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EDITORIAL: “SURVIVAL SHOWS AS A REBOOT SYSTEM”
Written By: Polaris_Tae
Following the explosion of idol survival shows after the premiere of Mnet's "Produce 101", the Asian Entertainment industry, particularly in China and Korea, has seen an inundation of multiple survival shows. It is from this that we have come to see a number of previously debuted idols attempt to bring notoriety to their groups or themselves as they strive to use this system to essentially reboot their careers— be it through general survival shows like the "Produce 101" or the "Idol Producer" series, or through the participation in performance competition shows like "Queendom" & "We Are Blazing". In this editorial, I will examine idol survival shows and whether they are a successful system for a company to strive to reboot their idols or trainees from, or if these companies have a recipe for failure by attempting the impossible through this procedure.
Okay, so the first thing that needs to be determined is the scope of what exactly a survival show is. In essence, a survival show is where a trainee (or group) enter a competition with the final outcome being to defeat the other competitors and win the top prize. The survival shows that I will be discussing fall into two distinct categories: temporary idol group survival shows and group competition shows.
The first example, being the temporary idol group formation show, is also the most common survival show that we see both trainees and idols alike attempt to try their luck at. For idols, it can be an attempt to gain more attention to their oftentimes failing group. This article will be mainly focusing on the male versions of the "Produce101" and the Chinese "IDOL PRODUCER" series, as these are the shows that have the most distinguished idols joining their respective series in a last-ditch effort to gain popularity— with varying levels of success. This can be, in particular, highlighted through the Korean "Produce 101" series, which has had a number of prominent idol groups or idol group members halt their idol activities to become a contestant in the series. Some of the most notable contestants during "Produce 101 Season 2" include 4 out of 5 members of Nu'est; HOTSHOT's Roh Taehyun & Ha Sungwoo; Ex-TOPP DOGG member and current JBJ95 member Atom (Lee Sanggyun). Recognizable contestants from "Produce X 101" include UP10TION's Lee Jinhyuk & Kim Wooseok.
Produce 101 was the show to send your trainees to if you wanted to bring attention to your upcoming idol group.
Prior to the Mnet vote-rigging scandal that occupied all the headlines throughout late-2019 to early-2020, a large number of small agencies were determined to send their failing groups to compete in the subsequent series of "Produce 101" in an effort to bring about boost of popularity, under the assumption that the fandom the individual idols would gain through the program would later carry over to the group, making them an instant success. Sadly, a large number of these attempts would fail— with a large number of their artists failing to carry their success over to the group, as South Korea's solo stanning culture is vastly different from the same culture within China and Japan. China, for example, incidentally had companies do the exact same thing, but instead we saw the opposite result— the solo fans would, in fact, support the resulting group as long as the group members were given access to solo opportunities (which they almost always were).
There were even adverse reactions within the Korean fandom. This can, in particular, be seen in the issues that plagued the individual fandoms of the former members of X1 following the groups' disbandment— as the only members that have returned to promote with their original group are Kim Yohan with WEi & Han Seungwoo with VICTON. Although, even this has not been plagued with controversy, as numerous fans of both artists have been seen demanding that their respective biases prioritise solo promotions over their group promotions. This is problematic, as Han Seungwoo was actually a member of VICTON prior to his participation in "Produce X 101" and has been a member of the boy group for a number of years, whereas Kim Yohan is a member of WEi, who only recently debuted during early October and has yet to obtain a steady fandom. Thus, this behaviour could possibly have an impact on the downfall of their respective careers as idols. Furthermore, if this is the reaction by only two former members of the former Produce-created group, what does that spell for Ex-X1 members who have yet to debut— such as Nam Dohyun and Lee Hangyul, who are set to debut in the upcoming group BAE173. Or, even members yet to return to their groups— like Cho Seungyoun (UNIQ) or Lee Jinhyuk (UP10TION). Through this, we can see that even if a group member gains popularity on a survival show, they are bound to have problems when the time comes to eventually return to their respective groups— as this was the case with the majority of Ex-X1 members.
NEXT was initially supposed to be a Korean-Chinese group with Zhengting and Justin alongside Hyungseop & Euiwoong. The group has since debuted in China without the inclusion of the latter two members, but instead with other YH participants from "IDOL PRODUCER".
