Review

Song Review: Seventeen – Love, Money, Fame (ft. DJ Khaled)

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Seventeen - Love, Money, Fame (ft. DJ Khaled)By any metric, it’s hard to argue that Seventeen aren’t the biggest K-pop act currently active. With this in mind, I keep waiting for another new single to wow me in the way so many of their past songs have. Maestro‘s chorus was an unsatisfying tease while last year’s God Of Music was pleasant but lightweight. I have to go all the way back to 2021 to find a Seventeen title track that really captured me, and this is from a group who barely put a musical foot wrong for their first three years.

So, what does the biggest group in the world do next? Enlist DJ Khaled for a feature, of course! Hearing Khaled’s brash (ie: annoying) vocal tag kick off Love, Money, Fame is a real trip — almost as if we’ve landed back in 2020. Beyond that intro, this song is mostly Seventeen operating in a mid-tempo comfort zone. Given their status and resources, it’s amazing how throwaway the track feels. From the faceless production to the unadventurous melodies, everything about Love, Money Fame seems content to play things as safe as possible.

My gut says the decision-makers behind this single were aiming for playlist ubiquity — something that can seamlessly fit between any number of songs without making waves. Indeed, Love, Money, Fame casts an amiable groove. Its hooks are flat and catchy enough to rattle around your brain without superseding other important thoughts, ensuring plenty of replay value. But for a group who so often thrills us with their over-the-top performance ability, I’m not sure “Seventeen background music” is what I want from them.

Hooks 8
 Production 7
 Longevity 8
 Bias 7
 RATING 7.5

Grade: C

56 thoughts on “Song Review: Seventeen – Love, Money, Fame (ft. DJ Khaled)”

  2. Womp Womp☠️. Well it’s definitely serviceable and we always have their older work and the b sides are pretty good😍

    8/10❤️

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  3. I find it so underwhelming. To be honest it sounds like a B side to me and I’m not sure it would have been chosen as a title track had it not had that feature on. Nothing about it screams exciting title track. There are much better and more interesting options from the album. Sometimes you can not like a track but understand why it was chosen as the TT, but in this case I both don’t love it and also don’t understand why it was chosen.

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  5. this is probably their first track that interested me since 2021 LOL, the chorus actually feels like a chorus here. but the instrumental is so flat, especially compared to MAESTRO which was so dynamic and had plenty of references to their most iconic tracks, even with the anti-drop chorus.

    and I removed DJ Khaled’s shouting myself which was thankfully easy. https://youtu.be/cbujgaCSyk4

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  7. Very mid-tempo phoned it in. Sigh. The guys haven’t even done their military service rotations, and they already sound middle aged. Double sigh. It seems we will not get the “one more time with feeling” banger we are longing for.

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    • I am in a weird limbo with Seventeen. On the one hand, I stubbornly refuse to give up on them because I know what they can do – on the other hand I have long ago resigned myself to the fact that their music may never resonate with me like it used to.

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      • Same here, though I also stan DK’s outside Seventeen rare solo releases, so every inside Seventeen release I listen in hope that he gets to show off =just for me=. There was one line in the Japanese “Flower” that I lived for. Triple sigh.

        My humble opinion, freely shared, DK and SK lines were the beating heart of the early Seventeen songs we fondly remember.

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    • I also feel like I’m beating a dead horse by even giving my comment on this album. Even last year things were kinda better, but I don’t know what happened to their 2024

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  8. I really loved the song, maybe because I really enjoy laidback sounds or according to you, “songs best to play in the background” 😅 so much. Their vocals really do make the difference here. But I agree, it would have been a really good B-side. Also, I absolutely hate that DJ Khaled intro😖

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  9. If this is SVT moving into their new, easy listening phase, I’ll take it over other groups’ easy listening fare. I think it fits pretty well into the loud-title-track-followed-by-a-softer-title-track dynamic like Hot/World, Super/God of Music, Maestro/. Maestro was not a song that I cared to listen to or even watch again after a while, but this one has some groovy, laid-back choreo that feels appropriate for where they are right now.

