Music / Idols
20111219_seoulbeats_smaudition

SM Global Audition: Only Asians Need Apply?

64
Written by On December 19, 2011

Beginning in January 2012, SM Entertainment will be hosting a global audition in Korea, China, Japan, Canada, and the United States in search of new, fresh talent who are willing and ready to exchange their status as normal human beings for a shot at K-pop stardom. So if that sounds like it might be you, check out the multi-lingual promotional video below! (Or check it out if you want to see some pretty priceless shots of SHINee sans makeup and looking pale as death.)

SM Entertainment last held a global audition in 2009, and many of the same complaints that arose with the 2009 audition seem to be popping up again. According to my observations, the two primary complaints surrounding the audition are:

  1. Why isn’t there an audition in my country? There are tons of K-pop fans here! Does SM even know what the word “global” means?
  2. SM says that they welcome anyone who wishes to participate, but in the end they’ll only pick people who are of Chinese, Japanese, or Korean heritage. But people of all ethnicities like K-pop. Why so racist, SM?

Indeed, SM’s audition requirements are rather exclusionary on grounds apart from sheer talent and ability, so the frustrations of those ineligible or unable to audition are understandable. But at the same time, there also seems to be quite a bit of confusion amongst the fans as to what an audition actually means.

An audition is not a K-pop event, and it is not meant to attract or cater to K-pop fans. The financial expenses in holding overseas auditions are significant: airfare, audition location booking fees, the judges’ salaries, transportation. Considering the fact that SM doesn’t charge a fee to audition, this means that SM has everything to lose by holding an audition overseas. The only thing that SM has to gain is the minute chance that they will discover a potentially trainable and marketable talent amongst thousands and thousands of other audition hopefuls.

So of course SM’s not going to leap at the idea of holding auditions in Europe, Brazil, Thailand, or the Democratic Republic of the Congo because even if there’s a sizable K-pop fan population to be found in those countries (and you know how the Congolese get down), there’s no guarantee that SM will find whatever-it-is-that-they’re-looking-for within those countries. Of course, one could easily argue that this boils down to a battle of unfair stereotypes (“But I live in Europe and there are tons of talented people living here who could outperform most K-pop stars with their eyes closed!”). But after SM held that out-of-the-blue audition in Kazakhstan last year, I’ve become convinced that SM probably does a ton of research in preparation for picking the locations for these global auditions.

It seems to me that SM does these global auditions because they’re looking for people who, by merit of their nationality alone, can help SM expand throughout the Asian market. For one, that’s probably the logic behind that infamous line in SM’s older global audition advertisement videos (“We welcome people of all nationalities, whether you’re Chinese, Japanese, or Korean”), as well as the reason why SM doesn’t hold auditions in Southeast Asian countries. SM’s primary targets within Asia are the Chinese and Japanese markets, so it would be extremely beneficial to SM to have artists who are ethnically Chinese or Japanese who would thus be more appealing to Chinese and Japanese people. Why else do you think Henry — the only Super Junior-M member of Taiwanese heritage — is the most popular member of Super Junior-M in Taiwan?

Henry and Amber are perhaps the two strongest cases supporting this theory. Henry and Amber were the only two people scouted from the US/Canada auditions who have made it to debut. The majority of participants at the last few US/Canada auditions were Korean-American…and yet, Henry and Amber are both Chinese-American. Likewise, both of their careers are heavily defined by their Chinese ethnicity, and within their respective groups, they are used to propel the entire group forward within the Chinese market. The addition of Henry and Amber’s proficiency in English serves as a valuable asset. The United States and Canada both host large numbers of young, second-generation Asian-Americans/Canadians who are oftentimes bilingual in both English and their parents’ language. For this reason alone, the United States and Canada are valuable locations for SM. I wouldn’t be surprised if SM started hosting global auditions in Australia and the UK as both countries also host significant overseas Asian populations. And it certainly doesn’t hurt that SM is becoming an increasingly recognizable brand in both countries.

Similar arguments could be said of Victoria, Zhou Mi, and Hangeng. The success garnered from SM’s Chinese artists are reason enough for SM to continue holding auditions in China year after year. And this year, SM is holding a global audition in Japan for the very first time. The reason for doing so is rather obvious: With SM targeting the Japanese market more strongly than ever before, it would be infinitely beneficial for SM to have an ethnically Japanese artist working for them.