During "Produce 101 Season 2", Yuehua Entertainment, who at the time was known for their Kpop-Cpop group UNIQ, sent their first batch of trainees to the series. They consisted of NEXT's Zhu Zhengting & Justin Huang along with Yuehua Project trainees, Ahn Hyungseop & Lee Euiwoong. This was a calculated attempt by the company in order to gain attention from the show in regards to the upcoming group that the company was planning on debuting — NEXT — which would be their first boy group since UNIQ as well as their only active boy group, since UNIQ would go on an indefinite hiatus following the implementation of the Chinese "Hallyu Ban" that emerged due to the backlash from the THAAD missile defence system. None of their trainees would make it into the resulting group — Wanna One — and only Ahn Hyungseop would remain in the series until its final episode.
Following the conclusion of the series, Yuehua would debut the Korean members Hyungseop & Euiwoong, who had gained popularity from the show, as a duo — aptly titled HyeongseopXEuiwoong — while its Chinese members would be sent over to China to participate in the first season of "IDOL PRODUCER". However, in what was a stroke of luck, the second time seemed to be the charm for both Zhu Zhengting and Justin Huang, considering both trainees succeeded in placing in the top nine of the survival show and made it into the debuting team NINE PERCENT. However, this meant that Yuehua's plans for NEXT as a Korean-Chinese group were thrown out the window as the two Chinese members would have to spend the majority of their time in China (as per their contractual obligations with NINE PERCENT). Thus, Yuehua would instead place them in an all-Chinese boy group — which would take the name NEXT — alongside fellow Chinese trainees— essentially leaving their two Korean trainees in a state of limbo.
It is through this that we can see that yes, it was an extremely positive outcome for the Chinese trainees, as they had two groups along with burgeoning solo careers that all stemmed from a single survival show. But at the same time, we can also see the negative aspect of Yuehua gearing up for a new Korean-based boy group only to cancel it last minute and leave two boys with very little activities since their official debut in 2018. All we can hope for is that Yuehua finds it in themselves to finally begin preparations to debut their long in the making Yuehua Project. Which, judging by their recent post history, could be any year now! Hell, they even debuted a bunch of pre-pubescent children — I'm looking at you Yuehua Boys... — before Hyeongseop & Euiwoong ever got the chance to shine.
Nu'est is likely the most renown group to achieve success from the "Produce 101" series.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the spectrum, we have Nu'est. Nu'est is a South Korean boy group that debuted under PLEDIS in 2012 and was the company's first idol group to debut following AFTERSCHOOL. However, despite kicking it off with a fantastic discography in 2012 through great tracks like "Face" & "Hello", the group failed to gain the momentum or the fandom to see the results of their efforts. It was rather PLEDIS' following group, SEVENTEEN, who managed to find success for the company and become PLEDIS' premiere boy group. This resulted in Nu'est fading into further obscurity despite releasing fantastic songs directly prior to their participation in "Produce 101 Season 2" (see "Overcome" & "Good Bye Bye"). It was through the groups' participation in "Produce 101 Season 2" that they managed to gain a following that would eventually allow the group to secure their first win on a music show — twice! Once as Nu'est W and once as a full unit following Minhyun's return from Wanna One. They also gained the ability to break even with their company and pay off their previously accumulated debt.
The question comes to be, is it worth sacrificing what little standing one has in the entertainment industry in order to gain belated success for one's group? In my opinion, that answer would be no. At least, for the Korean Entertainment industry who, at least in terms of the Produce series, tend to value the individual over the group. It is only in extremely rare cases such as Nu'est that one will succeed. Though, if you're on the verge of disbanding and decide to make a survival show your last-ditch attempt to gain popularity and pull your group by their collars out of obscurity, just know that it will be a difficult task. The easier option, in my opinion, would be to become a contestant — as a group — in an idol competition show like "Queendom", "Road To Kingdom" or "We Are Blazing". Shows like these would almost always bring success to the group as a full unit, rather than a single individual— which can be seen through the success of Oh My Girl following their appearance on "Queendom". Their "Nonstop" comeback was their most successful release to date, selling out of physical copies upon its first day of release and shooting up to the top of multiple charts. Thus, proving that there actually is a way to gain success as a group and not as an individual, though this is not done through the traditional survival show format.
PROOFREAD BY: @lex.
