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Hybe will launch a new TV idol audition program, "R U Next?" via JTBC on June 30. (Belift Lab) |
Hybe is set to air another idol survival program to discover its next girl group.
A joint project with local broadcaster JTBC, the program, "R U Next?" aims to see the finalist members debut as the first girl group of Belift Lab, a indie label affiliated to Hybe.
Belift Lab on Thursday said it has begun shooting the program, which is produced by Studio Jamm and Mushroom Company.
The 10-episode series will begin airing on June 30 via JTBC and air every Friday at 8: 50 p.m.
The show will produce the second idol band to debut through a TV audition program under Belift Lab.
Belift Lab is a joint venture established in 2018 by Hybe and local entertainment conglomerate CJ ENM, which runs the nation's biggest K-pop channel Mnet. At the time, Hybe was known by its former name, Big Hit Entertainment.
Global K-pop boy band Enhypen debuted via Mnet's 2020 survival show "I-Land" and began its career in September that year as Belift Lab's first idol group. "I-Land" had been jointly produced by Big Hit Entertainment and CJ ENM.
"R U Next?" is a completely different project from "I-Land," Belift Lab said on Thursday.
The girls have trained at Belift Lab under the multi-label system of Hybe that works to guarantee the independence of its individual labels. "R U Next?" will be the final stage of debut for the girls, the agency explained.
Hybe had not yet taken on its multi-label form in 2020 when Enhypen had debuted under Belift Lab. In March 2021, Big Hit Entertainment officially announced its new start as entertainment lifestyle company Hybe.
Hit girl groups NewJeans and Le Sserafim debuted under Hybe's new system last year -- NewJeans under Ador and Le Sserafim under Source Music.
Also housed under Hybe are BTS and Tomorrow X Together of Big Hit Music, and Seventeen and fromis_9 of Pledis Entertainment.
"R U Next?" will also be aired in Japan via online streaming service Abema TV.
