How were ITZY members discovered by JYP Entertainment?

ITZY, a JYP Entertainment group made up of 5 members (Yeji, Leah, Ryujin, ChaeryeongIt is Yuna) made his debut with the single album “IT’z Different” on February 11, 2019, completing 5 years of formation this year.

But, have you ever thought about how ITZY members were discovered by JYP Entertainment? Focusing on answering the question, RECREIO has gathered everything you need to know about the subject below; check out!

Yeji

The group leader, Yeji was discovered by JYP Entertainment in a test held in 2016. On that occasion, she performed the song “Like OOH-AAH” by TWICE and passed the audition and became a trainee at the company, as explained by Koreaboo.

During her almost three years as a trainee, Yeji participated in several survival programs, such as SBS’s “The Fan” and the boy group Stray Kids’ survival program, meaning that, even before her debut, she already gained fans.

Leah

The first option of Leah was not the South Korean entertainment company founded by JY Park. This is because she auditioned for SM Entertainment, but ended up not becoming a trainee at the agency.

As a result, she also auditioned at JYP, managing to sign with the agency in 2017, remaining as a trainee for around 2 years, until her debut as the main vocalist of ITZY.

Ryujin

The case of Ryujin is quite different from the other idols in the group, as she was approached by one of JYP’s casting agents while participating in a GOT7 fan meeting.

The approach was unexpected, but it yielded results, as she auditioned and was approved as a trainee. She trained for four years, and during that time, accomplished several notable feats such as starring in the Highlight Reel videos of BTS’s “LOVE YOURSELF” and participating in the JTBC reality show MixNine.

Chaeryeong

The trajectory of Chaeryeong with JYP Entertainment began in 2013 when she and her sister, Chaeyeonbecame candidates in “K-Pop Star 3”.

That same year, the two became trainees and remained so until 2015, when they competed together on another survival program: SIXTEEN.

SIXTEEN was responsible for forming TWICE, but neither Chaeryeongnor her sister managed to get a place in the group, meaning she remained in training for a few more years, debuting in 2019 on ITZY.

Yuna

Yuna was found by a JYP scout while accompanying her sister to a festival where BTOB would perform in 2016. When approached, she was offered the chance to audition so she could be the company’s newest trainee.

The audition was a success and Yuna became a trainee for about three years. Like this Ryujinshe was also featured in BTS’s “LOVE YOURSELF” Highlight Reel videos.