Mnet Finally Reveals The Lineup Of “Boys Planet” Contestants, And There Are Some Very Familiar Faces Amongst The “Trainees”
One of the hottest yet most controversial shows of 2021 was Mnet‘s Girl Planet 999. Female trainees from different countries and companies competed against each other for a chance to debut in a new girl group.
At the start of the year, the nine finalists of the show debuted as part of Kep1er and have gained attention for their music, visuals, and charm.
Even though fans love Kep1er, the “evil-editing” and lack of fairness on the show raised concerns, and it was emphasized when Mnet announced their newest show called Boys Planet. Like the previous show, the series would have male trainees competing for a chance to be part of a new group.
Ahead of the show’s release in February, Mnet started to release posters and previews of what to expect.
On December 29 (KST), Mnet shared a preview of all the contestants on the show M Countdown. From the very beginning, the contestants gained attention for their talent and visuals.
Yet, along with some of the new faces, there are many known faces that surprised netizens. In particular, one person who gained attention after already being known by many netizens is Jay Chang, a member of M.O.N.T Arena and FM Camp.
Along with fellow trainee Beomhan, Jay has gained a huge social media following with tours around the US promoting themselves at events.
He wasn’t the only known face, and there were many idols that had already made an impact after debuting. Netizens were excited to see former TO1 members Woonggi and Jerome make an appearance.
There were also other already debuted idols with Ciipher‘s Keita along with NINE.i‘s Seowon and Jiho.
There were veteran idols who made an appearance. UP10TION‘s Xiao and Hwanhee were spotted amongst the trainees. Considering they debuted in 2015 and were both born in 1998, they are expected to be amongst the oldest and most experienced of the trainees.
In particular, amongst the idols that have already debuted, one person’s appearance shocked netizens worldwide, and it was PENTAGON‘s Hui. So, when the camera panned to the PENTAGON singer on several occasions, netizens couldn’t believe that Hui was actually competing to re-debut.
Although there were rumors surrounding his participation, many doubted the legitimacy as Hui is an established artist who has years of experience and has written for some of the biggest groups, including the song “Energetic” from Produce 101 group Wanna One.
In particular, although he is one of the most known participants, he wasn’t even focused on when he was shown.
After the video was released, netizens shared their thoughts on the lineup and particularly shared their shock at seeing experienced idols in the lineup. Others are happy to see new faces, but also the likes of Woonggi, Jerome, and those from previous shows are getting another chance to shine.
YAH WTF IS MY HUI DOING ON THE BOYS PLANET PERFORMANCE ON M COUNTDOWN?! MY GUY IS LIKE 30 AND ONE OF THE BEST SINGERS AND SONGWRITERS IN K-POP! #PENTAGON #BoysPlanet pic.twitter.com/x7GYupCjrY
— Sonal Lad (@K_Reflections96) December 29, 2022
echan (jaebeom) from i-land joined boys planet pic.twitter.com/zgs0g9qT4M
— 🎧 (@leoleoml) December 29, 2022
With the show not set to air for a few months, it has raised anticipation for the series but also some concerns, especially regarding some of the more veteran idols.