Many believe that all SM and SM-related events are supposed to cater to K-pop fans, and while this belief stands true in most situations, the one glaring exception is the SM Global Audition. Unlike concerts and fanmeets, the SM Global Audition is very much a business event, and SM’s going to approach the event in a business-forward manner. Does this mean that some fans are going to be disappointed? Of course. But once one considers the fact that the point of the SM Global Audition isn’t to please the fans, one might think it wiser to just invest one’s time in trying to convince SM to bring SMTown Live to their country instead…since, you know, that seems to become every international fan’s favorite pastime as of late.

In any case, the global auditions will start in Pusan, Korea on January 7th, and will hit five different locations in Korea before moving on to Shanghai and Beijing in China; New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles in the United States; Vancouver and Toronto in Canada; and lastly, Tokyo and Osaka in Japan. A full list of audition dates, locations, as well as registration information can be found at the SMTown global audition website.

(SMTOWN)

Related Posts

TAGS: , , ,
  • Anonymous

    I’m sorry, I didn’t realize Spock was a member of SHINee.

    • http://evacuatewithstyle.org/blog Amy

      AHAHAHAHAHA.

    • Anonymous

      LMAO. XD

    • http://twitter.com/slowdanse V.I.U

      DEAD at this.

  • Guest

    This applies to all of the big 3.

    • Anonymous

      This applies to all korean entertainment companies.

  • Shante Payne

    Amber is Taiwanese 

    • spikedangel

      true, but still Han Chinese

    • anonanon

      and Nichkun is Thai-Chinese-American

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Anngelica-Aguilar/100000185514336 Anngelica Aguilar

    I understand why they’d target only people of some kind of Asian decent. Who’s going to want to watch a Plain looking Mexican-American girl like me singing in Korean and trying to pull off aegyo? That’s just a mess. It’s like asking to be criticized.
    I don’t know how these kpop fans can feel “discriminated” against. There’s a reason why it’s called Kpop…sad but true.

  • Nabeela

    itll be interesting to see what happens when a japanese person enters k-pop….

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_HIYKUBIKH3B4JJ7DD6CEMSWSWE Eli

      no it’s not.  welcome to 15 years ago

      there are already japanese in korean entertainment.

      • Anonymous

        They mean singing Korean pop….

        I have yet to see a full blown Japanese person singing Korean professionally

        • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_HIYKUBIKH3B4JJ7DD6CEMSWSWE Eli

          why would that be “interesting to see what happens.”  as i say there’s many Japanese in Korean entertainment what’s going to be different about Kpop.  they’re even on the shows and have the same management/producers.

        • Pg13247

          There was a group back in 2007 called Cats where the leader was Japanese. Her name was Ayaka but she had a korean name: Soon Shim. They promoted till their second song and then disappeared without any news. It was quite odd as they were pretty decent at lives. Bae Seul Ki even tried to help them promote.

    • Maeau

      Ah! There was a Korean girl but raised in Japan since toddler days idol back in Xmen days, she was in Sugar. Her name was Ayumi, but she ended up not doing so well and went back to Japan where she launched a successful career under ICONIQ. Her group didn’t do well, her solo attempt ended boringly. I kind of want to see someone debut from Japan now though, I think it’ll be more interesting.

  • Anonymous

    I want to see someone browner than Sooyoung or Jonghyun in SM and no brightening cream please , accept theeemmmm 

  • Anonymous

    I did not know Victoria was Chinese. Now her pairing with Nichkhun on WGM makes sense. At the same time, is it racist of the producers to have paired those two together?

    I don’t get the racism charges for keeping Kpop relatively homogenous. After all, K does stand for Korean, right? Can we expect Korea to be as much of a melting pot as the U.S.? I don’t think it will ever happen so it’s not realistic to expect Korean’s entertainment industry to start resembling the globalness of its fan bases. While exceptions do exist, R&B/hip hop is predominately black; majority of British rock bands will look white; and American country music is definitely white. What they look like is part of the equation here so I do expect Kpop artists to look predominately East Asian. If I wanted to watch non-Asian people sing Kpop, I would have stuck to the array of American entertainment that’s available to me.

    • Guest

      Good point. 

    • ML

      not to burst your bubble but there are quite a handful of blacks bursting up in the country scene

      • Anonymous

        I’m sure there are exceptions to every rule. I try to avoid country music the best I can. The last I checked, it was pretty white.