    Rain (Wave’s more sophisticated sister) for Buried Treasure.

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  10. Yeah I agree. This is boring and very reminsecent of many of the popular western pop/hip-hop music in the late 2010s; chill, subdued, and have no flavor.

    This could’ve been better left off as a b-side. From the Highlight Medley there are better sounding and more impactful tracks on the album that should’ve been the TT smh.

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  11. “WE THE BEST MUSIC!” is truly an ironic tagline.

    Based on the DJ Khaled collab and the teasers, this song delivers exactly what I expected. By Seventeens standards this is bside fare, except that I think a large number of their actual bsides outshine this song. It’s easy listening, so I’ ll play it more often than something like Maestro, but I refuse to lower my expectations for this group. I’ve been here since the 2010s, and I know what they’re capable of. Come on Woozi, don’ t get comfortable already!

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    • cosigning all of this about knowing what they’re capable of! I just said this in my own comment as well, but damn they’ve done so much more that’s much more interesting than this. I want to see them continue to experiment in a way that pushes them forward.

      Maybe this is an overreaction to what is, admittedly, their first attempt at a very laid-back and chill song (I think the closest title track that maybe comes close is Darl+ing) but Woozi and Bumzu could do so much more! I really do hope collaborations in the future add something different and better as well.

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      • Oh My! also counts as a laidback title track in my book and so does World, which would make this the fourth – and they’ve done this sort of sound in bsides before. Even Fronting sounds a little bit like this, and that was allll the way back.

        That is to say, I don’t think you’re overreacting. This just isn’t that original or even new for a title track by Seventeens standard.

        That’s the double edged sword of a group this good, once you know what they can do, a ‘serviceable’ bop just doesn’t fill that void!

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  12. It’s fine. I think they blew it by not releasing God of Light Music as a video, but as a b-side loving non-stan, what do I know? I want more “Geureureuk kakkak, “hitman” Bang” than “This is DJ Khaled, PHONING IT INNNNNNNNNNNN”!!

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  13. I feel like I’m harsher on Seventeen because they’re my favorite kpop group. Usually I tend to let things slide when a group delivers an ‘okay’ rather than a ‘knockout’ comeback – I’m just happy to have more music. But with SVT I know what they’re capable of, I know they’ve delivered energetic hype songs, stunning and soaring ballads, perfect pop songs. So getting this is such a letdown. If they had to chase trends I’m annoyed that it’s this extremely short, repetitive, no variety trend that they’ve gone for here.

    I’m just going to be out here pretending that Eyes on You was the title track – it’s not much longer or one of their all-time classics, but the production is so much more interesting. All in all, this feels like a very weird choice for what’s essentially their last OT13 album in years, since enlistments have begun.

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    • Realizing this is their last OT13 album in a while makes this so much more disappointing for me. Agreed on Eyes on You, though, it’s so much better!

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  14. Lololol! But honestly same. Would rather listen to more “elementary school chinggu park jiye” and “bungeoppang and hotteok” than that obnoxious “another one!” 😅

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  15. As someone who has no opinion whatsoever on Dj khaled (neither like nor hate him, don’t know about his issues but kinda aware he’s some sort of producer(?) that has the (imo annoying) “another one” catchphrase/meme and once had a song with Justin beiber) but with great bias towards svt, the song was still just, I guess fine (it did remind me of an older svt b-side, Fronting, which imo is better). While kinda catchy and groovy, I feel like it’s lacking something (maybe a sort of oomph factor? or maybe I’m just missing that “seventeen right here” intro lol) so the review feels just about right. Idk who arranged for this collab (I’m guessing it’s that scooter person from hybe who’s prob the one connected to this dj khaled dude) but whoever you are, I don’t like you lol. Honestly, in my humble opinion, 1 to 13 and/or Eyes on you feels more title track worthy. Those two felt more impactful and what I would actually expect from svt (a refreshing, kinda “cutesy” pop song and dance track(?) respectively) while this one feels like an obligatory western x kpop collab b-side. Still love svt vocals and appreciate the effort they always put in their comebacks, but it’s my least fave in the album so far. I guess Eyes on you, Rain, and 1 to 13 still stood out for me more.

