Bless these kids for having the wisdom and foresight to realised how toxic and abusive the industry is.

The k-industry is harsh & abusive Luckily the kids understand the difficulty!

Oversaturated is an understatement, there are tons of groups we will never hear about before they disband

thank god minors are not auditioning

Honestly with the amount of Downsides of the kpop industry such as overworking, strict dieting, harsh beauty standards and not being able to have a dating life, it's understandable that people will realize that it's toxic and not healthy. I'm glad kids are not wanting to go in the industry, as it's more healthier for them to have a childhood than giving it away just for fame and Money. Memories last a lifetime while fame and money don't.

With the amount of rude people treating idols like shit i expected this Edit: not that person but 12k in 2 weeks is CRAZYYY bro

these kids must be watching kpop survival shows and witnessed the most talented trainees get eliminated

Kids are choosing the right thing👍🏻 Fame and spotlights aren’t the most important thing in life. Able to live your life, enjoy time with the ones you love and your friends, having a healthy body instead of fitting into crazy kbs ... are so much happier

I’m glad kids are a lot more wiser nowadays

Wow these kids are smart. If I was a middle-scholer, I would do anything to become an idol. They can become famous in different way, without years of labor.

Maybe if they didn’t see people older than 20 as “past their prime” and treated artists like human beings this wouldn’t be a problem.

I hope it keeps decresing to the point the whole industry change

If companies would stop abusing their idols, maybe more people would wanna become K-pop idols.

Social media may play a major role into this. Where I live, most young people want to be influencers. Compared to idols, its half the effort, double the resources

It's a ridiculously oversaturated market and a correction is long overdue.

thats actually good, alot of them give up their education and dont end up succeeding as idols. many former idols said they regret it due to the industry and how much they struggle with money unless u reach celebrity status

Let's not forget, kids see how these idols are treated in the media and want no parts. It no longer makes sense to sign up to get abused by your company then bullied by the public

Maybe that’ll teach agencies to treat their trainees better.

I think K-pop has already reached its peak

Well, maybe cuz people who want to be idols are seen as "too old" by kpop companies. There are for sure many who still want to be idols but companies nowadays just want the freaking kids.

thank god. over 100 groups debut a year yet only a few get popular. if you were one of those who debuted in a group and didnt get any success thats like 2-4 years of training down the drain, its no wonder why so many quit and go to college

Hopefully this encourages ent. companies to debut more grown adults in their 20s and 30s

Oh no they're gonna have to debut adults 😱 Lmao

To be honest school students were sacrificing their whole childhood and time to enjoy childhood with friends. And even those sacrifices won't guarantee a fixed result. There were many trainees before who trained for years but the company didn't choose them to join any group. Many are doing part time jobs after leaving their company.

With how netizens and “fans” are towards idols, yeah no sh*t less people are auditioning. I can’t imagine what these idols go through daily with the constant hate and backlash they get for the smallest things from complete strangers. I just feel so bad for them

I don't understand, there are many trained kpop idols who are 24+ that are looking for companies to sign them, why don't they just debut them?

I think this will lead to older ppl debuting and elongating the careers of current active groups if they decide to continue being together, no more group disbandments when they don't want to or companies putting groups in the dungeon/groups being practically abandoned for the shiny new group. I think it will also lead to more successful long term soloists whether they remain in their group or leave/they disband.

as they should. I’m glad kids are starting to look ahead into different paths instead of setting straight for an idol life just bc they see lots of groups going famous. they’re choosing the right path by looking into different careers instead, especially since they actually get to live their life instead of it being controlled by a company and their fans

Also some extremely talented groups like KISS OF LIFE don’t get the recognition they deserve so they’re not wasting their time and thats good

Tbh I'm kinda happy 😂

That sounds like a win, kids have now a realistic expectation, and thise that go in are mentally prepared for what to expect. The industry should focus on quality over saturating tge market with quantity

Entertainment industry is too harsh and everyone knows how much difficulties idols go through.

It also has to do with parents. The more stories of failed idols there are, the more parents are less willing to allow their children to walk down that difficult path.

