"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

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"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

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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

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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

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

Credits and personnel

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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

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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

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

Notes

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

References

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  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.