        • ML

          True, true. I was just responding to your “definitely white”, didn’t mean for it to sound so defensive.

    • Anonymous

      so if you are black and want to sing country music you cant? racist idiot. im black and love kpop and am a singer as well. i HATE american music, the english language is so blah. if you want to live in your own little world of close mindedness then so be it, dont impede upon someone else’s drive.
      majority isnt the rule, if it was there wouldnt be any diversity anywhere. someone somewhere had to be the first.
      there was a first female doctor
      there was a first black president
      there will be a first non asian kpop singer
      p.s. japan has jero (his moms half black and japanese and his dads full black). the boy doesnt look asian at all but he moved to japan and pursued his dream of being a japanese singer. his dream came true because he has exceptional talent and has been very successful. there is also greg of the new classics and as was mentioned before krystal kay who isnt even japanese but korean and black but has been accepted in japan because they are TALANTED. its the same thing in america. someone will be the first asian singer to blow up and be accepted its just a matter of time.
      im betting we’ll see a non asian in korea before we see a asian in america though. superstar k has had two non asian contestants so far. maybe superstar k4 will have one that actually wins but even if not there are many people who are pursuing careers in asian entertainment who are not asian, japan has been very accepting of this but japan has always been outside the norm/ahead of the curb.

      • Anonymous

        I don’t think I said black people couldn’t sing country, but they’re definitely not the norm. I agree–someone has to be the deviant in every rule. I think that’s been broken in Kpop at least once or twice by now. But don’t cry foul because SM Town isn’t looking for you in particular.

      • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RPNOS4ZPIMWDEPSY45PHUOEJR4 Dizzy

        Whatever you says, SME will never choose you or any talented black people because it will be a gamble for them to debut you or any talented black people since they don’t know whether you or any talented black people will sell. YGE might accept them, but SME will never accept unless some other company manage to prove that black talented people are sold out in Asia.

      • bystander

        Well…isnt Charice asian? She was big in the US for a little bit until, what it seemed like, other news trumped her. Just saying.

  • eboy07

    Pretty fly for an non asian ????
    Gimme  a break.

  • Anonymous

    Like the others below me, I totally agree..there’s nothing racist about K-pop remaining Korean because really the K does stand for Korean. If anything they’re nothing but a bunch of hypocrites.

    Personally I think most entertainment agencies are willing to choose other races PROVIDED they fit into the Korean’s standards of beauty and appearances. All of the people you mention above are hard to discern as uniquely Chinese/Taiwanese/Japanese since they possess features that the standard in kpop. It’s also why these agencies are less willing to recruit from SE Asian countries (hello different skin tone, and features). So yeah, they are discriminating on the basis of race, so why put on a big show about how open minded they are?

    Dear SMEnt, I’m willing to rewrite all of your ads so silly little teenagers don’t have their hearts broken.  

  • ML

    I really don’t know why people will go out of their way to audition for a far off country. I mean, if you’re a good singer can’t you try the music company down the road or smth. Just a thought, something I couldn’t understand. Maybe it’s their dream. 

    I hear you about what you wrote as it being a marketing scheme. I mean if they just wanted Asians why branch out at all, just find some amazing Koreans down the block, or a gem outside Seoul. You know it’s a marketing strategy when they’re looking for Japanese and Chinese people. I can place my money (and so will SM) that they’re probably heading for Vancouver or Toronto in Canada or maybe hit up Hawaii and Cali in US.

    • Gazexrockxbabe

      Maybe it’s bc people want to audition for a idol group and here in the states you don’t see many girl groups that stay together and are successful since the 90s. Also america has a lot of shit going on within in the music industry that is corrupt and as for britain I don’t see most artists being more famous in other countries than adelle, amy or u2 …it seems like they all disapear after 4years

  • Anonymous

    Call me idealistic, but I think things will eventually shift one day where anyone from any country will be able to sing whatever language/genre they want without hater-aid being thrown once they’ve proved themselves capable of adapting to the culture shock and possessing of the talent to be successful. I mean, think about it. Things have been slowly shifting here over the past couple decades.

    Rock/Punk/anything with a guitar was always considered a “white bread” genre, yet we have/had Jimmy Hendrix, Prince, Tina Turner, etc. and they’re successful. 

    Rap and Hip Hop is considered exclusive to blacks, yet we have Sean Paul, Eminem, Flo-Sik, Kero One, Dumbfounded. And Shaq, Wiz Kalifa, Soulja Boy, etc. proved that being black doesn’t automatically mean you’ll be good at rapping.

