Review: SEVENTEEN Returns to the U.S. For the First Time in Two Years on 'RIGHT HERE' World Tour

K-Pop superstars Seventeen brought their "Right Here" World Tour to UBS Arena in New York for two shows this past weekend, on Friday, October 25 and Sunday, October 27.  Seventeen last toured to the United States in 2022, and their fans, known as "CARAT" have been anxiously awaiting their return. Despite being down two members, with Jeonghan set to enlist for his mandatory military service, and Jun on hiatus to focus on acting, the group did not miss a beat and showed their fans that this tour was worth waiting for.

Some fans online expressed disappointment in the setlist, and while I admit there were plenty of songs I wish I could have heard, I also completely understand that that is always going to be the case with a group with a discography as vast as Seventeen's. The group has been active for nearly a decade and has countless hits under their belt, so of course they will never be able to perform them all in one 3-hour show. But the show they gave us showcased the group's versatility and charms to their fullest.

Opening the show were back-to-back performances of "Fear" and "Fearless", two songs from two different albums that fit perfectly together side by side and complemented each other well as the beginning of the powerful performance. Next up was fan-favorite recent title track "MAESTRO", followed by "Ash" and "Crush".

A unique feature of Seventeen as a group is their inclination toward utilizing sub-units, something many of groups after them have replicated. Seventeen is split into three units, vocal unit with Woozi, Jeonghan, Joshua, DK, and Seungkwan; hip-hop unit with S. Coups, Wonwoo, Mingyu, and Vernon and performance unit with Hoshi, Jun, The8, and Dino. Each unit took the stage Friday night to perform two songs each, showing the diverse range of talent within Seventeen.

Following the unit stages, the group launched into another round of full-group songs, including the English version of their most recent title track, "LOVE, MONEY, FAME" which features DJ Khaled. Other highlights were performances of "Super" and "God of Music", two more of Seventeen's recent hit title tracks that fans went wild for.

In between the stages, the members of Seventeen talked with their fans during their ment segments. These segments usually feel very scripted at most K-pop shows but Seventeen, with their silly personalities and chaotic vibes, just chatted freely, often overlapping each other and leaving the in-house translator fighting for her life. But I loved this. I found myself grinning throughout these segments because it just felt like friends hanging out. I loved to see their personalities really get a chance to shine through.

The set closed, of course, with the group's signature encore song, "AJU NICE". If you're a fan of Seventeen, you know the infamous lore, and are aware that they tend to perform a "never-ending" version of the song to close every show, repeating the chorus dozens of times. This was something I looked forward to greatly at my first-ever Seventeen show, and they did not disappoint. We got several rounds of "AJU NICE", with breaks in between to chat, have dance battles with fans, and psych us out into thinking they were done. But their fans knew better. In fact, everyone was surprised when they actually were done and left the stage. Several people around me were wondering if they were tricking us yet again and would return for another "AJU NICE." 

I know Seventeen are entering their dreaded enlistment era, but I wish them nothing but continued success and hope someday I'll get to see all 13 members together on stage!