GRAPHICS BY: @Polaris_Tae
Written By: Polaris_Tae
Following the explosion of idol survival shows after the premiere of Mnet's "Produce 101", the Asian Entertainment industry, particularly in China and Korea, has seen an inundation of multiple survival shows. It is from this that we have come to see a number of previously debuted idols attempt to bring notoriety to their groups or themselves as they strive to use this system to essentially reboot their careers— be it through general survival shows like the "Produce 101" or the "Idol Producer" series, or through the participation in performance competition shows like "Queendom" & "We Are Blazing". In this editorial, I will examine idol survival shows and whether they are a successful system for a company to strive to reboot their idols or trainees from, or if these companies have a recipe for failure by attempting the impossible through this procedure.
Okay, so the first thing that needs to be determined is the scope of what exactly a survival show is. In essence, a survival show is where a trainee (or group) enter a competition with the final outcome being to defeat the other competitors and win the top prize. The survival shows that I will be discussing fall into two distinct categories: temporary idol group survival shows and group competition shows.
The first example, being the temporary idol group formation show, is also the most common survival show that we see both trainees and idols alike attempt to try their luck at. For idols, it can be an attempt to gain more attention to their oftentimes failing group. This article will be mainly focusing on the male versions of the "Produce101" and the Chinese "IDOL PRODUCER" series, as these are the shows that have the most distinguished idols joining their respective series in a last-ditch effort to gain popularity— with varying levels of success. This can be, in particular, highlighted through the Korean "Produce 101" series, which has had a number of prominent idol groups or idol group members halt their idol activities to become a contestant in the series. Some of the most notable contestants during "Produce 101 Season 2" include 4 out of 5 members of Nu'est; HOTSHOT's Roh Taehyun & Ha Sungwoo; Ex-TOPP DOGG member and current JBJ95 member Atom (Lee Sanggyun). Recognizable contestants from "Produce X 101" include UP10TION's Lee Jinhyuk & Kim Wooseok.
Produce 101 was the show to send your trainees to if you wanted to bring attention to your upcoming idol group.
Prior to the Mnet vote-rigging scandal that occupied all the headlines throughout late-2019 to early-2020, a large number of small agencies were determined to send their failing groups to compete in the subsequent series of "Produce 101" in an effort to bring about boost of popularity, under the assumption that the fandom the individual idols would gain through the program would later carry over to the group, making them an instant success. Sadly, a large number of these attempts would fail— with a large number of their artists failing to carry their success over to the group, as South Korea's solo stanning culture is vastly different from the same culture within China and Japan. China, for example, incidentally had companies do the exact same thing, but instead we saw the opposite result— the solo fans would, in fact, support the resulting group as long as the group members were given access to solo opportunities (which they almost always were).
There were even adverse reactions within the Korean fandom. This can, in particular, be seen in the issues that plagued the individual fandoms of the former members of X1 following the groups' disbandment— as the only members that have returned to promote with their original group are Kim Yohan with WEi & Han Seungwoo with VICTON. Although, even this has not been plagued with controversy, as numerous fans of both artists have been seen demanding that their respective biases prioritise solo promotions over their group promotions. This is problematic, as Han Seungwoo was actually a member of VICTON prior to his participation in "Produce X 101" and has been a member of the boy group for a number of years, whereas Kim Yohan is a member of WEi, who only recently debuted during early October and has yet to obtain a steady fandom. Thus, this behaviour could possibly have an impact on the downfall of their respective careers as idols. Furthermore, if this is the reaction by only two former members of the former Produce-created group, what does that spell for Ex-X1 members who have yet to debut— such as Nam Dohyun and Lee Hangyul, who are set to debut in the upcoming group BAE173. Or, even members yet to return to their groups— like Cho Seungyoun (UNIQ) or Lee Jinhyuk (UP10TION). Through this, we can see that even if a group member gains popularity on a survival show, they are bound to have problems when the time comes to eventually return to their respective groups— as this was the case with the majority of Ex-X1 members.
NEXT was initially supposed to be a Korean-Chinese group with Zhengting and Justin alongside Hyungseop & Euiwoong. The group has since debuted in China without the inclusion of the latter two members, but instead with other YH participants from "IDOL PRODUCER".
