You Might Not Know These 7 K-Pop Idols Are From Taiwan

While it’s still not that common to see non-Korean K-Pop idols in the industry, there are definitely more than there used to be! In most recent times, idols from Taiwan have become more common, with the very first Taiwanese idol actually only debuting in 2015. This helped to pave the way for all of the other now-idols on this list, and it’s great to see increasing diversity in K-Pop! Here are the 7 Taiwanese idols, both active and not, that have been in the K-Pop industry.

1. Tzuyu (TWICE)

Tzuyu was born in Tainan, Taiwan, on June 14, 1999, with a single older brother. She was scouted by JYP Entertainment at the MUSE Performing Arts Workshop in her hometown in 2012, and started her trainee program at the company in November of that year. Tzuyu was actually the first Taiwanese person to debut as a K-Pop idol, in October 2015! She now acts as TWICE’s maknae, lead dancer, sub-vocalist, and visual, and has ranked high on various lists for her gorgeous visuals. She’s close to CLC‘s Elkie and BLACKPINK‘s Rosé, and is a huge fan of SISTAR, especially Hyolyn. Her hobbies including watching live performances and eating delicious food.

2. Shuhua ((G)I-DLE)

Shuhua was born in Taiwan on January 6, 2000, and has both an older and younger sister. Like Tzuyu, she is also the visual and maknae of her group, as well as a sub-vocalist. Her friends were the people that helped get her into K-Pop, and while she originally wanted to be an actress when she was younger, she changed her mind to wanting to become a singer (though she still enjoys acting). She auditioned for Cube Entertainment in 2016 in Taiwan, due to her friends doing it as well, and she was accepted to join the company the same year. HyunA inspires her, and Shuhua wishes to be like her someday.

3. Kuanlin (former Wanna One)

Kuanlin was born in Taipei, Taiwan on September 23, 2001, and has one older sister. He comes from a wealthy family, and he is able to speak multiple languages, including Taiwanese, Mandarin, Korean, and English from the 5 years he spent in Los Angeles. He ranked at 7th place when he was on Produce 101, which allowed him to join Wanna One when they were formed. When he was in the group, he acted as the lead rapper and maknae. He’s close with PENTAGON‘s Wooseok and EXO‘s Sehun, and even debuted in the unit Wooseok x Kuanlin with the PENTAGON member in March of 2019. Unfortunately, after Wanna One’s disbandment, he requested to leave Cube Entertainment in July of 2019, and hasn’t been active since.

4. LinLin (former Cherry Bullet)

LinLin was born in Taiwan on July 5, 2003. In Cherry Bullet, she had the position of lead dancer, vocalist, and rapper, and was known for her charisma. Unfortunately, however, due to personal reasons, she terminated her contract with FNC Entertainment on December 13, 2019 and left Cherry Bullet.

5. SoSo (GWSN)

SoSo was born in Taiwan on March 14, 2001. She auditioned for Kiwi Pop, GWSN’s company, through a talent show at her school, and was recruited by her now-manager, though she actually wanted to be a stewardess when she was younger! She was inspired by other Taiwanese idols such as Tzuyu to become a K-Pop idol, and she trained in Korea for about a year before debuting with GWSN on June 18, 2018. She acts as the lead dancer and vocalist of the group, and specializes in street dancing.

6. YangYang (WAYV)

YangYang was born in Taiwan on October 10, 2000, and has one sister. He spent the first 11 years of his life there before moving to Germany, where he stayed until he auditioned to join SM Entertainment in the summer of 2016. Because of his travels, he’s fluent in Chinese, German, English, Korean, and even knows some Spanish. He debuted with WAYV in January of 2019, and acts as their main rapper, main dancer, and sub-vocalist. He enjoys sports, playing games, and collecting shoes.

7. Chiayi (FANATICS)

Chiayi was born in Taiwan on January 22, 2000. She’s specialized in dance for a long time, since over a decade ago, and even majored in Chinese dance and has experience in ballet and contemporary dance. She can also do tricks such as aerials and acrobatics! She debuted with FANATICS in August of 2019, and acts as the group’s main dancer, vocalist, rapper, and visual. Her hobbies include photography, exercising, and cooking.