Who is BABYMONSTER? Meet YG's new girl group

Ahyeon, a member candidate of upcoming girl group BABYMONSTER / Courtesy of YG Entertainment

YG's new girl group to debut amid high hopes

By Dong Sun-hwa

Following the stellar success of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK, its management company YG Entertainment has taken a quick step to prepare for the next game ― launching a new female act to walk in the footsteps of the quartet, which is currently having its largest-ever world tour for some 1.5 million fans worldwide.

BABYMONSTER ― YG's first girl group in seven years after BLACKPINK's debut in 2016 ― will reportedly burst onto the K-pop scene in the first half of this year. The K-pop powerhouse recently unveiled details about the members who are likely to join the group: three Korean (Ahyeon, Haram and Rora), two Thai (Pharita and Chiquita) and two Japanese (Ruka and Asa). According to YG, only those who pass the “final test” will be part of BABYMONSTER. The selection process will be disclosed on a new reality show titled, “BABYMONSTER ― 'Last Evaluation,'” which will premiere on YouTube, March 10.

Ahyeon is an all-rounder excelling in singing, dancing and rapping. Haram is a vocalist with a unique voice, who was praised by BLACKPINK's Rose. Rora used to be a member of a kid idol group, which was comprised of young singers mostly aged between 9 and 14.

Pharita joined YG after passing an audition with a competition ratio of 1226:1. The 13-year-old Chiquita is the youngest member of the team, and is known as a vocalist with a crystal-clear voice. She became part of BABYMONSTER just three months after becoming an idol trainee at YG. Ruka is a flawless dancer with a great command of Korean, while Asa is a talented rapper.

Pharita, a member candidate of upcoming girl group BABYMONSTER / Courtesy of YG Entertainment

“Debuting is like realizing my first dream,” Haram said in a YouTube video introducing her. “It also means the starting of a new dream.”

BABYMONSTER already has more than 1 million subscribers on YouTube. It only took 52 days for the group to reach the milestone after opening its channel on Dec. 28.

According to the group's producer Yang Hyun-suk, BABYMONSTER is made up of “babies with YG's DNA.” Yang, who founded YG in 1996, stepped down as its CEO in 2019 after being accused of several criminal charges including blackmail, but returned to the company earlier this year.

“I hope the members can wow the world in the same way they surprised me with their monthly performances over the last four years,” he said in January.

BABYMONSTER is likely to become a determining factor of YG's future.

“There is still uncertainty surrounding BLACKPINK, as the time for the members' contract renewal is nearing,” Choi Min-ha, senior analyst at Samsung Securities, was quoted as saying. “Nevertheless, BABAYMONSTER's debut is likely to ramp up YG's mid- to long-term growth.”