C21 (group)
C21 | |
|---|---|
C21 in 2003 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Denmark |
| Genres | Pop |
| Years active | 1998 - 2006 2023 - Present |
| Label | Capitol/EMI |
| Members | Søren Bregendal
|
| Past members | Esben Duus |
| Website | https://www.wearec21.dk |
C21 are a Danish boy band. In the early days, they consisted of three key members: Søren Bregendal (vocals, lyricist, producer and keyboards), Esben Duus (vocals, lyricist and guitar), and David Pepke (vocals, lyricist and guitar). The band has sold more than 40,000 copies in their native country Denmark, and more than 250,000 copies in Asia. They had success in 14 countries in their peak time.
The band was formed in 1998 when Danish music producer Lars Quang heard Søren Bregendal singing in the locker room after his son's football game. Quang invited Søren Bregendal to his studio to test his vocals. Søren brought his fellow school friend, Esben Duus to the studio. At a warm up gig at a birthday party, the two met fellow musician David Pepke and the trio was formed. C21 have only just begun profiling themselves on the music scene. Their self-titled debut album was released on 27 January 2003.
Their 2003 debut album C21 was the most successful Danish boy band debut album in Denmark. The first single, "Stuck in My Heart", was released on 16 September 2002 as the breakthrough single for the group and became popular in Southeast Asia (namely Thailand). Further singles included "You Are the One" and "She Cries". The fourth single, "One Night in Bangkok", was released on 29 September 2003. The song was originally done by Murray Head in 1984.
C21's second album Listen was also their last until their reunion in 2023. Released on 24 May 2004, two singles was released off the album, with "All That I Want" entering the Danish singles chart at #6 on 30 April 2004.
In March 2005, Esben Duus left the group,[1] and during the recording of the third album, the remaining members Bregendal and Pepke decided to split, with Søren Bregendal pursuing a solo music and acting career.
In 2012, Bregendal joined another boyband, Lighthouse X.[2][3][4] The group represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 in Stockholm with the song "Soldiers Of Love", finishing 17th in the second semi-final. Lighthouse X disbanded in August 2016.[5][6]
In June 2014, the group reunited performing the hit songs "Stuck in My Heart", "All That I Want" and "You Just Wait and See" at Løven & Bastionen in Copenhagen. The occasion was the wedding of a close friend to Søren Bregendal.
From 2021 to 2022, Bregendal appeared in seasons 2 and 3 of the Netflix television series Emily in Paris[4] as Erik de Groot.[7]
On 30 August 2023, C21 (David and Søren) reunited after a 17-year hiatus,[4] accompanied by the release of a new single that September, entitled "Tricks", the first song from their album "Stay Pop Pt. 1", which included 6 other songs.[4] The full album was eventually released on 19 April 2024. On 28 March 2025, they followed this up with "Stay Pop Pt. 2"
They are now on Instagram as wearec21
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| DEN [8] | |||
| 2003 | C21 | 9 | |
| 2004 | Listen | 22 | |
| 2024 | Stay Pop Pt. 1 | ||
| 2025 | Stay Pop Pt. 2 |
Singles
| Year | Title | Album | Chart positions | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN[8] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | "Stuck in My Heart" | C21 | 9 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2003 | "You Are the One" | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| "She Cries" | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||
| "One Night in Bangkok" | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | "All That I Want" | Listen | 6 | |||||||||||||||||
| "Tell Me Why It Ain't Easy" | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | "Tricks" | Stay Pop Pt. 1 | — | |||||||||||||||||
| "Here's To Life" | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ Frodi Holm Knudsen (1 June 2005). "C21 ved en skillevej". B.T.
- ^ "Danmark: Lighthouse X - 'Soldiers Of Love'". DR (in Danish). 21 March 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
- ^ Granger, Anthony (8 March 2016). "Denmark: Lighthouse X - "We saw it as a chance to tell our story"". Eurovoix. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d "Dansk gruppe gør comeback efter 17 år | avisendanmark.dk". avisendanmark.dk (in Danish). 15 March 2026. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
- ^ "Denmark's Lighthouse X hit the rocks". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. 16 August 2016. Archived from the original on 7 October 2016. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
- ^ "Musikken stopper: Lighthouse X opløses". BILLED-BLADET (in Danish). 15 August 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- ^ Juul, Christoffer Mygind (5 December 2022). "Søren Bregendal om sin rolle i 'Emily in Paris': "Jeg kastede mig frygtløst ind i opgaven, og få uger efter fik jeg et opkald, jeg aldrig glemmer"". ELLE (in Danish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- ^ a b danishcharts.dk
- ^ "Album Top-40". Hitlisten. IFPI Danmark & Nielsen Music. Retrieved 24 April 2011.