"Here Always" is a song recorded by Seungmin,[note 1] a member of Stray Kids, serving as the seventh original soundtrack of the 2021 South Korean television series, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha. It was released digitally on October 10, 2021, through Stone Music Entertainment, as Seungmin's first solo song.

"Here Always"
Single by Seungmin
from the album Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha OST
Language
  • Korean
  • English
ReleasedOctober 10, 2021 (2021-10-10)
Studio
  • Doobdoob (Seoul)
  • Studio 1047 (Seoul)
Genre
Length4:14
LabelStone
Songwriter(s)
  • NieN
  • Aseul
Producer(s)NieN
Seungmin singles chronology
"Here Always"
(2021)
"Close to You"
(2022)
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha singles chronology
"The Image of You (Remains in My Memory)"
(2021)
"Here Always"
(2021)
"I Hope You're Happy"
(2021)
Music video
"Here Always" on YouTube

Background and release edit

"Here Always" was featured for the first time in episodes 10 and 11 of Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, aired on September 26 and October 2, 2021, respectively, where Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a) confesses her heart to Hong Du-sik (Kim Seon-ho) and they kiss each other.[1] Later, the song was confirmed to release on October 10 to digital music and streaming platforms,[1] alongside the accompanying music video, featuring scenes from the series and shots of Seungmin performing the song in a recording studio.[2]

Composition edit

Written by NieN (Jeong Gu-hyun), and Aseul, "Here Always" is described as a slow-tempo acoustic lo-fi pop[3] ballad song driven by "tender" piano[2] with "rough" yet "emotionally-stimulating unique" voice.[3] It was composed in the key of D major, 82 beats per minute, with a running time of four minutes and fourteen seconds.[4]

Commercial performance edit

Upon its release, "Here Always" entered South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart at number 125 for the chart issue dated October 10–17, 2021.[5] On its component charts, the song landed at number 13 on the Download Chart,[6] number 182 on the Streaming Chart,[7] and number 8 on the BGM Chart.[8] "Here Always" also peaked at number 8 on both Hungarian Single Top 40,[9] and Billboard World Digital Song Sales.[10]

Track listing edit

  • Digital download / streaming[11]
  1. "Here Always" – 4:14
  2. "Here Always" (instrumental) – 4:14

Credits and personnel edit

Credits adapted from YouTube.[12]

Locations

  • Studio 1074 – digital editing, recording
  • Doobdoob Studio – recording
  • Kokosound Studio – mixing
  • SoundMax – mastering

Personnel

  • Seungmin – vocals
  • NieN (Jeong Gu-hyeon) – lyrics, composition, arrangement, piano, guitar, bass, chorus, digital editing, recording
  • Aseul – lyrics
  • Kwon Yu-jin – recording
  • Go Hyun-jeong – mixing
  • Park Joon – mastering
  • Do Jeong-hee – mastering

Charts edit

Chart performance for "Here Always"
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Hungary (Single Top 40)[9] 8
South Korea (Circle)[13] 125
US World Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[14] 8

Release history edit

Release dates and formats for "Here Always"
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various October 10, 2021 (2021-10-10) Stone [11]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Credited as Stray Kids in some streaming platforms.

References edit

  1. ^ a b Jeon, Hyo-jin (October 8, 2021). "스키즈 승민, '갯마을 차차차' OST 참여…데뷔 첫 도전 [공식]" [Stray Kids Seungmin, 'Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha' OST Participating…First Debut Challenge [Official]]. Sports Dong-a (in Korean). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Puah, Ziwei (October 11, 2021). "Stray Kids' Seungmin releases 'Here Always' for 'Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha'". NME. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "[공식] 스키즈 승민, '갯마을 차차차' OST part 7 참여" [[Official] Stray Kids Seungmin, 'Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha' OST Part 7 Participating]. Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). October 8, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  4. ^ "Key, BPM of Here Always (SEUNGMIN of Stray Kids) by Stray Kids". Musicstax. October 10, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  5. ^ Kim, Yoon-kyo (October 22, 2021). "가온 42주차 디지털차트 1위는 임영웅의 '사랑은 늘 도망가', 2위는 에스파의 새비지…최다곡 차트진입은 아이유 (IU)와 임영웅" [Gaon 42nd Week Digital Chart #1 Lim Young-Woong 'Love Always Run Away', #2 Aespa 'Savage'…IU and Lim Young-woong's Songs Entered the Chart the Most]. Topstarnews (in Korean). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  6. ^ "Download Chart – Week 42 of 2021". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  7. ^ "Streaming Chart – Week 42 of 2021". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  8. ^ "BGM Chart – Week 42 of 2021". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "Single Top 40 slágerlista: 2021. 41. hét 2021.10.08-2021.10.14 No.: 995" [Single Top 40 Chart: Week 41 of 2021 - 2021.10.08-2021.10.14 No.: 995]. slagerlistak.hu (in Hungarian). Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  10. ^ McIntyre, Hugh (October 20, 2021). "Stray Kids' Seungmin, Enhypen, BTS And Jessi: Moves On The World Songs Chart". Forbes. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Seungmin (October 10, 2021). "Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, Pt. 7 (Original Television Soundtrack) – Single". Apple Music (US). Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  12. ^ Stone Music Entertainment (October 10, 2021). [갯마을 차차차 OST Part 7] Stray Kids (스트레이 키즈) - Here Always (승민 of Stray Kids) MV (video). Retrieved April 15, 2022 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ "Digital Chart – Week 42 of 2021". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  14. ^ "World Digital Song Sales: Week of October 23, 2021". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2022.