As mentioned before, the winners, or the top 9 contestants, will get to form a group which will be known as fromis_9. What about the others who didn’t make it to fromis_9? In this article, Channel-Korea will provide you with more details about the contestants who managed to debut in a group or solo after the show ended. Stay tuned!
1. PinkFantasy – Cho Yu-bin
Joining Idol School
Choi Yu-bin was still 19 years old (Korean age) at the time when she joined the program. For basic training, out of 10 points, Yu-bin got a score of 5.9 for vocal, 9 for dancing, and 4 for physical, making her ranked 14th with a total average score of 6.3. In the first episode, the voting result was revealed and Yu-bin got to be the 18th. For the second episode, the girls were practicing for the music video of the school anthem. In the end, Yu-bin barely managed to rank 28th based on the voting system. In the next two episodes, the girls were preparing for Debut Diagnostic Exam 1. They were divided into a group of 8 to perform a girl group song. Yu-bin got to team First Love as the sub-vocalist 5 and performed Lovelyz’ song “Ah-choo.” She got a score of 27 individual votes and her group ranked 2nd while her own ranking dropped to 30.
Next, to prepare for the Debut Diagnostic Exam 2, the girls were again divided into classes based on their advanced level in singing and dancing, self and peer evaluation of ranking, and 3 classes on performance in general (Advanced, Intermediate, and Beginners). Yu-bin got into class Intermediate Performance B. At the end of the episode, she managed to climb back to rank 28. Then her group performed Seventeen’s “Pretty U.” She got individual points of 78.5 and ranked second within her group. However, the group lost to team A, marking Yu-bin’s last performance as her rank also dropped to 29.
Debut as PinkFantasy
After wrapping her participation in Idol School, Choi Yu-bin was reported of debuting as a member of an 8-member girl group called PinkFantasy under MyDoll Entertainment. She now goes by the stage name Yubeen. Pink Fantasy made their debut on October 24th, 2018, and released the single “Iriwa.” The group received attention because of its unique concept like Alice in Wonderland plus there’s a hidden member called Daehwang who wears a bunny head. Yubin was added to their first subunit PinkFantasy SHY. They debuted on March 25th, 2019, and released the single “12 O’clock.”
Recently, Yubin was diagnosed with panic disorder so she is in a temporary hiatus in order to focus on her mental health.
2. EVERGLOW – Onda (Cho Se-rim)
Joining Idol School
Cho Se-rim was 18 (Korean age) when she joined the program. She was ranked 27th for her basic training result with an average score of 3.47 (4.3 for vocal, 4 for dancing, and 2.1 for physical). At the end of the first episode, it was revealed that Se-rim ranked 37th based on votes.
Her ranking dropped to 40 in the second episode which means she placed the last (because one of the contestants left the show, and the show continued with 40 contestants). For Debut Diagnostic Exam 1, she joined the group First Love, together with Cho Yu-bin, as the sub-vocalist 7. She performed Lovelyz’ “Ah-choo” and barely got 8 votes. Even though the group was ranked second, it didn’t save her from elimination as she ranked the last.
Debut as EVERGLOW
Even though the result of the program didn’t go as what she hoped for, it didn’t stop her from fulfilling her dream. Cho Se-rim joined the other five girls in a group called EVERGLOW under Yuehua Entertainment, becoming the group’s lead vocalist and visual. On February 17th, 2019, the agency announced that they would debut a girl group named EVERGLOW. Subsequently, they revealed its members through the “Crank in Film” series on YouTube. Cho Se-rim was the third member to be revealed under the stage name Onda, meaning “come to me” in Korean.
The group debuted on March 18th, 2019, and released their first single album Arrival of Everglow with the title track “Bon Bon Chocolat.”
Recently, EVERGLOW made a comeback with their second single album Hush and the title track “Adios,” in August. Prior to the album release, they dropped individual and group teaser images and videos as well. On August 18th, they dropped the music video for the title track “Adios.”
3. BERRY GOOD – Kim Na-yeon
Debut as BERRY GOOD and Departure
Different from the previous two artists, Kim Na-yeon had debuted before participating in Idol School. She had debuted in a 5-member group called BERRY GOOD on May 21st, 2014, under Asia Bridge Entertainment. They released the debut song “Love Letter” which was a remake version of Click-B’s song from 2000.
In January 2015, Na-yeon chose to leave the group to focus on her studies along with two other members.
Joining Idol School
Kim Na-yeon had been preparing herself to join the program since the beginning of 2017. It turned out leaving the group didn’t stop her from pursuing her dream. She was 22 (Korean age) when she joined the program. After undergoing basic training, she received a total average score of 6.9 (8.3 for vocal, 6 for dancing, and 6.4 for physical), making her rank 10th, a good way to start. However, it didn’t last long, because after the episode ended, it was revealed that she ranked 40th, second to the last. In episode 2, when the girls were practicing the formation for the school anthem music video, Na-yeon was seen to be struggling and was the worst student in the mid-way of the broadcast. She even apologized and pleaded for votes at the end of the live updates. As a result, she went up to ranking 36th. For Debut Diagnostic Exam 1, Na-yeon was included in group Bebley where she performed Red Velvet’s “Rookie.” She became the main vocalist and received 52 individual votes. Her group came to be placed 5th out of 8. Nonetheless, she had shown her vocal ability well that she went up to ranking 28th after previously being ranked 38th in episode 3.
For Debut Diagnostic Exam 2, Na-yeon was included in the class Advanced Vocals named 꿈을 모아서 (By Collecting Dreams). In episode 5, they were all seen preparing for their performance, at the end of the episode, Na-yeon’s ranking was revealed to be 26th out of 32. The class she was in performed a song from S.E.S titled “Just in Love.” During the practice, Na-yeon was acknowledged for her similar vocal to S.E.S’ Bada so she got the killing part for the song which had a high note in it. Na-yeon, again, managed to show her skill and received 85.6 points, making her rank first within her group. Her group also managed to beat the other advanced group. As a result, Na-yeon’s ranking also went up to 21st.
Next, the girls were required to do a live broadcast as hosts on Kakao TV and the winner would be determined by viewership numbers. Na-yeon with two other girls were on Channel 8 and brought the topic “Tramps Like Us.” They got 5.9% viewership and placed 8th out of 11. Nayeon managed to climb up by ranking 21st, regardless. For the Debut Diagnostic Exam 3, the girls would learn and perform a song from current or former members of various girl groups. Na-yeon, along with other four girls learned and performed GFriend’s “Rough.” Although she got to do the killing parts like before, she only received a score of 74.9 and placed 3rd within her group.
As a result, she ranked 20th and unfortunately had to wrap up her participation in the show and was eliminated. Currently, she is active as a cover-song YouTuber in her own channel 믿고듣나연KIMNAYEON. Check one of her cover songs below! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfcgncTWsc0
