One of the common things that take place in the K-pop industry is that idol groups go through member lineup changes at some points in their careers. The reason for a member or members' departure vary from change in career path to dispute with the agency. Usually, only one to three members leave, but the following six K-pop groups have the most former members before they disbanded.
Note: The list includes active/disbanded idol groups.
5 K-pop Groups With the Most Former Members Before Disbanding
PUREBOY: 11 members
This boy group was first introduced in 2011 as PUREBOY with 11 members, but only nine members debuted in Korea. One new member was then added in early 2015, making them 10. But then, seven members left to form a new boy group called NAUGHTYBOYS (which was later shortened to NTB).
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The remaining members formed a sub-unit with three new members and debuted in December 2015. The unit was later joined by original members Hayeong and Sangyun and new member Kunhee. They also returned to using their first name, PUREBOY.
PUREBOY has been inactive since 2018, and its final lineup consists of five members. According to this site, the group has 11 former members.
APeace: 15 members
APeach also joins our list of K-pop groups with most former members. This boy group debuted in 2010 with a total of 21 members. They were called Double B 21 at that time, but they rebranded as APeace in 2011. They also started to see lineup changes right after their debut until they lost a total of 15 members as of 2018.
APeace unfortunately disbanded in December 2021 with its final lineup consisting of 12 members.
BADKIZ: 17 members
BADKIZ is another K-pop group with most former members (before it disbanded). The girl group debuted with only five members (Monika, Yeunji, Jina, BomBom, and Eunjoo) in March 2014. Since April 2014, the group had several lineup changes that ended up with the group rebranding to Hot Place and with new members. Hot Place debuted in March 2019, but they changed their name back to BADKIZ in 2020.
READ MORE: 6 K-pop Girl Groups That Hit Big After Member Change
As of February 2019, a total of 15 members left BADKIZ over the years. A year later, two more members left, totaling 17. BADKIZ then disbanded in late 2020 with four remaining members.
RANIA: 19 members
Now known as BLACKSWAN, RANIA also went through a lot of lineup changes. They even changed their name thrice, from RANIA to BP RANIA and now BLACKSWAN. RANIA originally debuted as an eight-member girl group in April 2011 but since then members left one by one until they reached a total of 19 former members. At present, BLACKSWAN consists of four members who are all non-Korean.
Leader'S: 36 members
Finally, Leader'S takes the top spot among K-pop groups with most former members. They were initially an eight-ember group in early 2011, but in October of the same year, their agency TGN Entertainment announced that they had been reorganized as a 24-member group, divided into three sub-units.
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By the time Leader'S disbanded, they had only five members left, and they had so many members join and leave that they ended up with a shocking 36 former members.
Which other K-pop groups do you think have the most former members before they disbanded?
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Written by Maria Scott