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          • What in the heck is that he seems full of himself or what lol… Guess i found another reason to not like him.. Anyways thanks for replying!

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            • I once listened to him talking about production, and how he’s the real producer here, and then gave a listen to his actual music and for what. Never understood the hype around that guy, and the wildest thing is that he always just be doing collabs.

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              • Thanks for the info! I’m not really familiar with western artists but from your comment he seems kinda well-known? I’ve also. seen his name as ft. on some songs and at first I thought he was a singer/rapper of sorts but I guess not? cuz he was only an intro and outro on lmf lol So he must be a producer/dj like Marshmello (who also had an imho much better collab with svt) is what i assumed.

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                • I liked SOS they did with Marshmello! Yeah DJ Khaled is pretty…present as a producer or dj and whatnot, had multiple collabs with Justin Bieber, Drake…, Rihanna, I don’t even know anymore. And at the same time I don’t remember any of these songs being good😂, please someone remind me or correct me.

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                  • Same, imo SOS is a svt x western artist collab done right. Oh I see… now I understand more why some carats had mixed reactions when it was hinted that svt will collab with him 😅

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    • I too was reminded of Fronting, I went back to listen to Fronting…and enjoyed that more. Seventeen is more comfortable now, but I miss that youthful energy from back then a little bit!

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      • I’m glad I’m not the only one who noticed it! Yeah fronting is such a classic.. Same i also do miss that youthful vibe from early svt songs, but i guess it’s more perfect during that time because they were really a definition of youthful.. They do have a more mature vibe now (which isn’t a bad thing of course!)

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  17. Seventeen’s music has just been so lackluster since “Super” (to me at least). GOM was just okay, it got more boring after time, Maestro was unlistenable with that annoying chorus, and this is just PURE lackluster. “Easy to listen to” shouldnt mean boring asf. The b-sides are also kinda lame. They joined the hybe-trend train with the house genre and Eyes On You is good, still prefer the txt house b-side. Rain, is like retro-funk? Okay its just the complete blueprint, the hooks arent captivating. And finally, Water: yeah this is literally just FEIN by Playboi Carti/Travis Scott in kpop-form and its ironically my fav in the album.

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  18. another BOOORING kpop collab with western artist act surprised. at this point im convinced boy groups sound the best when they are doing noonabait cutesy stuff or when they are bringing 2nd gen DRAMA with a heavy eyeliner. no other way. im scared for TWS. we need to enjoy them fully while they are doing bright pop because THIS is what they will most likely become

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  19. I might be wrong and I am personally not a big fan of this kind of genre too. After learning the behind story during recent concert, I have a feeling this could be intentional as they might have wanted to focus the attention on the message that they want to convey through it.

    Irrespective of whatever their intention was, I feel Eyes on you could have been a better title track. But at the same time, I also feel that they made “love, money , fame” as title track knowingly to emphasise that this is the message they want to convey.

    Any way, I will appreciate the message for now and enjoy the album..

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    • I don’t think you’re necessarily wrong cuz I kinda get what you mean. Honestly the song has slowly grown to me (tho i still can’t stand the intro and outro sorry 😭) bc I like sweet, cheesy/cliche lyrics about “nothing else matters but your love” like those on lmf instead of the “vroom vroom skrt skrt we the best” on lots of kpop songs (don’t mean to shade or make fun of those types of kpop songs cuz i actually like some of them lol, svt’s hot an example, but they can sometimes get kinda annoying at least imo). So with that message in consideration I can see why it was chosen as tt. Tho soundwise, I still find it a bit “weaker” than the other b-sides.

      Actually, I was kinda expecting a song like 1 to 13 to be the tt since this is most likely their last O13 comeback for a while. But then I’m not sure if it would the best to convey the “spill the feels” message svt and their team were going for this comeback. Still hoping it will be the second mv tho.

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