Group Name: After School Boys
Company: Pledis Entertainment
Number of Members: Unknown
All I could find on this group was one AllKpop article and a youtube video. If you know Korean you can go to http://www.pledis.co.kr/ and it probably has information. Judging by the name, I’d say Pledis is going for a boy group equivalent of After School.
Pledis is looking for “one talented male singer in their teens who has what it takes to debut with Pledis’ first male idol group.” It seems like the group line-up is mostly set, except for the one boy Pledis will get through the auditions which started March 3rd. [1]
In the video advertising the After School Boys audition we get glimpses of a few boys who may be members of the upcoming group.
Audition Video
Group Name: A-Peace (Previously: Double B 21)
Company: Golden Goose Entertainment
Number of Members: 21
This group technically debuted in late 2010, but that was only one of the sub groups (sub group issue will be explained later), so they’re still a 2011 group. This group might be a bit confusing because they’re supposed to have 21 members, which alone is sure to be confusing, but their ‘debut’ music video only had seven members in it. This is because they’re split up into four sub groups. [2]
Last October they released a music video for their song SOS. The music video isn’t what you’d think of when you think music video. It’s footage of a photo shoot; the good part is that we glimpse all 21 members. [3]
The video on linked article was deleted, so here’s a different one.
I like the song, but my head is spinning because there are SO MANY MEMBERS! I’m someone who is bad with names, it took me quite a while to learn all 13 Super Junior member’s names and match them with faces. I hurts my brain to even think about learning 21 members. However, like I said they’ll be debuting in sub groups of seven members, and learning them seven at a time should make it easier.
Most places say there are three sub groups, but I’ve found names for four. They are: Sky (which debuted August 25), Earth, River, and Burning. The sub group Sky is comprised of the seven members: [4] I’ve included addition information about the members I’ve found. [5]
Im Hojung
Kim Wancheol
Height: 185 cm
Hobbies: Basketball, singing, dancing.
Additional Info: Former member of Xing
Kim Seunghyeong
Ji Hyeonseong
Jeong Mansoo
Lee Haneul
Min Jinhong
Maknae
Sky came out with a music video called One.
They did a live stage for One on August 25, 2010
“Here are the members: 0:53 – Im Hojung 1:01 – Hyeongseong 1:15 – Kim Wancheol 1:32 – Min Jinhong 2:29 – Kim Seunghyeong (on the right) 3:04 – Jeong Mansoo 3:20 – Haneul” Youtube User: sujuaddict0115
During their debut stage they also performed “Stand By Me”, and I have to say, their English is pretty good.
I discovered a short clip from a variety show, which I believe to be MNet Rookies judging by the logo in the upper left hand corner. In the clip A-Peace’s sub group Sky goes around offering free hugs.
On December 6, 2011 a music video was released for “A Ring Mark (반지자국)” This time it’s actually a music video with a story line and everything.
Getting back to A-Peace as a whole. On March 27, 2011 AllKpop reported that they were getting ready to debut in Japan, and after would return to Korea. A few interesting facts also reported by AllKpop are that all 21 members stand at or around 185 cm (about 6 feet) in height and were cast and produced by Kim Kyung Wook. If you don’t know him, he discovered and worked with idols like H.O.T, Shinhwa, and TVXQ. [6]
A-Peace has released two teasers for the song “Lover Boy (러버보이)”, but have yet to release a full music video that I can find.
First released was an audio teaser, released March 27, which is again, a photo shoot video.
The second is labeled as the “black version” teaser, which is again for the song “Lover Boy”, but with vocals now too. This one is, you guessed it, another photo shoot video, it shows some up close shots of the boys, and at 0:21 there’s some chocolate abs. This one was released April 1, 2011. [7]
Their official twitter http://twitter.com/#!/apeace221 put up a photo of all 21 members.[8]
There are a few other pictures on their twitter, including a photo of dance practice and one of the member’s abs.
In early March, A-Peace performed a live showcase on BBS Station with their song “Lover Boy”. [9]
They start with 5 members on stage, but soon the rest pour on as well. For such a large group their synchronization is pretty good.
“The group are set to embark on their music careers through Japan’s “K-Theater” before making their official debut in Korea.”