With the reality that theres’s a 99% chance you will make more money flipping burgers than being an Idol after four years, this doesn’t surprise me.

im not surprised by this, they really took "i ain't taking your shit'' to another level

maybe if we also Stan underrated kpop groups… we wouldn’t need to worry that much. There’s over 100+ underrated kpop groups (example, POW, BDC, epex, bae173, onlyoneof, etc etc etc.)

it’s such an extremely grueling process for such a slim chance of success. and you have to sacrifice your formative years, in addition to your chances of studying successfully in school. with terrible odds and no stable backup plan, no wonder more people are choosing not to

Why is this alarming??? This is good!!

We cheered! The industry is so toxic

Personally speaking, I'm ok with this. Less groups debuting = less of my friends trying to put new groups in my face when I'm already set in stone with the select few I like.

Which is why kpop companies are holding more kpop auditions abroad more than ever. Though koreans are very naturalistic and would rather their groups to be mostly korean.

I kind of expected this. Like the kpop industry is just not a good one. like... 💀💀

One could hope that the agencies would start treating their trainees and idols better if less and less trainees start coming, but they probably just lower debut standard and hide it behind marketing and voice enhancement when mixing the songs in the studio.

I think a lot of them aspire to be influencers now, it’s a lot less effort and you have way more freedom. Good for them, the kpop industry is cruel to adults, let alone children.

I think this is a better thing for so many reasons but one aside from the obvious is the intense saturation of kpop. There's just too many groups for a majority to be successful and I feel like with less trainees and idols, you'll likely get more trained idols because their training is more focused and netizens can actually focus on several groups

If that’s so, then I’m glad it’s happening and more people are becoming aware of the harsh and even inhumane conditions that kpop artists have to go through before and after debut as it’s now visible. Not only artists but the fans have to also realise that in most times it’s about a disfuctional industry that won’t take into account their artists wants and needs. They’re above all human and this constant pressure to look about perfect all the time seems not right to me and I hate that they’re pushing it.

I have never wanted to be a kpop idol. I stan a lot of groups and I became I'm a huge fan, but I don't like trainees and idols' lives. They are dolls of their company, they are constantly overworked...

And this is why we’re seeing more and more foreigners debut 🤷‍♀️

It's a good thing if many of these young people choose to have real jobs...like being doctors and teachers.

I wouldn’t want to be an idol either, people are crazy

Honestly, thank god! Can you imagine how many really very talented trainees never get to debut? And all because they didn’t fit the concept or they were too old or not pretty enough. Spending years of hard work and money just to not debut with no other steady carreer perspective, is scary!

this is great! more kids will aspire to choose jobs that will make them happy without any borderline illegal child labour

i hope that since there will be a shortage, those who are already trainees can debut sooner (since most of them never debut)

Everyone likes to talk about how harsh the industry is and completely ignore how toxic the fans can be.

This is kinda a good thing

I thought of hype and cube the first thing why the industry is declining

Maybe some of them are thinking that training for a long time is useless as there r a lot of talented trainees who didn't get to debut... They can just participate in a survival show that allow kids who didn't get any training and if they r good looking the more chances to debut..less effort...😂

Good to hear. I can't imagine how much harm the industry does to idols mental health

With how strict it is when it comes to dieting, dating, etc. I am not surprised.

They can actually enjoy their lives now

*sighs in relief*

Netizens saying the industry is abusive when they themselves are the ones who hate minors such as ahyeon, illit and other idols who are just minors

This actually makes me so happy. These kids will live happy, healthy, peaceful lives without being abused by the entertainment industry. I love my fav groups but ultimately I wish they had a much healthier environment. If it means they quit being idols then I’ll support them. I hope things continue to improve in the future 🩷

it’s not even bad considering not even 100 trainees have even debut by those same companies

