When Super Junior debuted in 2005 with the single “Twins (Knock Out)”, no one knew what the future holds for the boy group with 12 members — the biggest number ever for an idol group during that time. And when promotions for “Miracle”, the second promotional single from the boy group’s first studio album Twins, ended, new members were supposed to be introduced in accordance to the initial plan for a rotational lineup.

But SM Entertainment abandoned the plan. Instead of a massive lineup changes, a new member, Kyuhyun, was introduced and Super Junior 05 simply became SUPER JUNIOR. And true to Lee Soo Man’s intention, the boy group, composed of Leeteuk, Heechul, Yesung, Kangin, Shindong, Sungmin, Hangeng, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Siwon, Kibum, Ryeowook, and Kyuhyun, became a “gateway to stardom of Asia”.

Super Junior became a prominent figure of Hallyu or the Korean Wave, gaining a strong following all over the world and receiving recognition from various award-giving bodies. The boy group is one of the best selling K-Pop artists and one of the longest-running boy groups in South Korea’s music scene.

And although the 14-year career of Super Junior was not spared from controversies, including the loss of three members Hangeng, Kibum, and Kangin and the indefinite hiatus of Sungmin in the group’s activities, no one could ever deny the contributions and impact of the boy group to K-Pop, South Korea, Asia, and even the world.

They are legendary and timeless. And in this special feature, we celebrate Super Junior with the list of eight (among many) reasons why we, as Everlasting Friends of Super Junior, will always be proud of them.

#1 FOURTEEN YEARS

In a highly competitive market such as South Korea’s entertainment industry, many idol groups debut but only few remain active for more than a decade. Super Junior is one of the rare gems in the K-Pop music scene with 14 years under their belt.

The boy group has maintained their prominent presence in the entertainment industry and has kept their impact and legacy intact through the years. Although it seems that the boys have achieved everything in the past decade, they continue to leave their mark and prove their timeless influence through the various recognition and new milestones they receive in recent years including the Legend Award at the 2017 Asia Artist Awards and Bonsang from the Golden Disc Awards and Seoul Music Awards in 2018, among others.

Super Junior also earned two music show wins for their Time_Slip comeback led by “Super Clap”, marking their first win since 2014 and following the completion of all the members’ military services.

They are also one of the most respected sunbae in the industry with fellow artists expressing their admiration to the group and the members. Some also identified them as their inspiration in pursuing their dream to be an idol. And that’s what we really call legendary.

#2 “SORRY, SORRY”

Speaking of legendary, we can never miss “Sorry, Sorry”, the song which got most Philippine ELFs into Super Junior, when we talk about Super Junior. The song was initially released as a digital single on March 9, 2009 (Happy 10th Anniversary, Sorry, Sorry!) but was later included as the lead single for the group’s third studio album of the same title.

Dubbed as Super Junior’s most successful single to date, “Sorry, Sorry” took the top spot on music charts, not only in South Korea, but other Asian countries such as Taiwan and Thailand. It also gave the boy group ten music show wins, the second most number of wins Super Junior has achieved for a song following “Mr. Simple”.

“Sorry, Sorry” is also one of the most covered songs in K-Pop with Girls’ Generation, EXO, BTS, SEVENTEEN, NCT, SF9, Wanna One, among others performing the song in various instances. The Philippines’ very own Cebu Dancing Inmates also performed the song.

Sorry, Sorry took home Daesang and Bonsang at the Golden Disc Awards, Bonsang at the Seoul Music Awards, and Album of the Year at the Gaon Chart Awards. It is also the best-selling album of 2009 with more than 250,000 sales.

#3 SUPER SHOW

Super Show, the international tours of Super Junior, commenced in 2008 through The 1st Asia Tour – Super Show which kicked off in Seoul on February 22, 2008 and ended with a total of ten shows in South Korea, China, and Thailand. Since then, the boy group has held a total of eight Super Shows which has also expanded beyond Asia to include Europe and South America.

With Super Show, Super Junior became the first South Korean artist to hold a total of 100 concerts worldwide, a feat the boys achieved during Super Show 6 in Seoul on September 21, 2014. Prior to this achievement, the boy group also made history with the largest K-Pop tour in South America with Super Show 5. This year, the boys also created another first for K-Pop as the first K-Pop artist to hold a concert in Saudi Arabia via Super Show 7.

In the Philippines, ELFs got their first taste of Super Show in 2010 when PULP Live World brought the boy group in the country for the concert on April 10, 2010 at the Araneta Coliseum. Philippine served as the final stop of Super Show 2. They are also the first K-Pop boy group to hold a solo concert in the country!

