If you’ve been a K-pop fan for a while, you may have noticed that Korean groups sometimes have more members than their Western counterparts. Some may see a group with a large number of members as unwieldy, but it’s actually an advantage. For instance, a group like that can showcase a lot of charms and talents at once, which will help them appeal to a wider demographic.

That’s probably what SM Entertainment’s Lee Soo Man was thinking the day he came up with the concept for the boy group NCT, an acronym for Neo Culture Technology. The group debuted in 2016 with an eye towards becoming a K-pop group whose reach extends to all corners of the globe. Lee Soo Man’s plan was for NCT to have an unlimited number of members, who would then be separated into teams based in major cities around the world. Each team would release music in various languages.

Five years on, that’s exactly what the group is doing. Right now NCT’s 23 members are divided into four units: NCT 127, NCT Dream, NCT U, and WayV. Let’s go through each one in turn.

NCT 127

This unit is based in Seoul, South Korea. The “127” in its name represents the city’s longitude. It debuted with seven members: Haechan, Jaehyun, Mark, Taeil, their leader Taeyong, Winwin, and Yuta. Doyoung and Johnny joined the group in 2017; Jungwoo was added to the lineup in September 2018.

As of 2021, NCT 127 is now a nine-piece group. Winwin went on hiatus in 2018 to prepare for his then-upcoming debut with the China-based unit WayV. Winwin’s status with NCT 127 remains unclear as of this writing, although the group’s current lineup is fixed. It’s not expected to change anytime soon.

NCT 127’s signature songs include “Cherry Bomb,” which served as their breakthrough hit in 2017. Many foreign media outlets, like Billboard and Idolator, called it one of the best K-pop songs released that year.

Their latest single is a collaboration with Amoeba Culture, an indie label based in South Korea. It’s called “Save.”

NCT DREAM

NCT Dream originally began as a group for members under the age of 19. The group debuted in August 2016 with the single “Chewing Gum,” and a seven-member lineup (Chenle, Haechan, Jaemin, Jeno, Jisung, Mark, and Renjun) whose average age was 15.6 years old.

The group was supposed to have an age-based graduation system, where members would leave the group or graduate once they hit the Korean age of 20 (19 internationally; in Korea, babies are considered one year old at birth). Mark graduated from NCT Dream on December 31, 2018, but he returned to the group in 2020 after SM Entertainment opted to do away with that system.

NCT Dream is the first and only Asian artist to appear on Billboard’s “21 Under 21” list for three consecutive years—in 2018 (the same year they made TIME’s list of “25 Most Influential Teens”), 2019, and 2020. Their song “Boom” is considered their breakthrough hit.

NCT Dream’s latest release is Hello Future, a repackaged edition of their first full-length album Hot Sauce, which served as Mark’s comeback. It’s currently one of the best-selling albums in South Korea.

NCT U

NCT U is a unit that has no fixed members. Its lineup changes for every release, depending on which members best fit the song. Any combination of NCT members can make music together under the NCT U name. That’s why the “U” in its name stands for “United.”

The group debuted in April 2016 with the digital single “The 7th Sense,” sung by Doyoung, Jaehyun, Mark, Taeyong, and Ten.

The dynamic, electro-hip-hop track “Boss” is one of NCT U’s best-loved songs thanks to its chanting chorus and heavy synths. It was performed by Doyoung, Jaehyun, Jungwoo, Lucas, Mark, Winwin, and Taeyong.

Several NCT U combinations were featured on the group’s second studio album NCT RESONANCE, which was released in two parts. Shotaro and Sungchan, the newest members of the NCT family, appeared on the NCT U tracks “Make a Wish” and “90s Love,” respectively.

WAYV

WayV is NCT’s China-based unit, although it wasn’t promoted as one until last year. In fact, it was supposed to be named NCT Vision, but that plan was scrapped. It’s believed that was due to tensions between China and South Korea, although SM Entertainment has acknowledged this group’s link to NCT since its debut.

WayV is a fixed group, meaning barring any unforseen circumstances, its current lineup—featuring Hendery, Kun, Lucas, Ten, Winwin, Xiaojun, and Yangyang—isn’t going to change. That’s good, since those seven boys have released one full-length album and three extended plays that led to their multiple appearances on the US Billboard charts. As the old saying goes, if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it.

WayV had its international breakthrough with their 2019 EP Take Over the Moon, which was bannered by an English version of “Love Talk.”

When Lee Soo Man introduced NCT to the world five years ago, he also promised that the entire group—all of its units—could come together as a whole, resulting in diverse collaborations between units.

In June, NCT members Doyoung, Kun, and Mark guested on their agency’s online event SM Congress to talk about what’s in store for ther group in the back half of 2021. According to Doyoung, the various units will make comebacks soon.

NCT is also gearing up to drop different types of content that will focus on their own little corner of SM Entertainment’s concept universe. Mark teased that they’ll be seeing their fans in KWANGYA soon.

“NCT Dream will promote their repackaged album, and NCT 127 will also return with a full album and a repackaged album of their own. There are also plans for a new combination of NCT U, which I believe Czennies will look forward to. Finally, all the members of NCT will unite to promote as NCT 2021 soon,” Doyoung revealed.

Kun spoke up next. “WayV has a wide variety of promotions lined up. We are planning unit promotions that will lead up to the release of a new full album.”

They also shared details on SM Entertainment’s new NCT unit, which will be called NCT Hollywood. After clarifying that it won’t be composed of actors, Lee Soo Man gave the floor to Mark, who said that for the first time ever, SM Entertainment will televise its audition process.

“We partnered with American production company MGM, which produced shows like Survivor and The Voice. We will be hosting a survival show to select the members of NCT Hollywood,” explained the Korean-Canadian rapper, singer, and songwriter.

“Those who are selected will receive the guidance and production work of Lee Soo Man-sunsaengnim, and promote as NCT's American team. I'm nervous about becoming a mentor and sharing my expertise as a member of NCT, but I'm also looking forward to it,” said Doyoung.

So are we, Doyoung-ah. So are we.