2 weeks Ago By N/A (Jonathan Hicap)
Trainees under NewKids, an upcoming K-pop boy band from agency Starship Entertainment, are making waves even before their official debut. Their journey to stardom is being captured in “Debut’s Plan”, a large-scale global project that has been airing every Friday at 9:30 p.m.
(KST) on the official YouTube channel “NewKids on the Starship” since March 14. The show has quickly gone viral—amassing over 45 million views across platforms. Trainees under NewKids from “NewKids on the STARSHIP.
” (Starship Entertainment) An interactive fan-participation series, “Debut’s Plan,” follows the 21 NewKids trainees as they take on various missions, showcasing their talents and growth. Fans are directly involved in shaping the final group, with debut members to be selected through a global voting system. It’s a debut process truly co-created with the public.
The 21 trainees were selected through “2025 NewKids on the Starship,” an audition program held last summer. Since then, they have been training intensively and competing to secure their place in the final debut lineup. In the episodes released to date, NewKids have demonstrated remarkable versatility—not only excelling in vocals and dance but also showing strong stage presence and impressive acting skills.
Their growth has been met with widespread acclaim, with many fans praising their evolution into well-rounded, next-generation idols. To further strengthen their performance skills, Starship Entertainment recently produced the original drama “ImPerfect Game”, in collaboration with the director of “Itaewon Class” and the writer of “Nonstop 5.” The story centers on a group of boys reigniting their passion for baseball as they chase a championship—and, along the way, find personal reconciliation.
The drama has drawn attention for both its emotional depth and the trainees’ compelling performances. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, with fans flooding the comment sections with praise: “Everything was perfect.” “I didn’t expect a full-length drama from an audition series.
” “They can act too? I’m even more excited for their debut!” Starship Entertainment plans to launch the official NewKids lineup later this year based on the fan voting results from “Debut’s Plan.” This will mark Starship’s move to debut a new boy band in five years following the success of Monsta X (2015) and Cravity (2020)—and is attracting considerable attention from both fans and industry watchers alike. Meanwhile, the highly anticipated episode 8, titled “Pre-Debut Evaluation,” will mark the project’s first live broadcast.
It is scheduled to air on April 25 at 8 p.m. (KST) via the “NewKids on the Starship” YouTube channel.
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