The Hardships of Becoming a Kpop Idol - Training

            What is the secret behind creating successful idols? The answer is the trainee system. Korean companies like JYP, SM, and YG have auditions all around the world to find talented young individuals to go under their company. But of course, not all the talented individuals chosen to be part of the company have the experience or the background of an idol. These individuals leave their family behind while, they become trained to increase their skills in dancing and singing, hoping to one day become the perfect Kpop star. Training may seem easy since becoming a trainee is almost halfway from becoming an idol, but there is still a long road full of hard work and hardships before trainees can debut.   

Jo kwon and Jaebum dancing during their JYP trainee days
 Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGqyTowIut4

Although ,trainees are already part of a Korean company, they are constantly thrown into singing and dancing classes, where they are given no guarantee if they are able to debut. Trainees have schedules consisting of singing, dancing, and language lessons every day from day to night. After a week of lessons, trainees are evaluated by their company based on if the trainee improved. If the company doesn’t see a trainee as good enough, he or she will be cut from the company.

      Jo Kwon during his trainee days                 
            Source: http://angangwoo.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/
this-was-our-leadja-this-is-our-park-jaebum

           Many renowned Kpop idols that also went through the same trainee system, recall their trainee days as the time when they endured the most hardships to be where they are now. Jo Kwon, from the ballad group called 2AM, had to train under JYP for 8 years basically spending almost all his teenage life as a trainee. He exclaims “I had no idea it would take this long, and I kept wondering why I wasn’t being cut.” Jo Kwon didn’t know if he was ever going to debut because Jin Young Park (Founder of JYP) never complimented him. He felt pressured when he saw new trainees like Nichkhun and Taecyeon from 2pm. While, Key , from SHINee, who came to Seoul, South Korea from Daegu (a Korean city) to become a singer described himself as being depressed because his “skills weren’t improving” and others “kept criticizing and pointing out [his] weak spots.”  

Key from Shinee
   Source: http://kpcave.blogspot.com/2011/12
/shinee-amigo-repackage-album.html

Similarly to Key and Jo Kwon’s experiences, trainees constantly have to work hard and be persistent in order to become idols. Trainees are constantly told that they are not good enough and that they need to work harder but it’s hard when they see other trainees better than themselves. Key, felt like he wasn’t good enough and in the end felt depressed because his dream of becoming an idol didn’t seem like it was going to come true. The feeling of not being good enough, can really hurt trainees emotionally, making them feel depressed and wanting to give up.

When you’re a trainee, it seems as if becoming an idol is so close but in reality it’s a lot farther. The trainee life is hard and not many people are able to endure the kind of competition and hard work needed to become an idol. But when it comes to following your dreams anything is possible. Would you want to become a trainee for a Korean Company? 

                                                     

My First Experience

My first experience with Kpop was in September 2010 when my friend introduced me to the Kpop song, Replay by SHINee. I didn’t really have any opinions on the song because I thought it was so weird to listen to songs that I couldn’t understand. It wasn’t until the summer of 2010, when I first discovered a Korean variety show called “Let’s Go Dream Team,” where Kpop idols go against Athletes on obstacles or anything sports related, on TV. Little did I know that from then on, I would start listening to Kpop.

                         
                                                               SHINee  

                From right to left: Onew, Taemin, Jonghyun, Minho, Key
                                         Image: http://kpopinformer.com/shinee/

The reason I started to get into Kpop was because of Choi Minho, who was an idol/dream team member of “Let’s Go Dream Team.” The first time I saw him on the variety show, he danced to one of his group’s songs called Ring Ding Dong. I was so surprised to see him dance because I didn’t really see him as an Idol star with his long hair and feminine looks. But after watching him more and more on the variety show, I found him to be super handsome and as a result, I decided to research more about him. I found out that he’s a part of a 5 member boy band called SHINee. The moment I watched SHINee’s music videos I was so amazed with their dancing, singing, and unique looks. Replay and Ring Ding Dong were my favorite music videos and because I liked their music and videos so much, I couldn’t go a day without watching them. I was obsessed and my love for SHINee just prompted me to learn everything about them and also explore other Kpop bands.

                                            
                                                              2PM

                             From right to left: Wooyoung, Nichkhun, Taecyeon, Chansung, Jun.K, Junho
                 Image: http://www.jpopasia.com/news/2pm-officially-announce-upcoming-comeback::12685.html

SHINee started my interest in Kpop but the group called 2PM was what started my curiosity about the Kpop Industry. Because Kpop is Korean music, I always assumed that everyone in a Kpop band is Korean. I was proven wrong when I researched the members of 2PM and to my amazement one of the members named Nichkhun was actually not Korean at all but Thai.  I was really confused because Nichkhun was actually from America and he didn’t know any Korean when he first joined 2PM. I began to look into this and how these idols became part of a group and I realized that Kpop companies like SM, JYP, and YG hold auditions in America, where they find talented individuals to go to Korea and train under their company. This was all so foreign to me. I have never heard of anything like “training to become an idol,” but because this was so different, it got me really interested in the formation of bands, how idols live, and how the Kpop industry works.

             In this blog, I will write about the Kpop industry and how Kpop bands formed. The Kpop industry is really different and complex compared to the American music industry. Many of the idols go through years of intense training to follow their dreams to become a Kpop star, which I respect about each idol. I’m not going to lie but it was the Kpop Idol’s good looks that got me into Kpop but besides all that, it was the idol’s determination to follow their dreams that made me appreciate their music even more.  I may not be Korean but as an Asian American, I am proud the Hallyu wave (Kpop wave) has influenced many cultures and has also spread throughout non- Asian cultures. While reading this blog, I hope you will learn more about the Kpop World.

What was your first Kpop song? If you have never listened to Kpop, what do you want to know about Kpop?