I mean it's true, because many child/teen sacrifice their education and childhood in hopes of debuting as idols, and many of them didn't make it to their debut after sacrificing everything, even when they debut they have to go through obstacles to maintain their quality to be successful otherwise their sacrifice and struggle will be in vain, As I said, going back to the beginning, maybe many people will be more interested in being an influence or becoming a social media celebrity, rather than having to sacrifice mentally and physically. _For example : (i'm just using it as an example) Jihyo and BangChan, imagine Jihyo, who has been a trainee for 10 years, sacrificing her childhood when she was supposed to playing around with her friends but she instead of learning to dance and sing if she failing to debut, it would definitely be very painful and very sad, BangChan who also had to wait 7 years to wait for his time, seeing all of his friends finally debut he was the only one left, imagine if at that time he didn't get the chance to participate in survival and gain confidence in choosing he's own members, He will forever always wait for time to debut while seeing everyone his age debut while he doesn't. But yeah luckly they are also accompanied by a strong and hard struggle so that they can achieve it, maybe that is what is thinking in the minds of today's children, how hard the struggle is to become an idol, especially in this toxic industry, where they ask for perfection and beauty always._ *last* "I just want to say, for those of you who have sacrificed your childhood for the sake of your future, you are great, keep moving forward, maybe sometimes it hurts a little but you survived, and at least you have secured your future! For those of you who haven't, enjoyed your youth, collect as much happiness and memories as possible so that in the future you can remember and realize that you have enough time to be happy and ready to walk into the real world"

The risk doesn't match the returns. Imagine being a trainee for over 10 years and not getting to debut. Some of these trainees left school and put their other dreams on ice to be an idol. Jihyo of twice started training at 8-10 years old. Lily and Bang Chan also trained a long time. CHAN used to say he saw a lot of people come and go so these kids should save themselves. If they want to be famous there's different routes to get there.

I don't blame them! Many train for years, but never debut. For the ones who DO debut, they're signed to a slave contract with slim odds of enjoying decent success or money. For the ones who DO enjoy decent success and money, all it takes is one human error, and rabid netizens will scandalize that person and demand he or she be cancelled forever. It's too much risk and not enough reward to justify.

It has a lot to do with the fact that if you devote your life to a career like this, and fail in debuting, you have nothing to show for it. That experience doesn’t transfer over into the real world

Er I'm currently 13 and seriously thinking about auditioning into YG Ent by the end of 2024 so don't judge people just because we're young. Talent counts much more and even though we will get hate for things it's not like the people that criticize us can do anything!!!!!

if you have a love for art, specifically music, try to do as much as you can independently. being an independent artist can be hard and a tad bit overwhelming. its not just the kpop industry, but the music industry as a whole is just a mess, so i would recommend just not signing you and your art to someone at all. but if you do feel comfortable being signed with a label, no matter where you live, DO YOUR RESEARCH. weigh the pros and cons of each company/label, see how artists both in the past and in the present have been treated, and i would even tell you to go aa far as looking for songs by artists that their company/label didnt let them publically/officially release, lool for patterns. basically, do everything you can to establish yourself, your sound, and your overall craft before thinking about getting signed anywhere. you being "tough" or "strong willed" does not mean willingly put yourself and your health in danger to achieve a dream.

Plus the cost of trying to become an idol in the Kpop system is way too much for your average family in Korea that is struggling. That's why many of the debuting idols come from well off families, like all the members of Blackpink. Idol trainees rack up a lot of debt, for training, dormitories, instructors, etc, and may never debut. 90% never debut. It's worse than going to college on student loans, then being flunked out after 1-3 years. Then what? You're not trained or educated on anything but entertainment, which is an unreliable source of income, especially as you age.

To become an idol it's almost like you're giving away every possible freedom you could have for yourself. Its a nice and glamourous life but definitely not worth what you have to give in return.

Maybe this would push the industry to actually value and develop the talent that comes through their doors. **MAYBE** 👀

Yes, it's happening 😊 keep it up. Let's stop this crazyness and force companies to change

Look at the economic state of THE WORLD I am sure even parents are telling their kids that there is no room for risk anymore.

Maybe they'll resort to recruiting more adults

It's a good thing. I hope now industry will debut and focus on adult to take

As an 5 grade graduate I want to audition to be An kpop idol despite knowing how toxic and honestly what a horrible industry it is I think there's still a lot of people wanting to to idols but is just scared to tell anyone like me 😊

Yes, the industry is abusive. However, this doesnt mean theyre giving up fame or spotlight. A lot of the newer generations are trying to reach that by being social media enfluencers, tik tokers, streamers, etc.

