'A2K': Girl group competition series from JYP Entertainment to premiere

[Source]

After nearly a year since the announcement of JYP Entertainment and Republic Records' K-pop competition series, “A2K” will premiere on Thursday.

About the show: The series, titled "America 2 Korea" or “A2K,” will document the creation of the first-ever American girl group trained through the K-pop system.

An announcement was made last year through a video featuring JYP Entertainment founder and chairman Park Jin-young and Republic Records founder and CEO Monte Lipman.

More from NextShark: 5 exciting things to watch out for in ‘Bleach: TYBW’ cour 2 and beyond

Auditions and selection process: JYP Entertainment and Republic Records conducted in-person auditions in major cities across the United States and Canada, including Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas. Viewers can watch as hopeful candidates between the ages of 12 and 16 showcase their skills in four categories: dancing, singing, star quality and character.

Those who pass the initial stages are given an opportunity to perform for Park. If they impress him, they will be selected to move onto a boot camp in Los Angeles. After that initial training, exceptional talent will advance to train at JYP Entertainment in Seoul. Park and other JYP executives will assess and decide the final lineup.

First episode overview and streaming details: Leading up to the premiere, various JYP Entertainment artists such as TWICE and Stray Kids dropped video messages wishing luck to the “A2K” contestants.

More from NextShark: EXO’s Lay Zhang goes ‘West’ in new EP

The first episode will follow candidates from the Dallas and Chicago auditions. Among them, three girls in particular will be highlighted as global superstar contenders. It will also introduce the coveted "A2K" pendant, the key to advancing to the boot camp stage.

More from NextShark: ‘The YouTubers who raised us’: TikTok trend pays homage to the ‘Ryan Higa Era’ of online video content

"A2K" premieres on July 13 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, exclusively on JYP Entertainment's official YouTube channel. Subsequent episodes will be available for streaming every Monday and Thursday at the same time.

Enjoy this content? Read more from NextShark!

Chinese and S. Korean ballerinas win prestigious best female dancer at Benois de la Danse