The way to the K-POP state is long and arduous

The way to the K-POP state is long and arduous

Editor’s Note: A new episode of "The Whole Story: K-Pop: A Star is Made", which shows the path of a group of teenagers on their way to the idol career, will be broadcast on CNN on Sunday, January 5th at 8 p.m.

The search for the next K-pop star

Seven girls sit in a room and wait for their names to be called. Everyone is young, slim and beautiful, aged 14 to 20, with shiny hair and flawless skin. The tense expectation lies in the air and the nervousness is written in the face. You are about to find out which of you will be included in the latest K-Pop group of South Korea-a dream that countless young talents in the country and increasingly also share worldwide worldwide.

a hard way to fame

But the way to this room is long and tedious. The girls spent months or years with training their skills in vocals, dance, rap and performance- while they are followed by strict training and diet plans. Many have given up their schooling or left their families hundreds of kilometers. In the fast-moving world of the K-Pop, in which stars are young and groups often break apart after just a few years, some girls feel that this is their only chance.

"In the idol world, 18 is very old ... If I miss this opportunity, I will worry about whether there is another place where I am accepted," said 18-year-old AH-in Lee, one of the seven final trainees at the K-Pop Agency MZMC.

insights into the training conditions

The CNN reporter Kyung LAH had exclusive access to the last training week of MZMC before the group was first introduced to the public. The founder and CEO of MZMC, Paul Thompson, an American who wrote and produced hundreds of K-pop songs, estimated that they carried out thousands of auditions before they were selected as official trainees-of which are now only seven.

The others have either got out or were excluded during monthly ratings that checked whether the trainees have improved quickly enough. These eliminations are the norm in the massive K-pop industry, which differs from other music industries worldwide in the manner of artist development and production programs. Agencies not only train stars, but also regulate their schedules, prepare public debuts, manage media appearances and concerts, promote online interactions with fans and monitor numerous aspects of the private life of the stars.

The pursuit of perfection

In the USA there was once a similar system as at Motown, where the label discovered young talents in the 1960s and 1970s and taught them performing - but this system disappeared because it was "too expensive", says Thompson. In South Korea, however, it flourished - MZMC is a relatively small company. Thompson estimated that larger labels are hundreds of trainees before making a final selection.

One of the seven girls at MZMC is Brittney Jang, a meek 20-year-old who grew up in the United States before returning to South Korea to follow her K-pop dreams. The oldest of the trainees, she seemed confidently about her chances to get below the last five - maybe because she knew what was at stake. If it is not selected, "this means that I cannot become an idol," she said to CNN. "This is my last chance."

The reality of K-pop training

The everyday life of the girls begins with two hours in the gym, followed by a full day with lessons that comprises singing and dance lessons. Younger members such as 14-year-old Liwon Kim visit the regular school for half a day before they go straight to training that can take until midnight. Some don't even live with their families, but live in dormitories-like 17-year-old Rana Koga from Japan, the only non-Korean trainee.

The pressure can be relentless, while your appearance and skills are constantly under observation. Part of it reflects the culture in South Korea, in which strict beauty standards traditionally appreciate light-skinned, slim body and hyper-feminine characteristics. Beauty surgery such as the double -ideals are so common that they are often offered as graduation gifts by parents to teenagers.

The dark side of fame

The expectations of the appearance are even higher for K-pop stars. "The word is idol," argues Thompson, the CEO of MZMC. "Nobody wants to emulate someone who looks like yourself. You want to look up to someone and say: 'I want to be like this person. Look how flawless and perfect it is."

But the demand for slimness can take dark sides. "Definitely people were excluded (training programs) because of their weight," said Amber Liu, a Taiwanese-American former idol who is now working as an indie artist. "I developed a very unhealthy habit to just starve ... I was 16, I didn't know what to do."

The expectations of the weight that shape the daily life of the MZMC-Trainees are shown in their daily use of nutrition and body weight.

"I have to eat while reducing the amount of food and calculating the nutritional value and calories. This is a bit difficult," said Lee, the 18-year-old trainee, and giggled as she listed pizza as her favorite food. "You could say that (appearance) is the most important thing for an idol because it is a job that is the most important thing."

Thompson, the CEO, said the agency measures the body mass index of the trainees twice a month. "We offer you roasted chicken and cooked eggs and similar things ... You eat enough," he defended the nutrition as the key to the "visual aesthetics" of the group. He also insisted that the agency does not urge the trainees into cosmetic surgery because he estimates its musical talents first. Nevertheless, this idea remains present in the minds of the girls.

The price of fame

Even if a group is finalized and celebrates its public debut, the pressure does not subside - on the contrary, the operations are increasing.

of all the groups that debut in the saturated market, less than 1% achieve the level of global celebrity, which is now connected to names such as BTS or Blackpink, said Woonghee Kim, Casting director of MZMC.

celebrity also brings with it your own restrictions. Passionate superfans of top-class groups often analyze the appearance and the private life the members. Perceptive “bad” behavior such as smoking or drinking can cause far -reaching public criticism and the stars can make it live under strict rules. Even the dating has been a sensitive topic in the past, since angry fans turned against artists who made their relationships public.

Experts have already announced that this phenomenon is partially due to the fact that the industry around the fans is built up, which often do charities in the name of the celebrities or pay for independent advertising for tours or albums. But this extreme loyalty also means that artists and agencies are closely linked to the demands and wishes of the fans.

mental health and the challenge of being idols

"There are certain things that we draw the girls aware of," said Thompson. "If you do such things (dating or drinking) when you are older, you have to deal with it more confidential." Some agencies have loosened their rules in recent years, after a series of Deaths have illustrated psychological stress for idols.

yun, the 16-year-old trainee, suffered a panic attack in 2023 after surviving three years of a monthly elimination. Her father said CNN that she was able to take for four to five months from the training units to recover and have not experienced any further attacks since she returned.

K-pop: A growing global influence

Despite the immense pressure of the job, it remains a lifelong goal for many up -and -coming stars, while the industry is expanding. After K-Pop with Pys Hit "Gangnam Style" from 2012 K-POP has become a mainstream worldwide, with Blackpink, which appeared on Coachella, and BTS, which have received five Grammy nominations over the years. K-Pop has always been one of the largest cultural exports in South Korea, and this influence has only increased than other bestsellers-from K dramas to K-beauty-the world in the course of the so-called "Korean wave"

For the seven girls in this room, there is a chance to become part of this global, creative industry directly on the other side of the door-where Thompson and other MZMC Executives will reveal their fate.

One after the other the girls were called in - and reacted with shock, joy and tears. At the end of this day, the new Girlgroup was born: VVS, named after a rare diamond class, which is expected to make its official debut in early 2025.

lee, Koga, Jang, Kim and the last member Jiu Moon have all made it. But the mood was bitterly sweet because two of her friends were excluded, including Yun. The two excluded trainees finally found other ways, while Yun strives for a solo career as a rapper. But in the merciless K-pop environment it remains to be seen how far they will make it.

"We will achieve a certain degree of success. We will find the right fan base and the right people who enjoy our music," said Thompson shortly after he announced the final line -up. "Does that mean that we will be black pink?" he added. "That will be shown."

This article has been updated.