A recent anecdote from a K-pop soloist has K-netizens discussing all the top stars that were rejected during their auditions for JYP Entertainment. Keep on reading for all the details.
K-Pop Soloist Recalls Heartbreaking Words She Received from J.Y. Park (Park Jinyoung)
On February 17, 2024, the latest episode of JTBC's "Knowing Bros" aired. On this day, the top seven members from the show "Sing Again 3" were featured, with EJel introducing herself as a "professional auditioner."
She shared, "I tried out for all the agencies in Korea. I auditioned for JYP Entertainment, YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment, and Mystic Entertainment. But I was rejected from all of them." This revelation surprised everyone.
She continued, "When I was in middle school, I was street-cast by SM. I wasn't prepared to dance then. They played a song for me to dance to, but all I could do was clap along. It seemed like my posture was the reason for the rejection."
Seo Jang-hoon remarked, "SM was too harsh. They even accepted Kim Heechul after he sang the national anthem."
In particular, EJel revealed that she had been hurt by Park Jinyoung, the founder of JYP Entertainment.
She said, "I appeared on 'K-pop Star 6,' which was a dream for me to be judged by the judges I admired. But in the middle of the song, Park Jinyoung stopped me and said, 'You're terrible at singing. You're really bad. It's like you're imitating someone.' If people like them, who have seen many talents, say you're talentless, anyone would want to give up music."
However, she used his words as a motivator. She confessed, "It was when I first started in music, so it became a driving force for me to work even harder."
She added, "I covered the song 'Hype Boy,' and the comment with the most likes said, 'If you're this good, Park Jinyoung must have spun five somersaults.' As someone who received criticism from Park Jin-young, I felt good."
K-Netizens Look Back at Past Celebrities JYP Entertainment Rejected
Following EJel's revelation, K-netizens looked back at other stars JYP Entertainment missed having on their roster.
JYP Entertainment's notable missed talent includes IU. Park Jinyoung expressed regret that he missed the change to debut IU, saying, "I will find and discipline the audition staff who eliminated IU."
Chungha is also a former JYP trainee. AOA's ChoA, and EXID's Hani were also trainees under JYP Entertainment. In the end, all three of them left the company after being unable to debut.
2NE1's CL was trained as a singer at JYP alongside Wonder Girls' Sunye and Secret's Jung Hana. Although she spent her trainee days with 2PM and 2AM members, she debuted with 2NE1 under YG Entertainment.
BTS's J-Hope appeared on IU's YouTube channel "Lee Jieun" and revealed, "I passed the JYP audition in the third year of middle school."
Additionally, many stars like Hyolyn, HIGHLIGHT's Yoon Doojoon, and Lee Gikwang were former trainees under JYP Entertainment.
Park Jinyoung honestly revealed his feelings on missing out on so many stars, saying, "I can't watch TV these days. I don't know why I did that."
He further stated, "It's regrettable to think about the stars we missed," adding, "There's no guarantee that they would have succeeded just because they were with our company. They succeeded because they met other producers and made music."
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Written by Alexa Lopez
