why does sm want all their bgs to sound the same... im so confused?

  • i first noticed this back in 2018 with nct. nct u and nct dream both started making the same type of music as nct 127 with boss and go and it was unfathomable to me. why have 3 separate "units" of the same group making the exact same music? and now super junior and even shinee are going through nct-fication too



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    its literally the same thing again and again. this isn't even shade, i just dont get sm. isnt the purpose of having multiple groups to appeal to different audiences and capture different markets? yet sm is pandering to the same demographic 10x over

  • tbh Dont Call Me sounds like a follow up to EXO´s Obsession like SM was gonna give EXO a comeback but Chanyeol´s scandal happened and they had to put EXO aside. This isnt a bad thing and is common practice in the industry so idk why stans get so upset by it. Like its still a good song no matter what. But anyway I´d assume its because of how popular NCT and their song is. They probably wanna capitalize off that and instead of it being the NCT sound is SM´s sound

  • Here we have another non fan that came up with ridiculous conclusion after listening to two songs

    shinee's literally the group that got me into kpop. they were my ults for years. and i've listened to more than two songs from all of the groups mentioned above. so stop trying to invalidate my opinion based on your crass assumptions and actually rebut it.

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    tbh Dont Call Me sounds like a follow up to EXO´s Obsession like SM was gonna give EXO a comeback but Chanyeol´s scandal happened and they had to put EXO aside. This isnt a bad thing and is common practice in the industry so idk why stans get so upset by it. Like its still a good song no matter what. But anyway I´d assume its because of how popular NCT and their song is. They probably wanna capitalize off that and instead of it being the NCT sound is SM´s sound

    iirc it was meant for BoA, but the producer is the same as Obsession.

  • You say that like as if 3rd/4the gen BGs sound different to each other lol. the rap focused edgy sound became popular. It was mostly only done by YG boy groups and then BTS blew up and that became the staple for BGs I guess. Lol. Not just SM they all sound the same to me anyway.


    I hope whenever EXO have a comeback they don’t go for the new gen BG sound but if that’s what sells nothing can be done I suppose. Watch me paise the next edgy song EXO put out and don’t quote me kekeke.

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    can't say im on here 24/7 like some of yall to be aware of every thread ever made

    You really don't think this has been discussed recently? Especially considering it's only been a few weeks since SHINee's comeback?


    As for their concept/sound for House Party, there are actually three different teasers and the first two are based on the party concept with a completely different sounding song. The teaser with the trap concept probably isn't the actual song since this one has vocals.

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  • "nct u and nct dream both started making the same type of music as nct 127 with boss and go and it was unfathomable to me"


    Did you even bother to listen to their more recent material? Boss and GO are from 2018, like 3 years ago.

    are we...rlly going to act like make a wish and resonance arent in a similar vein as the aforementioned above? anyway i mentioned 2018 specifically bc that was, as i said, the first time the thought that sm is making their bgs similar popped into my head.

  • You really don't think this has been discussed recently? Especially considering it's only been a few weeks since SHINee's comeback?

    i mean, ok? is this supposed to mean i can't make a thread on smtg just bc other people talked about it? bc i'll do what i want, thanks



    You say that like as if 3rd/4the gen BGs sound different to each other lol. the rap focused edgy sound became popular. It was mostly only done by YG boy groups and then BTS blew up and that became the staple for BGs I guess. Lol. Not just SM they all sound the same to me anyway.


    I hope whenever EXO have a comeback they don’t go for the new gen BG sound but if that’s what sells nothing can be done I suppose. Watch me paise the next edgy song EXO put out and don’t quote me kekeke.

    i don't think i ever insinuated such a thing. most bgs are doing the exact same thing.

  • i mean, ok? is this supposed to mean i can't make a thread on smtg just bc other people talked about it? bc i'll do what i want, thanks



    i don't think i ever insinuated such a thing. most bgs are doing the exact same thing.

    Then why did you make this thread lol. All BGs have gone for the same sound because that’s what’s popular with international kpop fans. An edgy try hard hip hop rap focused sound.


    If you have “SM” in the title it implies it’s specific to SM which it is clearly not.

  • are we...rlly going to act like make a wish and resonance arent in a similar vein as the aforementioned above? anyway i mentioned 2018 specifically bc that was, as i said, the first time the thought that sm is making their bgs similar popped into my head.

    Yes, because they aren't.

    NCT Dream never did a concept like GO again, it was a one-time thing for a special album.

    And mentioning 2018 makes it sound like all the three units have been sounding the same since then, which is not true at all.


    Actually all your argument makes it seem like they have been sounding the same since the Empathy era without taking into consideration that WAYV hadn't even debuted yet. :pepepizza: which makes me assume you haven't checked out their material.

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  • shinee's literally the group that got me into kpop. they were my ults for years. and i've listened to more than two songs from all of the groups mentioned above. so stop trying to invalidate my opinion based on your crass assumptions and actually rebut it.

    Then if you actually stan Shinee you know that they never stick to one sound. But if you mean by 'SM boy groups sound the same' is having great vocals and versatility. Then I agree

  • Then why did you make this thread lol. All BGs have gone for the same sound because that’s what’s popular with international kpop fans. An edgy try hard hip hop rap focused sound.


    If you have “SM” in the title it implies it’s specific to SM which it is clearly not.

    bc... the thread is about SM and how they're making the recent cbs of multiple groups very similar? idk why i can't talk about one thing without the other still being true? get over it? lol

  • SM is taking the "heavy bassline" approach since Obsession. Their songs have more frequent use of bass to propel the song forward.


