Following their debut in 2015, TWICE has become one of the most successful rookie group in the history of K-pop. Their success does not happen in one night, but a result of hard work which they endured since they were elected as trainees. One of the member, Momo, shares the hardship she experienced as trainee in JYP Entertainment.
Momo shares her experience in an special broadcast, titled "Beautiful TWICE MOMO #2." The broadcast was transmitted over Naver V+ app starting Aug. 18. According to Soompi, Momo shared how she felt as a young Japanese girl when she first came to Korea to be a trainee.
"I was chubby at first. I was also really bad at Korean. I didn't talk at all. The only things I knew how to say were 'I don't know,' 'No,' 'Yes,' and 'I want to eat.' I'm a little shy, too, so it was difficult to get close to people," she said in the broadcast.
Born in Kyoto, Japan as Hirai Momo, she was an avid dancer at her young age. She was inspired by the the most famous Japanese female singer Amuro Namie, so she decided to become a singer. A representative from K-pop powerhouse, JYP Entertainment, saw her dance video with her sister and invited them to an audition. She was only 16 years old when she was accepted as a trainee in JYP in 2012.
After a three-year hard work as trainee, JYP Entertainment initiated a reality show "Sixteen" in Mnet. The reality show was designed as a competition between JYP's trainees to form a new girl group.
The reality show ended with seven girls selected to become a new girl group under JYP Entertainment. Momo, who was known as a fantastic dancer that chose jazz punk as her favorite dance genre was not selected. However, later on, Momo and Tzuyu joined the seven members, making it a nine member group.
They debuted in October 2015 and gain a huge success in a short time. Within a month of its debut, the group has scored 1.8 billion won ($1.6 million) commercial endorsement contract. In KCON Los Angeles earlier this month, Billboard reported that TWICE is one of the hottest act.
Through the hardship since her trainee years, Momo built her confidence as a great dancer. She is now the main dancer of TWICE.
