Earlier last week, YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun Suk announced the upcoming debut of another boy group following the success of WINNER. The new boy group named, iKON, will be formally introduced on YG Entertainment’s new talent survival program, “Mix & Match”.
On the choice of name (iKON), Yang Hyun Suk said, “Instead of iCON, I replaced the C with K to represent K-Pop. I hope iKON will become a group that represents Korea.”
He also confirmed that iKON will consist of 3 members from Team B, the “losing team” from “Who is Next: WIN”. “Mix & Match” will also feature 6 other boys, bringing it to a grand total of 9 boys altogether:
- Team B’s B.I
- Team B’s Bobby
- Team B’s Kim Jin Hwan
- Song Yoon Hyung
- Kim Dong Hyuk
- Goo Joon Hee
- New trainee Jung Jin Hyung
- New trainee Jung Chan Woo
- New trainee Yang Hong Seok
While that’s probably YG Entertainment’s biggest news for the last quarter of 2014, this could also mean that the rumoured upcoming YG girl group which was supposed to debut since 2012, will not debut for at least another year.
Oh, bummer.
The group, codenamed “Pink Punk, consists of YG trainees who were previously teased in some of the current YG artistes’ videos. For example, YG trainee Jennie Kim is no stranger to the K-Pop music industry as she was featured in BIGBANG leader G-Dragon’s music video for “That XX” and even sang alongside G-Dragon in “Black”:
According to some eagle-eyed fans, one other member from the said upcoming girl group named Lalice Manoban also briefly made an appearance in Taeyang’s “RINGA LINGA“.
The YG Entertainment trainees who are rumoured to be part of Pink Punk are such as:
- Jennie Kim (Rap) (Rumoured to be leader)
- Kim Ji Soo (Vocals)
- Jang Hanna
- Lalice Manoban (Vocals)
- Park Jinny
- Park Chae Young (Vocals)
- Cho Mi Yeon (Rap)
- Kim Eun Bi (Vocals)
- Lee Jookyung
Some of the above YG trainees have also been spotted out and about on several occasions right outside of the YG Entertainment building in Hapjeong, Seoul. Our opinion? YG, high time to formally introduce the above girls to us soon too!
It certainly has been way too long.