I wanted to become a K-pop idol in the future but I am from an European country that has no idols from. I have a lot of talent as I got a lot of music and dance lessons since I was a little kid but going to Korea is my biggest problem. Lately I debuted as a theatre actress in my country and I sing and act on stage. I am almost 14 years old so I think I am the perfect age to get the audition.

The industry is incredibly rough especially when you’re just starting out. Everything honestly stems on luck - it’s not just hard work and determination anymore. Not to mention, the industry has always targeted KIDS (teenagers included) to become idols. I at least like the fact that we have had a few debut groups in recent years where all the members are of age. THIS should be normalized. I understand that the training period takes more than a year, but come on. Now that I’m much older, it would be nice to see more groups containing members over 20 years old.

They choosed happiness over depression

i don’t see how this is a bad thing. tbh i think most people want to become idols not because they actually have a passion for music, but because it’s easy money. just look at the rates that these idols are getting paid, most are making hundreds to thousands of dollars in a SINGLE DAY as opposed to making that same amount every two weeks working a 9-5. but now that the world is witnessing how truly terrible idol life is and how poorly idols get treated by companies, media, and fans, i think a lot of people are realizing that being an idol really isn’t worth the self torture no matter how good the pay may be.

Good, now we can focus on the existing artists.

Kids now are smart

That's good. The idol industry is oversaturared. These kpop companies needs to focus on their groups & stop debuting new ones for the sake of more money.

Idol job isn't easy, perhaps even one of the hardest job and the chance you will get successful is 50/50. Idol is at the lowest respected celebrity in Korean intertainment hierarchy. If they are dreaming to become idol, they have to start to keep their past clean from early days. In this modern days where internet is growing, just a little action despite wrong or right, if it's not fit with society standard or just simply trigger the internet netizen, they got criticized. I see kid these days only like to become youtuber or streamer. Kpop start to have more foreigner but less Korean idol.

So does that mean should I now leave my dream?😢 I have read the comments below and also I know the dark and bad side in the industry but maybe I'm just too blind to focus on it and instead focusing on that I'll perform, I'll make music, I'll be able to live the life I've always desired, be able to give and receive love from fans and all this. I really love music and dancing/ performing in particular....But now with the negativity and all should I drop it and think of another career? (Although I dont want to, I always get that feeling that even for a short period but all that worths it)..😐and I'm non-Korean Asian I hope someone please reply me

this is a good thing, the industry is oversaturated and way too many kids spend their childhoods training instead of school, only to debut in a nugu group that goes broke and disbands within 2 years

I'm glad minors are realizing how horrible the industry is and wont waste half their childhood just for them not to become an idol after years of hard work, dedication and abuse.

Honestly, now either you have to be extremely beautiful or extremely talented to active a higher status (in my opinion). There were to many dozens on the industry in the past. There may be groups that aren't that talented and are popular now but I doubt that the members of the group will have longevity in the industry. Ps: I wasn't shading anyone, in fact, I think Le Sserafim hate train is overexagerated and people went overboard because they are from hybe

What’s the point of auditioning when big companies dominate the industry and said companies prefer to debut kids from well of families. Unless you get to debut in the big 4, there’s a very slim chance of succeeding

When you need money to survive, going into risky creative fields is not safe. I used to want to be an author.

Actually, it's not about not wanting to become an idol or decreasing auditioning rates but kpop companies just don't take as much trainees in as they used to! They have become harsher so they just pick trainees that they would actually see in their group and not the "maybe" trainees anymore, which used to be the case

I dont think its this... i think it is because the companies have way to high standers, examples - JYP fast to drop their trainees if they dont improve quick enough.

Phariana Grande with her high ponytail 🙂

Good for them, the industry is crazy.

That is good actually...

Good. The market's been oversaturated for more than a decade.

I pray for kpop groups ❤...not to be abused or given to satanic worship as in America...😢