The Heartbreaking Reason Why TWICE's Jihyo Ran Away From Home As A Trainee

Having spent much of her childhood as a K-Pop trainee, TWICE‘s Jihyo didn’t have the easiest time growing up. She experienced many ups and downs on her road to debuting in a girl group under JYP Entertainment, but one incident hurt her so much that she briefly ran away from home.

The “Killin’ Me Good” singer told the tale in Episode 3 of “Zyo’s Zone.Zip” where she visited her childhood home and spent time with her family.

In the video, Jihyo sat down with her parents and looked through a photobook from her childhood. Aside from talking about why they once thought she may have been switched at birth, the three also reminisced on the days before she appeared in reality show Sixteen, which determined the debut lineup of TWICE.

The now-leader of TWICE shared that she had actually almost made her debut before the program aired, but it was eventually cancelled. She was so disappointed and hurt by it that she “rebelled for the first time” and left the house without informing anyone. She didn’t return for a while.

Jihyo: I was going to debut a little earlier, then it just didn’t happen. How was it for you?
Mom: It was hard for us, but it was the hardest for you. You rebelled for the first time. You went out without notice and didn’t come back.

According to Jihyo, it was only a temporary rebellion. She believed that she was never going to debut, so she just wanted to be somewhere where she didn’t feel stressed. She decided to go all the way to her aunt’s house, but because of her heavy thoughts, she couldn’t even recall how she made it there.

It was a short deviation. I was training for so long, and I’ve had it at that point. I didn’t even think that hard about it. I was just sick of everything. I didn’t think I would ever debut, so I just wanted to get away. I was stressed at home, and I was also stressed at work, so I wanted to go somewhere where nothing could bother me. I think that’s why I went all the way to aunt’s house. I don’t even know how I got there. It was so far.

— Jihyo

Afterwards, she was hesitant to join Sixteen. She admitted that she “really didn’t wanna do it.” Luckily, however, it ended up working out. Her mom ended the topic by commenting that it was a tough time in her daughter’s life.

Jihyo: At first, they asked us who were about to debut and whether we wanted to be on Sixteen or not. I really didn’t wanna do it. I really didn’t wanna do it. It turned out to be good in the end.
Mom: Those were difficult times.