Here is a strong basis for the ‘EPL’ of global diamonds dreaming of becoming idols in K-pop. EPL is an abbreviation for the English Premier League, which all soccer stars around the world dream of.

In the industry reality where there is literally a population cliff, it is amazing how they managed to find these ‘gems’. The ‘K-idol essence’ SM Entertainment (SM) has suddenly revealed some of the ‘real boy trainees’.

Now, SM seems to be focusing on the system beyond the worldview and has named them ‘SMTR25’. The number of people is 25, which means ‘SM trainees’ in Korean.

It is also notable that among the 25 members, 11 SMTR members were first revealed on SNS in a trailer video that was less than a minute long ‘silently’. As if to prove that the rumors that ‘all the members are center-level’ are true, they quietly posted it and omitted obvious mystification rhetoric such as silhouettes, clearly revealing the members.


As soon as these trailer videos were suddenly released on SNS, global K-pop fans seemed to be rushing to ‘prepare to become fans’ by sharing them over and over again. According to their official SNS, the videos had close to 1 million views in less than a day since their release, and there were also thousands of comments.

Global netizens are also creating their own profiles for SMTR, which has not even been registered on major portals yet. The 11-member SMTR that was first revealed are Nicholas, Songha, Haruta, Daniel, Katsho, Hanbi, Tata, Ha Min, Kachin, Hyunjun, and Justin. Their nationalities include South Korea, the United States, Japan, and Thailand.

SMTR is still a tentative name, and it is uncertain whether all 25 members will make an official debut, given their trainee status. However, if their appearances are combined with the fandom‘s support, it is not impossible, and if it becomes a reality, it is expected that a group of unprecedented scale will be born.

SMTR also attracted attention by appearing at SM’s brand concert, ‘SMTOWN’, earlier this year. The concert also had the character of commemorating SM‘s 30th anniversary this year.



Reporter Heo Min-nyeong mignon@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.