With Super Show 8 coming to the Philippine shore on December 15 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, Super Junior will mark their fifth solo concert in the archipelago following Super Show 2, Super Show 3, Super Show 5, and Super Show 7.

READ: THE LEGENDS ARE COMING: Super Junior To Return To Manila For “Super Show 8”

Tickets to the concert will go on sale starting November 24 at 12 noon via SM Tickets.

#4 MULTI-AWARDED

With a discography spanning nine studio albums, one extended play, and one compilation album in South Korea alone, Super Junior also boasts a superb list of awards and recognition under their name. Since their debut in 2005, the boy group has won more than 160 awards and received more than 220 nominations from award-giving bodies in South Korea and overseas.

Super Junior is the most-awarded artist at the Golden Disc Awards with 19 wins, including three Daesang and eight Bonsang.

Aside from their milestones as a group, the members have also built legacies of their own and have been recognized for their various activities and contributions to the entertainment industry.

#5 MAKERS OF HISTORY

And whrn we said Super Junior contributed a lot to K-Pop and the Korean entertainment industry, we are not kidding. The boy group has chnaged the game for K-Pop in a lot of ways including being the first idol group to actively promote in China and holding a special lectire at Oxford University.

They also created a lot of firsts in K-Pop — and in Asia too! The boy group is the first overseas artist to win Asia’s Artist of the Year at the Tencent Stars Magnificent Ceremony in China. The boys, with the help of their ELFs, bested out One Direction, Little Mix, 5 Seconds of Summer, 2NE1, and Girls’ Generation to be the Choice International Artist at the Teen Choice Award, making them the first Korean and Asian artist to do so.

In addition, Super Junior is the first foreign act to receive the Artist of the Year award at the KKBOX Music Awards. “Lo Siento”, the title track of their repackaged album Replay, became the first K-Pop song to enter Billboard’s Latin Songs Chart. Subsequently, Super Junior became the first K-Pop group to appear on the chart!

Although we cannot list everything down, Super Junior has undeniably helped paved the way for K-Pop and its artists in so many ways that it is no longer surprising that the boys have earned the respect of many.

#6 MULTI-TALENTED

Other than their main jobs as singers, the members have constantly challenged themselves and evolve, showing us how capable they are as artists.

Super Junior members are variety kings — and no one can tell us otherwise. With shows such as SuperTV and SJ Returns, the boys have made us roar into laughter, sometimes even questioning why we stan these dorks. And if you are like us, Titas of K-Pop, you probably know the gems that are Exploration of the Human Body, Mystery 6, and Full House. 

Individually, the boys are also carving names for themselves as trusted MCs with leader Leeteuk, Heechul, Shindong, and Kyuhyun being hosts or cast members of a lot of entertainment programs today.

They can also act and we have witnessed it on Attack on thr Pin-Up Boys. The members also impressed with their acting chops in various drama productions including Heechul’s Bad Family and Flower Granpa Investigation Unit, Yesung’s Awl and Voice, Sungmin’s The President, Siwon’s She Was Pretty and My Fellow Citizens, Donghae’s It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl and Quiz of God Season 4 and Kyuhyun’s Bongsun, The Woman Dies If She Loves.

Not to mention, the members have also led musical productions! Yesung, Sungmin, Ryeowook, and Kyuhyun earning praises for their musical performances.

In addition, Shindong and Eunhyuk have also taken roles outside the spotlight by going behind the scenes and behind the camera as directors. And Super Show 8 will be a witness to that!

#7 EVERLASTING FRIENDS OF SUPER JUNIOR

But, really, the 14-year run of Super Junior will never be possible without the support of their Everlasting Friends!

ELFs are one of the most passionate fandoms in the world as evident by the Choice Fandom award they received at the Teen Choice Award. They are Super Junior’s constants who support the members’ activities, protect them against haters, and love them through the ups and downs. It is a lovely relationship that makes our hearts full.

We can’t wait to witness another display of this strong bond at Super Show 8 in Manila and be part of the ocean of pearl sappbire blue.

#8 BROTHERHOOD

It always warms our hearts to see the strong relationship of this bunch where they pour out thier support for each other. No matter how they joke about being a window group, we know they are family.

From a project group to one of South Korea’s most successful boy groups, Super Junior has indeed come a long way. The journey was never easy with tears shed a long the way, heartbreaks that tested their strengths, and challenges that seemed so hard to conquer — but Super Junior did that.