Jay Park Got Real With The Members Of New Boy Group ABØ About The Difficulties They Will Face In The K-Pop Industry
New boy group ABØ made their debut in the finale of the survival show The Origin – A, B, Or What? on May 7. After a long and difficult journey, 7 trainees were voted onto the team by audience members and by the show’s celebrity ‘balancers’ (or judges). One of the big names sitting on the judging panel was Jay Park, who got real with the trainees and gave them his most honest advice about the reality of the industry.
Following their final performance of the show’s original song “Run,” the ten finalists received plenty of praise from the judges, including GOT7‘s Jay B. Jay Park himself was impressed with the trainees’ energy and the amount of practice they put in to their performance.
He was particularly impressed by Rakwon, whose facial expressions and gestures made him a standout among the finalists. He said to Rakwon, “I could see your spirit. I haven’t seen that spirit in a while. That motivated me.”
But he was also honest about the toll that the industry takes on this spirit, saying “But later this spirit may decrease. You should prepare for that.”
This is a slightly difficult reality to have to face at the beginning of one’s career, but as one of the industry’s legends, Jay Park is being honest about a very real issue that most K-Pop idols are likely to face—the possibility of completely burning out.
Once the official line-up was announced, he had some more advice to give to the newly formed ABØ, saying “It’s a cruel and fierce world, and you’ll really need to be vigilant starting now.”
He ended his advice by telling the boys to never become complacent, even when things are seemingly going well. Rather, in moments when everything seems fine, they should be on their guard even more and try harder in order to see improvement.
While the members had to undergo a difficult journey in order to achieve their debut, Jay Park is right to remind them that the real challenge starts now. ABØ, however, have proven they are more than up to the task with their talent, their energy and their charisma. Congratulations to the members on their debut!
You can read further about the official line-up and the meaning behind the name of the group here.
And you can watch the full clip from the finale of The Origin – A, B, Or What? below.
