However, if you look a little deeper, it is a very complex and multi-layered project. Boys Planet - BP (the first series) premiered on Mnet on 2 February 2023. However, it is in turn the spin-off/male version of Girls Planet -GP 999, a singing competition featuring 99 female trainees that aired in mid to late 2021. The 7-piece (formerly 9, but 2 left) girl group made their debut on 3 January 2022 as Kep1er. It was a good deal: upon release, the group achieved immediate commercial success, selling around 400,000 copies and peaking at number 1 on the South Korean Gaon Album Chart.
But if we go back further in time, both BP and GP999 are themselves successors to Mnet's former music competition show series Produce, a group of K-pop talent shows - including the formats Produce 101, Produce 101 Season 2, Produce 48 and Produce X 101, all of which aired on Mnet between 2016 and 2019, and were created with the aim of forming disposable successful bands.
But let us return to to Boys Planet. After a massive casting process (involving thousands of participants from 84 countries and regions, including South Korea, other parts of Asia, Europe, America and the Middle East, and 229 management agencies!), 98 finalists were selected and divided into K-Group (Korea) and G-Group (Global). The aim was to create a "global group" that would dominate the K-pop industry and have a worldwide impact. In the finale on 20 April 2023, which was broadcast live, the show announced the final nine members who will debut as Zerobaseone (ZB1).
This operation was also a commercial success: ZB1's first EP, Youth in the Shade, sold over two million copies and debuted at number one on the South Korean Circle Album Chart. The group also achieved a ‘Rookie Grand Slam’ (2023-2024) by sweeping the 10 Rookie of the Year awards from various domestic award ceremonies, including the Golden Disc Awards, MAMA Awards, Melon Music Awards and Seoul Music Awards.
(Axel Fiacco)
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