    In Japan there’s Olivia Lufkin who’s Wapanese and looks very white, Namie Amuro who’s half Italian, Miyavi who’s half Korean, that one guy in J Soul Brothers who’s blasian, same with Crystal Kay and those last 2 barely look Asian but for their eyes. In Korea there’s Insooni and Tasha who are both blasian. Of course we all know Amber, Henry, Zoumi, Hangeng, Victoria (Chinese), Nickhun (Thai), and Jay Park’s Korean American with Lena Park, Teddy, Tablo (I think he’s Canadian though), Jessica, Krystal, and Tiffany. 

    The companies focus primarily on Asians because Korea is still very much Korean and the foreign population outside of US troops and ESL teachers is slim. I’m sure Koreans in the future wouldn’t mind seeing hip hop, rock, r&b, etc. being performed by a more… stereotypical -for lack of a better word- looking artist for those respective genres in the Korean language, but for now, until Korea (and other Asian countries as well as those of us in the West) rids itself of [blatant] racism and xenophobia of immigration, things will continue to move at a snail’s pace for expansion of diversity in the Korean market. 

    I’ll end on this note: It’s not fair to say Korean or Japanese or Chinese music should only be sung by people of those heritages. What about those who move to those places and change their citizenship? Or are they not “authentic” enough? If they can sing/speak the language without sounding like complete fobs, then that should be enough.

    • Anonymous

      I do think you’re idealistic. I don’t think I will see it in my lifetime your vision of cultures with no border. It’s human nature to discriminate and classify people into different groups. Even people within one culture do it. We discern them by their accents or what not–in the U.S. you have the New England accent, the Southern accent, and Valley Girl accent to name a few. I’m not saying this is right or wrong, but it will take a long while before people will give up their differences, if ever.

      I used to believe that racism would not exist if everyone in the world were at least bi-racial. But I realized my argument was flawed because people would still find a way to distinguish themselves from others by the kind of mix they had. Why are we into Kpop instead of another genre? Isn’t it because we deem it more pleasurable and different from the other music genres that are out there? It’s human nature to differentiate among ourselves.

      All the examples you pointed out are fine examples, but they are still the exceptions rather than the rule. Again, exceptions exist in everything. In fact, it’s a major selling point for many of them. Do you think anyone would ignore the story of a naturalized citizen of Korea becoming a Kpop idol? That person would get asked about that in every interview. People would be more interested in that story than any talent he or she had to offer.  For the exceptions to become the norm, they wouldn’t be as special, would they?

      • Anonymous

        I agree, and idealistic as it may be, I’m not saying it’ll ever happen (snail’s pace as in… another 10 or so generations… maybe). Heck, I’m Black. I know that in my lifetime, no matter if I became fluent, if I don’t have any obvious Asian features (that aren’t from the scalpel), I’m definitely not going to become the next Yoon Mirae/Tasha or Crystal Kay and trust and believe me, the lifestyle of an idol is not worth investing in the pipe dream. Naturally, we’re going to judge (and claim that we don’t) and notice a person’s nationality or skin color if it’s outside the stereotypical norm that we’re used to. Like you said, we’re only human. As for idols getting asked about their country of origin a bajillion times: if that’s your only selling point to being famous, you can just become a travel agent or tour guide, not a singer. If your job is to sing (and be pretty/handsome), your expected to be able to do so to some degree. Being from another country won’t make you exempt from backlash. If anything, you’ll be come down on harder for it cause the company spent more just to get you and train you than they spent on their natural born citizens (since auditions are free and all). As for the ‘exceptions to become the norm’ and it making the former exceptions no longer ‘speshul snowflakes’… everyone can’t be a singer/rapper, and every singer/rapper can’t be chart toppers, let alone famous beyond their 100 or so views on youtube. Whether you’re famous for your great (or not so great) voice, dancing, marketability, or just being a tween/teenage wet dream come true, I think that makes you exceptional from the norm already. Everyone has a niche and adding this or that different skin tone/nationality/gender to the status quo doesn’t make it any less special just because there’s more of it to go around.

