Highly-Anticipated Upcoming K-Pop Girl Group’s Age Reveal Sparks Major Controversy
The ages reveal of the upcoming Starship Entertainment group KiiiKiii has sparked shock and fury.
As the group was gaining attention, photos of the alleged maknae of the group were shared, sparking anger.
When the photos were released, the alleged ages of the members were just rumored. However, ahead of the group’s debut, an official article from The Hollywood Reporter was released with more information about the group.
The article confirmed the ages and positions of the group members, citing Leesol as the oldest at 19 and as rumored, the youngest member is Kia, only 14 years old.
The ages were shared on X.
KiiiKiii reveals the members' official positions to The Hollywood Reporter:
Jiyu (18) — Leader, vocalist, rapper, and dancer.
Leesol (19) — Rapper.
Sui (18) — Vocalist.
Haum (18) — Vocalist, rapper.
Kya (14) — Vocalist. pic.twitter.com/MQVwLaPN98— Kpop Charts (@kchartsmaster) February 18, 2025
Netizens shared their anger and confusion at the decision to have someone so young in the group. In particular, all of the other members are 18+, so they thought it would make more sense to keep the group full of adults, especially as 14 seems extremely young for an idol to debut, especially with members much older.
always gotta have that one 14 year old….no idea why https://t.co/NcmHtOpFxN
— HETEROPHOBIA (@rickyDNI_) February 18, 2025
Starship… why the 14 yo..
The whole group could have been 18+… https://t.co/k2s5Gp94Qp— 𝕁𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕚 ☽︎ (@BluePelargonium) February 19, 2025
they absolutely didn’t need the 14 year old members like https://t.co/Px0ByKcN25
— ً (@aoaluvme) February 19, 2025
The group would have been perfect if they switch Kya with someone older. She’s so young even though she looks talented she could have debut in a future group in a few years https://t.co/b8WJRAhBro
— 9ayogg (@9Ayogg) February 18, 2025
why is starship debuting a 14 year old? I wish they would wait a bit longer on the her
— Goatone (@KotoneBaby) February 18, 2025
The topic of debuting minors in K-Pop continues to spark huge reactions.