On May 12, 2011 A-Peace released their music video for “Lover Boy” [update 2]
Group Name: Block B
Company: Brand New Stardom Entertainment
Number of Members: 7
Fan Club: BBC (Block B Club)
Block B is a hip-hop group created by Cho PD that officially debuted April 14, 2011. I talk about them in another one of my posts. [10] Cho PD stated that he wanted to create a group of artists that would have as much musical and social influence as Eminem. Their main point is rap, and the group has been learning from underground rappers and been trained for choreography. [11] During their training period Block B wrote and composed about 100 songs, as training to become singer-songwriters. [12] Cho PD, unlike most producers and agency CEOs, decided to give the group full musical freedom. This means that Block B decides their musical direction, not Cho PD. Cho PD stated, “Agency CEOs and producers working for only their own profit are not only selfish, but deprive the artists of the opportunities they need. If they really have a message or lyrics that they want to deliver, they should aid the members to find it and write it themselves. There are prevalent instances where people will add their names to the co-producers credits, and extort copyright when all they did was add the sound of one cymbal. But to me, that’s outdated and undemocratic, and I’m sure that such a system won’t last long.” [13] All songs are produced by leader Zico and Kyung. [14]
Most of the members have have been eliminated from something. From MBC’s “Birth Of A Great Star” [15] to the group itself. The ones that were eliminated from the group, of course, came back or else we wouldn’t have Block B. [16] The members are:
B-BOMB
JAEHYO
KYUNG
P.O (Maknae)
TAEIL
U-KWON
ZICO (Leader)
On February 27, 2011 a rehearsal video of the group was uploaded to youtube. [17]
Loen Ent. uploaded a teaser for Block B’s song “Wanna B” on April 4, 2011.
A full music video for “Freeze” was uploaded April 13, 2011. (I don’t know when the full MV for Wanna B will go up)
Their mini-album is called “Do You Wanna B?” It includes three tracks.
1. Wanna B
2. Freeze 그대로 멈춰라!
3. Is It Just Me? 나만 이런거야?
They debuted on Music Bank on the 15th of April with “Freeze”.
Here’s the MR removed version.
Zico has proved himself to be an impressive rapper, and he even freestyles well. [18]
Here’s another example of Zico’s amazing rap skills:
On April 20th, Block B’s company, Brand New Stardom released a video of B-Bomb and U-Kwon practicing choreography. They are the dancers of the group and they’re both pretty good. [19]
(B-Bomb is on the left, U-Kwon is on the right)
Block B guested on MBC’s Starry Night radio program. On the show they revealed that their name “It’s actually derived from the term ‘blockbuster’, which is typically used to describe movies of larger, impressive scales. We hope to have the same blockbuster effect on the Korean music industry.” It was also revealed that Taeil has a hobby of raising exotic fish and even had 50 at one point, he has 10 now. Other fun facts are: Jaehyo has ninja typing abilities; he can type 600 keys per minute, and U-Kwon’s favorite movie is “The Hangover”. [20]
Below are subbed videos of their visit on Starry Night radio.
On April 22, 2011 Brand New Stardom put a set of profile photos on Block B’s official fancafe. They certainly are handsome boys. I had to laugh a little, P.O is such a maknae. [21]
B-BOMB
JAEHYO
KYUNG
P.O (Maknae)
U-KWON
ZICO (Leader)
“Block B consists of Zico, Kyung, Taeil, P.O., Jae Hyo, U-Kwon, and B-Bomb. The group’s main niche is rap/hip-hop – there are a total of three rappers, all of which have had experience spitting lines in the Korean hip-hop scene. The rest of the posse are vocalists, with Taeil leading the pack as main vocals.
[...]
Block B are currently promoting their lead single, “Freeze“, and just by the sound of it, it’s clear they’ve dolled the song up with glitz and glamor to give it that commercial feel. Truthfully, it’s rather generic for a debut single, but I realized it was going to sound like that going in. Why? Because Block B are new and are trying to bridge the gap between hip-hop and pop music. That, and the fact that they have to cooperate as a unit of rappers and singers now.
[...]
“Freeze” follows the books and does a fine job of transitioning between the verses and pre-chorus just like a good pop song should. The melodies, though, are where things fall right into place – they’re simple, catchy, and work well with Block B’s voices.
[...]
“Wanna B” is way more on point with the hip-hop style Block B is going for. This song is chock-full of rap lines and you can really tell who’s rhyming what because each rapper has a distinguishing color to their voice. One is super throaty (P.O.), the other is higher in pitch (Kyung), and then you have one who stands somewhere in between (Zico). There’s diversity there and it stretches to the vocalists, who insert the necessary releases of tension built up by the rappers.
[...]
