wanted : group idol trainees

Korean idols are getting hotter and hotter all around the world, so many idol groups are taking their stages overseas while various agencies are fighting to scout out new talents. The smaller agencies, however, are having a harder time getting the talent they need.2011 was a year for the idols. Groups such as Girls’ Generation, Super Junior, TVXQ, 2PM, 2NE1, B2ST and 4minute became more popular not only in Korea, but also in various foreign countries.

             

Most of the hit groups were from major agencies: SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, JYP Entertainment and Cube Entertainment are some of the key players who hold the idol market in the palm of their hands.In order to produce idol groups, agencies must set up training systems for their groups, and the investment costs are astronomical. Still, many agencies who have been eyeing the ever growing idol market have jumped into the idol war by producing their own groups. Among those are the smaller agencies, while actor agencies such as Sidus and Key East are also producing new idol groups.On estimate, about 10 more teams will be making their debuts in the first half of 2012. It’s not even easy to tell which ones are new because so many singers have debuted this past year.More teams mean that agencies need more people for them, but the smaller agencies are especially having a hard time recruiting new members for their groups. Because the more skilled ones are flocking to the larger agencies, it’s difficult for them to find suitable members.An official from a middle-sized entertainment agency that houses a famous idol group said, “It’s so hard to find trainees we can use. The good ones mostly already have agencies. It was so hard to find some in Seoul, we traveled to the other regions, but most of the finer students already had agencies.”The official added, “There’s even a saying that says ‘Good looking kids all have agencies even in Geoje Island.’”Large agencies, however, are having no problem in that sense. They don’t have to venture out because skilled trainees come to them on their own. Their problem is that they can’t debut all of their trainees. Because of this, many trainees that trained in big agencies but didn’t make it into a group trickle down into the smaller agencies to make their debuts.As the Korean wave and K-Pop is continuing to stretch past Asia into the world, the war for trainees is expected to continue in 2012.Photo credit: Cube EntertainmentReach reporter Oh MiJung on Twitter@isyutar!