I. Introduction
"Without You" is the second single from the rotational NCT sub-unit, NCT U. It was released on April 9, 2016, a day after the group's debut single.
II. Overview
NCT (엔시티) or Neo Culture Technology is a boy group under SM Entertainment.The group structure of NCT is unique among K-Pop groups due to the fact that the original concept of NCT was an ever expanding group with "unlimited" members and it is comprised of several individual subunits. Currently there are 20 members in NCT, making up four individual subunits, but there have been as many as 23 members.
The first NCT unit was announced on April 4, 2016. At the time of the song's release, NCT U was the first and only NCT sub-unit. It was and remains a special promotional unit with rotational members. Members are chosen to perform based on the song and concept, and the groups are often heavily performance-driven. In addition to recording and performing in music videos, NCT U groups also perform on music shows and other performances within the same grouping.
The members in this release are different than the group in NCT's debut song, "The 7th Sense." As a vocally driven song, this song features members who would go on to be main vocalists in permanent NCT sub-units: Taeil, Doyoung and Jaehyun, who would join NCT 127, and Kun, who would join WayV. The song was recorded in two versions - Korean and Chinese - with Kun, a native Chinese speaker, adding vocals only to the Chinese version.
All of the members in this NCT unit would appear in the second season of NCT Life after the release of their first singles as part of promotional support before the next two sub-units would debut in July.
The Korean version of this song was performed on music shows with the debut single "The 7th Sense." Both versions of these songs would be re-released in 2018 as part of the all-unit NCT 2018 Empathy album and project.
III. Tracklist
| Title | Lyrics | Music | Arrangement | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Without You" | Yoo Young-jin | Matt Schwartz, Ki Fitzgerald, John Reid, Yoo Young-jin | Yoo Young-jin | 3:25 |
| "Without You (Chinese Version) | Lin Xinye | Matt Schwartz, Ki Fitzgerald, John Reid, Yoo Young-jin | Yoo Young-jin | 3:25 |
IV. Spotify Playlist
V. Videos
Without You
Without You (Chinese Ver.) - MV
VI. Concept Photos
VII. Reception
"Without You" reached #5 on the Chinese Billboard Charts and #3 on the U.S. Billboard World Songs chart. It also charted on the Gaon chart in Korea.
VIII. Trivia
- All of the members in this group had performed together as part of SM's pre-debut group, SM Rookies. However at the time of this song, all of the members except Kun had been trainees for 3 to 4 years. Kun had been a trainee for less than a year.
- Taeil, Doyoung and Jaehyun would debut in the third NCT unit, the permanent unit NCT 127, in July 2016. Kun would not debut in a permanent unit until 2019.
- Fellow SM Rookies member Winwin, who would go on to join NCT 127 and later WayV, appears in the music video. He also featured in NCT Life in Seoul with Kun, introducing the two new Chinese members, although both had been working in Korea already for many months.