“Is It Just Me” alone, which doesn’t hit as hard as the previous two songs, does a good job of sanding K-pop songs down to fairy dust with its contemporary-R&B style. Now where Block B will have trouble convincing audiences in their current evolution is on stage. In the recording studio, they are on top of their game, but they lose all the steam during their live performances (as expected from a rookie group). Basically, Block B lack the endurance and the stamina to deliver a vocally cohesive and consistent live stage, and it has shown in their recent performances.
[...]
Regardless, as a whole package, as long as Block B continue experimenting with their style, working on their vocals, and getting a little more creative without losing that strong hip-hop punch they possess, they’ll really start seeing people take notice of their hard work.”
Overall Rating: 4.3/5
Brand New Stardom just released more profile shots of Block B; this time instead of casual shots, they follow the “Freeze” concept. [23]
B-BOMB
JAEHYO
KYUNG
P.O (Maknae)
TAEIL
U-KWON
ZICO (Leader)
Block B MNET Wide StarCam
It seems like Block B have had a successful debut and will continue to show us good things. There’s so much new information coming out on them, that I’ll just leave you with the above. I really love this group and I can’t wait to see what they do in the future! BLOCK B HWAITING!
Group Name: Boyfriend
Company: Starship Entertainment
Number of Members: 6
This group was first revealed on the variety show Quiz The Changes The World as backup dancers for K.Will. Except that they weren’t really “revealed” as they had masks on the whole time. [24]
Here’s the clip of four members of Boyfriend as K.Will’s backup dancers with English subtitles. The subs are wrong at one point. “…the hosts aren’t saying that they look like SHINee, but they said they look like “shin-in” (신인), which means ROOKIES.” Youtube User: xCaramelSweets
Boyfriend has an average member age of 18 and the member’s names are: Dong Hyun, Jo Young Min, Jo Kwang Min, Noh Minwoo, Seon Ho, and Lee Jung Min. [25]
Members Young Min and Kwang Min are identical twin brothers.
In 2002 the twins appeared in the drama “Saxaphones and Mochi” [26]
Member Noh Minwoo was in K.Will’s music video for “I Can’t Find The Words”. [27]
Minwoo appears at 0:07 – 0:24 – 0:39 – 0:55 – 1:03 – 1:10 – 1:25 – 1:31 – 1:38
On April 16, 2011 Starship’s youtube channel uploaded a video of Minwoo dancing. It even includes the scorpion move, made popular by INFINITE.
Members Young Min, Kwang Min, and Jung Min participated in a photo shoot for CECI magazine.
During the interview they were asked to come up with explanations for eight phrases. [28]
“Jung Min’s:
‘In Common‘: All of the members share in common a tendency to get competitive. They’re always striving to improve themselves in order to not lose.
‘Opportunity Cost‘: Although they can’t be out and about with their friends, the members revealed that they instead earned singing and dancing skills, which they believe to be the cost of losing a social life.
‘Rule’: The boys made a promise to always remember to sit at the table and eat breakfast together no matter what.
‘Partner‘: Jung Min’s favorite senior? Powerful vocalist Insooni. To be able to stand on the same stage as her is his dream.
‘Role Model‘: He also looks up to none other than Big Bang’s leader, G-Dragon. Thanks to his talented ability of soaring on stage and his musical ideas, Jung Min chose him as someone he looks up to.
‘Turn the Table’: “We promise to show an amazing stage presence! We hope to become a fresh stimulation to the Korean music industry.”
Kwang Min & Young Min’s:
‘Motive‘: Twins born on the same day, at the same time. The two grew up as child actors in the 2001 sitcom, “They’re Twins“, and later earned headlines for being Kim Hyun Joong lookalikes on “Truth Game.” Youngmin used to play the younger role of Jang Dong Gun, and later began dreaming of becoming a singer after he caught the attention of the older sister of their casting manager.
‘Spec‘: “Our fresh youthfulness, which fits so well with Boyfriend’s image, is #1.”
‘Opportunity Cost‘: Kwangmin revealed that they didn’t have much time to spend with their family because of their rehearsals, but knew that it was a sacrifice that must be made in order to achieve their dreams. Youngmin cutely blurted out, “But I’m your family member too!”
‘Partner‘: Youngmin revealed, “I think it’d be dream-like to be able to perform a duet with senior Naul. How wonderful would it be to have vocal talent like him?”
‘The Ultimate Goal‘: ”We want to become artists that have their skills acknowledged, as well as get our name ‘Boyfriend’ more familiar with the public.”"
Boyfriend is set to debut VERY soon; I’m excited!
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