These 7 Former Produce 48 Contestants Are Killing It As Rookies Right Now

These 7 Produce 48 participants may not have won the competition to debut in IZ*ONE, but they’re still making a big impact as star rookies right now.

1. Haeyoon (Rank #19)

One of the highest-ranking runners up on Produce 48, Haeyoon didn’t let missing the cut faze her. She’s now the leader and main vocalist of rookie group Cherry Bullet.

Haeyoon debuted with Cherry Bullet in January 2019, and the group just made a comeback with classical-music-meets-girl-crush bop “Hands Up”.

She’s still close with IZ*ONE’s Eunbi after the two competed together on Produce 48, and they even share adorable friendship rings. Haeyoon is also friends with former Produce 101 contestant Chungha.

2. Sihyeon (Rank #27)

Two members of EVERGLOW (which debuted in March 2019) got their start on Produce 48. The first is Sihyeon, who is now one of EVERGLOW’s visuals and the lead vocalist.

Sihyeon also competed on season one of Produce 101, where she ranked #40.

IZ*ONE’s Yena is from the same company, so it’s no surprise that she as Sihyeon are close.

3. Yiren (Rank #28)

Yiren ranked just behind Sihyeon on Produce 48, coming in at #28. She’s now the maknae of EVERGLOW, also taking on the roles of visual, center, and lead dancer.

Yiren was one of the only contestants on the show who wasn’t born in Korea or Japan. She’s actually Chinese, born in Zhejiang.

Like Sihyeon, Yiren is still close with Yena.

4. AleXa (Rank #82)

On Produce 48, AleXa was known as Alex Christine—short for Alexaundra Christine Schneidermann. Instead of debuting in a group, she’s now a rookie soloist.

Korean-Russian AleXa (who was born in the U.S.) released her first single, “Bomb”, in October 2019, capturing attention with the amazing special effects in her music video.

Despite ranking in the bottom 25, it’s no surprise AleXa is out there killing it on her own given that Produce 48 wasn’t the first reality series she participated in. She also won in the dancer’s category of Rising Legends season 1, then won the grand prize in season 2.

5. Juri (Rank #16)

Most of the Japanese runners up from Produce 48 returned to promoting with AKB48 or one of its sister groups. Juri, however, decided to continue on in K-Pop. She’s now a vocalist in Rocket Punch, a group which debuted in August 2019.

Since Juri was already a fan of K-Pop (especially BLACKPINK) before competing and only narrowly missed making it into IZ*ONE, it’s no surprise she joined Woollim Entertainment as soon as she graduated AKB48 in March 2019.

Juri was a J-Pop idol for just under 8 years before she began training to debut in Rocket Punch.

6. Sohee (Rank #43)

Sohee only trained for 8 months before she participated in Produce 48, but she still managed to rank in the top 50. Now, she’s a vocalist, dancer, and rapper in Rocket Punch.

Sohee’s IZ*ONE besties are Chaewon and Eunbi, and she’s also a big fan of TWICE.

She’s considered the group’s cuteness captain, following in the footsteps of labelmates Kei (Lovelyz) and Woohyun (Infinite).

7. Suyun (Rank #47)

Suyun is part of the vocal and dance lines of Rocket Punch. Just like Sohee, she managed to rank top 50 despite a very short training time (7 months).