concerts — gig report . 25 June 2024 . SEVENTEEN bring the heat with 'BE THE SUN' Seoul concerts — gig report Bandwagon Music media championing and spotlighting music in Asia. . 27 June 2022 . en.
  27. News: SEVENTEEN - WORLD TOUR . 25 June 2024 . 360 MAGAZINE - GREEN DESIGN POP NEWS . 27 June 2022.
  28. News: Review: Seventeen's 'Ode to You' rattles Seoul with unwavering love for fans . 25 June 2024 . kpopherald.koreaherald.com.
  29. News: 【ライブレポート】NMIXXが「VERY NICE」、TO1は「That That」をカバー!LAが沸いた「KCON」DAY2レポ(写真45枚) . 25 June 2024 . 音楽ナタリー . ja.
  30. Web site: MAMAMOO - Very Nice (SEVENTEEN) [2019 MBC Music Festival Ep 2] ]. . 25 June 2024 . 2 January 2020.
  31. News: [Golden Child - VERY NICE] Special Stage M COUNTDOWN 180809 EP.582 ]. 25 June 2024 . 9 August 2018.
  32. News: '보이즈 플래닛' 유승언, 연습생+마스터 동시 극찬...'메보 눈도장' . 26 June 2024 . MK스포츠 . ko.
  33. Web site: 80위 아주 NICE - 세븐틴 (SEVENTEEN) . Melon . 25 June 2024.
  34. Billboard Staff . November 25, 2019 . The 100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of the 2010s: Staff List . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200723064804/https://www.billboard.com/amp/articles/news/list/8544710/best-k-pop-songs-2010s-top-100 . July 23, 2020 . December 7, 2019 . Billboard.
  35. Love & Letter Repackage . . 2016 . Lyric book . . South Korea . July 4, 2016.
  36. Web site: Digital Chart – July 2016 . June 25, 2024 . . ko .