12 JYP Entertainment Idols That Were Street Cast, And Now Captivate Fans With Their Visuals And Talents
K-Pop idols are known for their incredible visuals, and sometimes, agencies cast them purely for their looks, and also because they see something special in them as prospective trainees! Here are 12 idols that were street-cast by JYP Entertainment, and took the K-Pop world by storm when they debuted!
1. TWICE’s Sana
TWICE Sana‘s visuals are so striking, that she caught the eye of the agency casting scouts in 2012!
Sana was out shopping with a friend, when a JYP Entertainment casting associate came up to her and asked her if she wanted to be a K-Pop idol. After the casting associate showed her pictures of the Dream High cast as the agency’s managing artists, Sana immediately said yes to an audition!
After passing the audition, Sana trained for 3 years and competed in SIXTEEN, the survival show that created TWICE, and made her debut as a girl group member in 2015!
2. Stray Kids’ Hyunjin
Stray Kids‘ Hyunjin is the group’s main dancer and rapper, and is also known for his incredible visuals!
He was out shopping with his mom when a stranger walked up to him and suddenly grabbed his wrist, at which point he turned around and yelled, “Who are you?!” in complete shock!
After explaining they were a casting associate from JYPE, they handed Hyunjin a card, and asked him to consider auditioning. Suspicious but intrigued, Hyunjin went home and looked up their name and agency, and after confirming that it wasn’t a scam, decided to audition, and made it through!
He then trained under JYPE for 3 years, and after making it through as a member on the survival show that made Stray Kids, debuted as the main dancer, rapper, and visual of Stray Kids in 2018!
3. ITZY’s Ryujin
Almost all MIDZYs know ITZY Ryujin‘s casting story for what a chance opportunity it was!
In 2015, Ryujin attended a GOT7 fanmeeting, when she was approached by a casting associate and encouraged to try out for the company. After passing her audition, Ryujin trained under JYPE for 4 years, making several appearances and building her fanbase, such as appearances on MixNine, Stray Kids, and also appeared on BTS‘s Highlight Reels opposite J-Hope and Jimin!
She eventually debuted as the main rapper and lead dancer of ITZY in 2019, and is slaying as a girl group member!
4. TWICE’s Mina
TWICE’s Mina is famous for her classy visuals, and has always been a dancer, having studied ballet for 11 years!
She eventually also developed an interest in K-Pop, and subsequently learned tons of choreographies as well! She was soon approached by a JYP casting associate while out shopping with her mother, and she passed her audition soon enough!
After training for a mere 1 year and 4 months, Mina joined the survival show SIXTEEN as a contestant, and wowed the audience with her visuals, and her singing and dancing skills! She eventually made it to the final lineup for TWICE, and debuted as one of their main dancers in 2015!
5. GOT7’s Jackson
Among fans, GOT7’s Jackson is famous for being an idol with charming good looks and a hilarious personality, and also has skills in tons of areas to back up his passion as an artist!
Prior to his debut and traineeship, Jackson was part of the national fencing team in Hong Kong, and was in the midst of preparing for the London Olympics when he was scouted by JYP Entertainment!
After being cast by JYPE while playing basketball at school, Jackson placed first among 2000 competitors at an international JYP audition! He managed to convince his parents to let him join the agency to train, and entered the agency as a trainee in 2011! He eventually debuted as a member of GOT7 in 2014, and is the beloved rapper and face of GOT7!
6. Former Miss A member Suzy
Former Miss A member Suzy is one of K-Pop’s OG visuals and a popular actress, and JYP Entertainment happened to stumble across her by chance!
Suzy was auditioning for Superstar K3, and practicing in the bathroom, when her singing and visuals were noticed by a JYPE scout, and they cast her on the spot! After only 6 months of training, Suzy debuted as the vocalist, visual and maknae of her group, and the rest, as they say, is history!
7. 2PM’s Nichkhun
2PM‘s Nichkun is the group’s visual, and was street-cast in the US! Nichkhun was at the Los Angeles Korean Music Festival when he was approached by JYPE scouts, and after passing the audition, began his life as a trainee in 2006.
He was soon selected to participate in the boy group survival show Hot Blood Men, and was one of the 11 trainees who made it to the debut lineup for a group called One Day. The group was eventually split into 2PM and 2AM, and Nichkhun debuted as a member of 2PM in 2008!
8. GOT7’s Mark
GOT7’s Mark is the group’s rapper and visual, and is another idol under JYP Entertainment who was street-cast!
Mark was cast as a trainee in 2010 while he was hanging out with friends at school, and after passing the audition, became a trainee at JYP Entertainment! After 4 years of training, he eventually made his debut as a member of GOT7, and the group debuted with the single “Girls Girls Girls” in 2014!
9. ITZY’s Yuna
Upon their debut, ITZY’s Yuna immediately gained tons of attention with her visuals, and so its no wonder she was street cast by JYPE!
Yuna’s sister was a fan of BTOB, and Yuna accompanied her sister to a music festival where BTOB was performing. At the festival, Yuna was scouted by a JYPE casting associate, and after passing the auditions, began training under JYP Entertainment! While she was trainee, she appeared on BTS’s Highlight Reels opposite Jungkook, and also appeared on the survival show Stray Kids.
She soon made her debut in 2019, as the lead rapper, dancer, visual and maknae of ITZY, and has been captivating fans with her good looks and talents ever since!
10. 2PM’s Wooyoung
2PM’s Wooyoung quite possibly has the funniest casting story yet!
Wooyoung always knew he wanted to be a performer, and always wanted to JYP Entertainment as one of their artists. Even though he was very passionate about his dreams, he never got opportunities to audition for the agency for a while.
After some time, JYPE posted an audition notice one day, announcing that they were recruiting possible trainees…for Wonder Girls. And Wooyoung immediately jumped at the chance!
He turned up at the Wonder Girls recruitment audition, and blew the judges away with his talent and passion, ultimately finishing first in the audition! After joining JYPE as a trainee, he went on to participate in the survival show Hot Blood Men, where he eventually managed to make his debut as 2PM’s main dancer in 2008!
11. GOT7’s JB
GOT7’s JB was always passionate about dancing and has harbored dreams of being a professional breakdancer since her was 7 years old!
With his talents and passion for breakdancing, he soon entered a breakdancing competition, where he was scouted in the bathroom by a JYP Entertainment casting associate for his incredible skills as a dancer! After tieing with fellow member Jinyoung for first place at the JYP open audition, JB successfully became a JYPE trainee, and debuted as the leader, vocalist, and dancer of GOT7 in 2014!
12. TWICE’s Dahyun
TWICE’s Dahyun is another member of the group to have been street cast!
Dahyun was already famous for her “eagle dance” video that went viral during her pre debut days, and Dahyun always knew she wanted to be a performer! When she was in middle school, Dahyun entered an adolescent dance competition with choreography and musical arrangement created all on her own, and she caught the eye of JYPE casting scouts, who then offered her a chance to join the agency as a trainee!
After 3 years of training, Dahyun soon became a participant on SIXTEEN, where she managed to win a spot for TWICE’s final debut lineup, and debuted as the lead rapper of TWICE!