During "Produce 101 Season 2", Yuehua Entertainment, who at the time was known for their Kpop-Cpop group UNIQ, sent their first batch of trainees to the series. They consisted of NEXT's Zhu Zhengting & Justin Huang along with Yuehua Project trainees, Ahn Hyungseop & Lee Euiwoong. This was a calculated attempt by the company in order to gain attention from the show in regards to the upcoming group that the company was planning on debuting — NEXT — which would be their first boy group since UNIQ as well as their only active boy group, since UNIQ would go on an indefinite hiatus following the implementation of the Chinese "Hallyu Ban" that emerged due to the backlash from the THAAD missile defence system. None of their trainees would make it into the resulting group — Wanna One — and only Ahn Hyungseop would remain in the series until its final episode.
Following the conclusion of the series, Yuehua would debut the Korean members Hyungseop & Euiwoong, who had gained popularity from the show, as a duo — aptly titled HyeongseopXEuiwoong — while its Chinese members would be sent over to China to participate in the first season of "IDOL PRODUCER". However, in what was a stroke of luck, the second time seemed to be the charm for both Zhu Zhengting and Justin Huang, considering both trainees succeeded in placing in the top nine of the survival show and made it into the debuting team NINE PERCENT. However, this meant that Yuehua's plans for NEXT as a Korean-Chinese group were thrown out the window as the two Chinese members would have to spend the majority of their time in China (as per their contractual obligations with NINE PERCENT). Thus, Yuehua would instead place them in an all-Chinese boy group — which would take the name NEXT — alongside fellow Chinese trainees— essentially leaving their two Korean trainees in a state of limbo.
It is through this that we can see that yes, it was an extremely positive outcome for the Chinese trainees, as they had two groups along with burgeoning solo careers that all stemmed from a single survival show. But at the same time, we can also see the negative aspect of Yuehua gearing up for a new Korean-based boy group only to cancel it last minute and leave two boys with very little activities since their official debut in 2018. All we can hope for is that Yuehua finds it in themselves to finally begin preparations to debut their long in the making Yuehua Project. Which, judging by their recent post history, could be any year now! Hell, they even debuted a bunch of pre-pubescent children — I'm looking at you Yuehua Boys... — before Hyeongseop & Euiwoong ever got the chance to shine.
Nu'est is likely the most renown group to achieve success from the "Produce 101" series.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the spectrum, we have Nu'est. Nu'est is a South Korean boy group that debuted under PLEDIS in 2012 and was the company's first idol group to debut following AFTERSCHOOL. However, despite kicking it off with a fantastic discography in 2012 through great tracks like "Face" & "Hello", the group failed to gain the momentum or the fandom to see the results of their efforts. It was rather PLEDIS' following group, SEVENTEEN, who managed to find success for the company and become PLEDIS' premiere boy group. This resulted in Nu'est fading into further obscurity despite releasing fantastic songs directly prior to their participation in "Produce 101 Season 2" (see "Overcome" & "Good Bye Bye"). It was through the groups' participation in "Produce 101 Season 2" that they managed to gain a following that would eventually allow the group to secure their first win on a music show — twice! Once as Nu'est W and once as a full unit following Minhyun's return from Wanna One. They also gained the ability to break even with their company and pay off their previously accumulated debt.
The question comes to be, is it worth sacrificing what little standing one has in the entertainment industry in order to gain belated success for one's group? In my opinion, that answer would be no. At least, for the Korean Entertainment industry who, at least in terms of the Produce series, tend to value the individual over the group. It is only in extremely rare cases such as Nu'est that one will succeed. Though, if you're on the verge of disbanding and decide to make a survival show your last-ditch attempt to gain popularity and pull your group by their collars out of obscurity, just know that it will be a difficult task. The easier option, in my opinion, would be to become a contestant — as a group — in an idol competition show like "Queendom", "Road To Kingdom" or "We Are Blazing". Shows like these would almost always bring success to the group as a full unit, rather than a single individual— which can be seen through the success of Oh My Girl following their appearance on "Queendom". Their "Nonstop" comeback was their most successful release to date, selling out of physical copies upon its first day of release and shooting up to the top of multiple charts. Thus, proving that there actually is a way to gain success as a group and not as an individual, though this is not done through the traditional survival show format.
PROOFREAD BY: @lex.
GRAPHICS BY: @Polaris_Tae
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