SEVENTEEN's Vernon and The8 Announce Surprise Subunit With June Album

The duo no one saw coming is officially happening. SEVENTEEN members Vernon and The8 will form a new subunit and release an album in June, Pledis Entertainment confirmed Thursday.

The announcement caught Carats off guard, not because either member lacks the chops to carry a project, but because their creative DNA feels like a deliberate collision. Vernon's been the group's resident eclectic, channeling everything from hip-hop to pop-rock (that electric guitar moment at their Singapore show still has fans talking). The8 (Xu Minghao) operates in a completely different lane: contemporary dance, visual art, B-boying roots. On paper, this pairing makes zero sense. In practice? That's exactly why it might work.

Timing Is Everything

The subunit arrives at a pivotal moment for SEVENTEEN. Four members are currently serving mandatory military service: Jeonghan, Wonwoo, Woozi, and Hoshi. The remaining nine have kept the machine running with their NEW_ world tour, which just hit Singapore last weekend to a sold-out 55,000-seat National Stadium.

Both Vernon and The8 are available through SEVENTEEN's current hiatus cycle. Vernon is Korean-American and, based on his citizenship status, is not currently required to serve in the Korean military. The8 is Chinese, making him ineligible for the Korean conscription system entirely. That shared availability is the foundation this project is built on.

A Subunit That Actually Has Something to Say

SEVENTEEN's previous subunits have been organized by specialty: hip-hop unit, vocal unit, performance unit. Vernon and The8 cut across those lines. Vernon has contributed to writing since the group's 2015 debut. The8 has pushed boundaries with solo work that leans into contemporary dance and artistic experimentation.

The question is whether they'll play to their strengths or deliberately subvert expectations. Given both members' track records of doing their own thing within the group context, expect something that doesn't sound like anything else in the current K-pop landscape.

What's Next

Pledis has not released details on the album's concept, tracklist, or title. A June release window suggests concept teasers will drop sometime in May. We'll update this article as information becomes available.

SEVENTEEN's NEW_ tour continues through Southeast Asia before returning to Korea for finale shows in April. With Hoshi and Woozi's September 2025 enlistment now in the rearview, the group has been operating as a nine-member unit. The Vernon-The8 subunit represents the first major project from within that lineup.