    • Anonymous

      Rock was originally a Black genre that came out of folk/ bluegrass country music. Most of the famous rock artists from the 50′s and 60′s list Black entertainers from the 30′s and 40′s as their inspiration. For a country like South Korea that has deep-seated issues dealing with imperialism, do you really think they want to see the same thing happen with their music?
      BTW: Sean Paul is Jamaican and does Dancehall music *just had to put that out there…*. Crystal Kay is actually Black and Korean but she’s better off in Japan.
      And I do agree with some of your points, but there is such a thing as too much too soon. Everyone is expecting things to change overnight and that is not going to happen. K-pop is still in it’s infancy; it needs time to find it’s stride, and to grow outside of the Big Three.

      • Anonymous

        I’m Black. I know my music history thank you very much. I was just sighting the stereotype as is seen in today’s media by those who may not know that tidbit that most of today’s genre’s come from African Americans: Rock, Blues, Jazz, Soul, R&B, Hip Hop, Gospel, Country, and the list goes on. I know Sean Paul’s origins and he doesn’t fit into the black spectrum: He’s part Jewish, Afro-Caribbean, Portuguese, English, and Chinese Jamaican. He may be Jamaican, but that’s like stating Rihanna is Barbadian. They both sell music to [black] Americans as their primary audience and they’re both a bit outside the norm of what’s expected (outside of actual Caribbean born artists, we don’t hear a boat load of reggae). As for Crystal Kay, I actually didn’t know that (then again, that’s why I said blasian instead of a specific nationality). And I agree, there’s no need to rush. Kpop only really emerged as a genre outside of Korea in the 90s. However, we can’t ignore that considering it’s still a relatively new-ish nation, it has made some fast progress (socio-economic issues such as women’s rights and homosexuality can be addressed more often >.>) when you compare it to our 400 some odd years as a nation. Diversity’s not going to happen overnight considering the history between China, both Koreas, Japan, and the US, but that doesn’t mean we can’t encourage it while these nations are still young and growing. They can learn to acknowledge, and tolerate differences between nationalities and melanin in a more (hopefully) peaceful way than we did where they don’t have to enslave and take away the rights and history of a large group of people.

  • Anonymous

    To be accepted into SM, you must know the ff:

    1. East Asians are the only kind of Asians to be accepted. 
    2. Talent always comes 2nd. It is almost always optional also.
    3. Looks always comes first.
    4. It’d be better if you have connections of any kind.
    5. If you qualify, be prepared to have a career that lasts for a maximum of five years.

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RPNOS4ZPIMWDEPSY45PHUOEJR4 Dizzy

      Nah, unless you have super marketable face like Yoona, you better put priority on talent. You can’t have 5 Yoona/ 5 Hara in one group. Besides, there’s always plastic surgery to fix whatever need to be fixed to fit South Korea strict standard of beauty.

      • Anonymous

        there is not one artist from sm in the recent years that is talented enough to stand on their own. 

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_HIYKUBIKH3B4JJ7DD6CEMSWSWE Eli

    The only difference between this and Hollywood is that in Hollywood they pay lip service to diversity and everyone is Jewish or black and Asians are stereotyped and excluded.

    In Asia they tell you straight up: this is who we want.  The only thing missing is the hypocrisy.

    as for the article, the point is that SM is about money.  if America was less racist and SM could make money here in the States they’d pick up non-Asian entertainers.  if SM could get radio play and PR for a black kid who sang in the Kpop style with Kpop production values they’d do it in a second.

    they recruit Koreans/Chinese/Japanese/Thai because the primary market is still Korea and around Asia.  they need someone who can speak Korean or learn it, are compatible with the corporate culture of Korean entertainment and who will work as hard as their other workers. because the investment/training cycle in ONE trainee is so costly, long and risky.  one or more of these criteria excludes most non-Asians.  most white or black kids aren’t going to want to go to Korea and work 18 hour days for years before their debut, miss out on getting an education and agree to all the cultural crap that working as a trainee in Korea requires.

    keep in mind that both Japan and Korea have a long history of featuring white talent in media going all the way back to Phoebe Cates commercials and before.  many western actors and musicians have released albums in Asia, Asians love Western faces.  For KPOP though, the bottom line is that Kpop needs recruits that can fulfill the
    expectations of its customers.  It’s like the white teens who consume most of the rap in the US expect to see a black face on the album and so American labels
    sign black rappers.  meanwhile there are literally tens of thousands of
    white/indian/asian rappers out there in the US that we pretend can get the same opportunity as the another kid who just happens to have more melanin in their skin.  Likerwise when a kid in Singapore or the
    Philippines buys a Kpop album they expect young, slim, light skinned,
    feminine looking Asian faces.  that’s what SM is recruiting for

    • Anonymous

      Hollywood is very Jewish and Phoebe Cates, according to Wikipedia, is quarter Chinese-Filipino.

