Some of you may already know: SeeU, South Korea's very first Vocaloid, has returned 15 years after her debut.
SBS A&T's TEAM SeeU collaborated with South Korean voice synthesis engine VOX Factory to reveal SeeU's new voice (SeeU Re:Voice). Following a teaser message asking "Can you hear my voice?" posted on official social media and YouTube on October 8, the official reveal was scheduled for October 9 at 2:00 PM.
SeeU is a VOCALOID3-based voice synthesis character originally developed in 2011 by SBS ArtTech (now SBS A&T) through a technical partnership with Japan's Yamaha. As the world's first Vocaloid to officially support Korean singing voice synthesis, she allowed users to create songs in her voice by inputting lyrics and melody while fine-tuning pitch and pronunciation. At the time, she played a pivotal role in introducing Vocaloid culture—which had been expanding around Japan's Hatsune Miku—to South Korea. In 2012, she even performed as a hologram on SBS's Inkigayo alongside girl group GLAM, with members who would later debut in BTS performing as backup dancers.
Back then, various producers released original tracks featuring SeeU on CreCrew, South Korea's domestic Vocaloid creation platform, giving rise to popular songs such as "Alone," "Individual Battle," and "Hide and Seek." These tracks sparked derivative creations like fan art and videos, establishing the foundation of the domestic Vocaloid fandom. Unfortunately, due to overlapping circumstances, no new voice library development took place for a long time. With new activities effectively halted, seeing SeeU again seemed unlikely. Her junior Vocaloid, UNI, also gained recognition with impressive demo tracks, but eventually found herself in a similar position.
Nevertheless, domestic Vocaloid fans who remembered SeeU remained. A 10th-anniversary crowdfunding campaign took place, and in 2024, a hologram concert was held together with her junior, UNI. Even without a new voice, the fans' longing to see SeeU again had never disappeared.
And finally, SeeU revealed her new voice alongside South Korean voice synthesis engine VOX Factory. Thanks to new vocal synthesis technology, she can now sing once more. An official stated via social media, "We prepared SeeU's New Voice with our top priority placed on her unique identity, tone, and future expressive potential." They particularly highlighted that a voice provider best fitting SeeU's identity was chosen after a private selection process and thorough evaluation.
What makes this comeback significant is not merely that a new voice was crafted for SeeU. Rather, it is that creators now have an environment to produce songs with SeeU's voice once again through a new singing voice synthesis engine.
VOX Factory, which participated in this project, is an AI-powered singing voice synthesis application developed by South Korean company AudAi. Accessible directly in a web browser without installing separate software, it allows users to generate songs in their desired vocal timbre by entering lyrics and pitch. It also supports converting self-recorded audio into different vocal tones. Supporting Korean, English, and Japanese, the tool even allows mixing multiple languages within a single phrase. Furthermore, creators can finely adjust vocal intensity, vibrato, and pitch bends, making it a versatile tool for various creative workflows.
While creators previously had to rely on the existing VOCALOID system to use SeeU's voice, they can now access SeeU through a new voice synthesis platform. Most importantly, it is welcome news that creative possibilities have reopened for SeeU after such a long absence of new voice libraries.
Following her return, SeeU sequentially released music videos reinterpreting classic songs familiar to fans with her new voice. The first track revealed, Sangroksoo's "Song of Languages," holds special significance by connecting the past and present through the combined use of SeeU's original and new voices. This was followed by new voice versions of HAKASE K's "Alone," attwn_park's "Absinthe," and Chorongagwi's "Individual Battle". Since all of these are tracks familiar to longtime SeeU fans, the chance to hear classic songs re-recorded with a new voice is a heartwarming gift in itself.
After the videos were published, fans expressed their delight with comments like, "You really live long enough to see everything." Of course, whether the new voice will be widely embraced by creators will only become clear once full-scale activities begin. Still, the fact that domestic voice synthesis creators have gained a new option remains a definite positive.
SeeU, returning with her new voice, is scheduled to open pre-orders on November 10, with details regarding her 15th-anniversary limited edition set to be released on December 1. There is also one more piece of good news: SeeU's junior, UNI, is also planned to return with a new voice.
SeeU, who heralded the birth of South Korea's Vocaloid culture 15 years ago. Hopefully, her return will serve as an opportunity to breathe fresh energy into the country's voice synthesis creation culture once again.
In any case, welcome back, SeeU.
