Half-Mexican K-Pop Idol Goes Viral Over Demands To Change His “Stolen” Stage Name 

The stage name is part of the new idol’s real name.
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Kesha Bright
Kesha Bright

In May 2025, the finale of the SBS survival show B:MY BOYZ aired, introducing the final line-up of a new boy group, YUHZ.

B-MY_BOYZ_poster_1

YUHZ is an eight-member boy group under Pinnacle Entertainment, whose debut date has not officially been announced. Some of the members are familiar faces, including Hyo who appeared on Boys Planet and multiple members who appeared on Project 7.

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YUHZ | Pinnacle Entertainment

The group has unexpectedly gone viral, centered around one member’s stage name.

Shimabara Kaito, a Japanese-Mexican trainee from Kanagawa, Japan, ranked fifth overall in the competition ensuring his debut.

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| Pinnacle Entertainment

And while he has gained attention for being one of a few in the K-Pop industry of Mexican descent…

…debate over his stage name has become a hot topic.

Kaito’s stage name was announced to be Kai in a post revealing their official profile images.

Complaints over his stage name have been connected to it being the same as EXO‘s Kai, ranging from demands to change the idol’s name out of respect to genuine issues involving search engine optimization due to the shared name. The trademarks SM Entertainment currently has registered for Kai were also brought up

Others have defended the upcoming idol, saying there are plenty of idols who share the same stage name, and that he should be able to use part of his real name as a stage name.

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