    • Dat1flygirl

      Hollywood is ran by Jews, so your point is moot on that. but I agree with the way Asians and Blacks are treated in Hollyweird.

  • Anonymous

    Thank you for this
    article. Some of the starry-eyed fans need a reality check. The whole point of
    getting into k-pop (for myself at least) was to see what kinds of music
    Korean’s were into. Honestly, while I like that they are catering to the
    western market (with concerts and channels like MNET) , I hate how it has
    changed the music. And I loathe the overly sensitive fandoms.
     K-pop isn’t Sesame Street, this isn’t a magical land of unicorns and
    singing butterflies. It’s a business. It’s a job and career for your idols. For
    their 2008 or 2009 auditions I think SM specifically stated that they were only
    looking for Asians to audition, don’t know when they became vague on that
    tidbit. I don’t get how fans get into Korean pop then get their feelings hurt
    when a music company only scouts Korean/Chinese talent. The SK music industry
    originally marketed their music towards Asians, it’s just the creation of sites
    like YouTube that helped the Hallyu Wave expand globally and companies are
    merely profiting from that, like any business would. And this wave is at its
    crest now, but what happens when it crashes? In 10 years, how many of the
    non-Asian fans will still be listening to k-pop? Will they still have the
    desire to learn Korean and deal with the over-bearing schedule? Because in real
    life, you may not debut after training for a year; three years in, you could be
    dropped from the label or it could go bankrupt. Then you’ll have to audition
    again and go through training again while finding a way to support yourself in
    the meantime. For every idol you see, there are at least 20 other people who
    were rejected. In addition to say, 10 who debuted had low record sales, and disappeared
    from public view.
           If you want to sing in Korean, you can
    upload a video on YouTube and hope it goes viral. Other than that, LSM and
    other CEO’s are not interested in some foreign fangirl/boy who are only there
    for a chance to stalk their bias. Go on American Idol, X-Factor, America’s
    Got Talent, or Britain’s Got Talent if you really want a shot at fame. Impress
    them with your multi-lingual skills.
    And finally, there is the culture shock. Even for 1st and 2nd generation
    Korean’s, the culture is a huge adjustment, and they grew up in Korean homes.
    Now if a stubborn American or Brit comes along thinking they’re going to change
    the status quo just because they are more ‘worldly and forward-thinking’, then
    they are going to learn a life lesson via a hard, swift kick in the a**.
    /rant

  • Anonymous

    From what I hear from Taiwanese KPOP fans, Henry is certainly not the most popular in Suju-m. The Korean members are much more popular. Zhoumi meanwhile was almost hated for a while there. Hangeng was accepted because he was an original Suju member, but even back then he wasn’t the most popular in Taiwan (quite far from it) Taiwan doesn’t really need a local  for them to like cause they tend to like foreign things better in general. That’s probably why they don’t hold auditions there. That combined with the fact that there’s less money to be made there.

    Amber and Henry are quite terrible at Chinese, I suppose they’re really more for the foreign asians to like. Or maybe sm were deceieved to believe that just because they were Asian, they would somehow speak their native language.

    • Anonymous

      Just wondering, do you know the reason behind the Zhou Mi hate? All idols have their share of antis, but he seems to get it worse than anyone else. If this was an Only 13 thing, you would think Henry would get it just as bad, but he seems to have escaped some of the hate.

      • Anonymous

        A lot of Taiwanese hated him because 1. He’s mainland Chinese. You would think they would be better educated but no, I can’t use racism to describe it since most Taiwanese are ethnically Han like mainland china. But it’s definitely a form of prejudice. 2. Only 13. 3. He said in an interview that during an earthquake in Taiwan he was oblivious and laughing. People misinterpreted him to be laughing at the earthquake.

  • Capri08

    First this is more publicity than an “Global Audition”, for SME. They able to get the company’s name as well as their artist’s names out in different countries. Thus gaining more listeners and buyers. Will they find winners of this audition, yes. Will they find a lot who will be able to leave their country under the pretense that they “might” become an “k-pop idol” after how many years of training, realistically….no. Even Henry and Zhou Mi, you hardly hear from them, unless it’s with the Super Junior sub groups. And how long have they been trainings!?…..
    I wish the best with whoever is going to audition, because when it comes down to it being apart of an audition mean you all ready know you are taking a chance. A chance that you have what they are looking for, and that your talented enough to pass. 