    Actually, they don't sound the same at all. The songs are picked by members of the group, which means They know their group's signature sound more than anyone.



    Don't Call Me was supposed to go to BoA but Shinee liked it and they took it.


    Artificial Love by EXO was going to NCT but when Baekhyun sang the demo, SM thought it was best to give it to EXO and it fitted perfectly in EX'Act - The 3rd Full album.



    Ko Ko Bop was supposed to go to @@@785ab850-bada-4c72-b482-9460ece8a77b@@@ and it went to EXO and fitted perfectly in their discography, concept and theme.

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  • Also, Don't be shocked if you get attacked cuz when other SM groups are compared to NCT, you will have big arguments because usually NCT's music is talked about in a negative light by almost every Non-fan out there and other group's stans don't want no association with NCT's name being attached to their faves music.



    It was evident during Shinee's comeback, Almost EVERY non-fan compared it to NCT's music.

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  • Whew! It’s been like a week since someone dragged SM bg with this. I was starting to think I was in the wrong place!


    tenor.gif?itemid=13918242

    I think it's

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  • It's because they have the same producers and same vocal coaches. That's why their singing style sounds similar except some of the rare unique vocalists that they managed to sign with but never fully promote them well (Onew, D.O.)

    And maybe they stopped trying to make them different because their target is turning fans into company stans who would still support the young new groups from SM. What's the point of making them different when they share the same fanbase? ;-)

  • Of course some of it is due to using a lot of the same producers which would create overlap. SM has dumped a lot of songs into the "NCT brand" for years without discrimination, vision, or effective customization...songs that don't vibe well or best with the "brand". That is why I think people associate this sound with NCT because SM has been pushing the "brand" and a lot resources into it super heavily.


    You say that like as if 3rd/4the gen BGs sound different to each other lol. the rap focused edgy sound became popular. It was mostly only done by YG boy groups and then BTS blew up and that became the staple for BGs I guess. Lol. Not just SM they all sound the same to me anyway.


    I hope whenever EXO have a comeback they don’t go for the new gen BG sound but if that’s what sells nothing can be done I suppose. Watch me paise the next edgy song EXO put out and don’t quote me kekeke.

    EXO is still the most vibey/edgiest male group on SM's roster. They can effectively execute well on R'N'B leaning songs as one of the tools in their song toolbox. Most guy groups don't.

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    It's because they have the same producers and same vocal coaches. That's why their singing style sounds similar except some of the rare unique vocalists that they managed to sign with but never fully promote them well (Onew, D.O.)

    Honestly the one song that I would argue DOES sound like an NCT song was actually produced by Zico. ^^

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    You do realize Suju have their own label right? Which means they have more control over what music they put in their albums. Did everyone forget that 2AYAYAO was produced by Zico and not some SM producer that people love to throw around?


    Anyways, everyone is invited to Super Junior's House Party! Might as well enjoy it while we can~ :shake-it::groovins:

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  • It's because they have the same producers and same vocal coaches. That's why their singing style sounds similar except some of the rare unique vocalists that they managed to sign with but never fully promote them well (Onew, D.O.)

    Same vocal coaches don't mean they sound similar


    Even their vocal warmups are different


    Go to 11:35 in the video and see for yourself.

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    I love Pikachu.

    Always have, Always will.


    "Pika-Pi"

  • bc... the thread is about SM and how they're making the recent cbs of multiple groups very similar? idk why i can't talk about one thing without the other still being true? get over it? lol

    “I know all groups sound the same but I’m asking why SM sounds the :cryingr: same” my dude you already answered your own question


    No by all means carry on I enjoy laughing at people and their stupid questions. Lol.


    Why is it always the same type of people asking the same stupid questions that’s what I want to know. Y’all think y’all doing something I suppose.

  • Well, when BG try different concepts, they get paid dust except for BTS of course.


    Golden Child came out with a fresh concept and nobody listened.


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  • Honestly the one song that I would argue DOES sound like an NCT song was actually produced by Zico. ^^

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    SM most likely ordered the song from Zico with the concept and sound already decided lol. I'm sure Zico can produce different style of music, including bgs'.

  • Of course some of it is due to using a lot of the same producers which would create overlap. SM has dumped a lot of songs into the "NCT brand" for years without discrimination, vision, or effective customization...songs that don't vibe well or best with the "brand". That is why I think people associate this sound with NCT because SM has been pushing the "brand" and a lot resources into it super heavily.


    EXO is still the most vibey/edgiest male group on SM's roster. They can effectively execute well on R'N'B leaning songs as one of the tools in their song toolbox. Most guy groups don't.

    Sorry the punch was “edgy hip hop” haha.


    Ofc EXO have always alternated between edgy and light in their career. But obsession is actually the first hip hop title track they ever had.

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    SM most likely ordered the song from Zico with the concept and sound already decided lol. I'm sure Zico can produce different style of music, including bgs'.

    Actually Zico approached Super Junior to produce the song specifically for them. Super Junior have their own sublabel (Label SJ) and are the ones who choose the songs for their albums and their title tracks. They still accept submissions from SM, but are ultimately the ones to decide if they will include the song on the album or not. SM is extremely hands off with Super Junior and have been for many years now. This easiest place to see this is during SJ Returns when they were recording Time Slip. They actually had a completely different song picked to be their title track, but wasn't satisfied with the way it sounded once they recorded it so they changed to Super Clap.

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