  • Anonymous

    If a horde of international fans aren’t going to be realistic about their chances of success in the k-pop industry, then the company has to be. Unless someone has some sort of connection to Korea–lived there as a child, has family there, knows the language, yada yada–I don’t understand why they think they can just swoop in and become a k-pop idol. The sacrifices are HUGE and the pay off is not that great.

    I don’t think it’s impossible for a non-Asian to join to become a pop idol; it’s just the requirements for that to happen have to be very particular. And they also have to accept they’ll face a lot of hate. Netizens are pretty harsh; they insulted the toddler biracial son of Tasha and Drunken Tiger. What do you think they’re gonna do to you?

  • Destinya

    So much for SMs dream of becoming the next hollywood.

  • http://twitter.com/ryzlbrmudz Rayzel Bermudez

    It’s a really sad reality… but it’s business and if you’re a non-Korean and you’re PASSIONATE for Kpop, the best thing you can do is post good quality covers on Youtube and hope they go viral. You’re sharing your talent, and honestly, who wouldn’t be appreciative of a non-Korean singing in that particular language, or having tremendous dance skill? And to counter some of the comments below, there ARE existing Asians in the American entertainment industry who are very successful: a number of mixed asians, Nicole Scherzinger, Bruno Mars, Vanessa Hudgens. Dance crews like the Jabbawockeez, Quest Crew, Poreotix. Far East Movement were VERY mainstream with Like a G6, Rocketeer, etc (two of them being Korean). And a whole cast of comedians, musicians and producers on Youtube: Nigahiga (#2 most subscribed), Wong Fu Productions, KevJumba, etc. Heck, there’s even Henry Shum, Jr from Glee. Maybe not as much as whites and blacks, but they’re still there..

    • Igbygrl

      ^ I agree with what everything else that you said but I just need to counter debate that many US citizens still have no idea what Far East Movement looks like. Sure their songs and music are a success but the group itself is nothing more than a ghost group. When I tell people that Far East Movement is an Asian group, alot of people are amazed or shocked.   It says alot when the music is more popular than they are.

  • Crysy67

    Awh.. im sad. im Chinese but i live in England. -.- ugh

    • Xuandao1375

      If you truly wanted to audition and become successful, nothing can come in your way. I wish you luck if you want to do it!^^

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Rahmi-Hidayati/100000088871826 Rahmi Hidayati

    SM is trending. Hope they can create best young generations for the world. For every who participate, fighting!

  • kpoplover

    I REALLY WANT TO DO THIS S.M. AUDITION!!!!!!! BUT I’M FROM SINGAPORE! BUT I’M A CHINESE! I KNOW HOW TO DANCE MANY SNSD DANCES, I AM ALSO ON MY SCHOOL TEAM DANCE GROUP! I WAS REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO TRYING OUT FOR THE AUDUTION!!!!! 

  • http://www.facebook.com/darigaabilova Dariga Abilova

    people… i am telling you… i went to the SM audition and i saw myself that they pick only koreans/chinese. i swear. there was a boy whos dancing skills were amazing, we all were shocked but the first question SM asked was: what is your nationality?… he wasn’t korean. he was kazakh and he was rejected!!!

    • Xuandao1375

      You auditioned? Wow, where? That’s kind of devastating that they pick for benefit and talent, then they’ll be missing out a few geniouses out there.

  • Xuandao1375

    I am Asian, but I’m not Chinese/Korean. I’m Vietnamese, so if I audition, do you think they would accept me?

  • http://twitter.com/vilmaplay Vilma

    So basically, if you are fully white, you can’t apply?

  • Lilifreen

    I think some people are getting confused here.  There is one group that is or has debuted with a white person.  However it is true that if you are east asian you probably have a better chance.  Right now they are focusing on expanding in asia and working their way through the world.  I think the reason why they do not want someone white, however, is because right now they wouldn’t really help them expand.  On the other hand if there was an asian that has two asian parents, knew english, knew their parent’s language then they wouldn’t have to waste money on schools and stuff. 

    • B Bodean

      what the name of that group

      • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003467112310 Alexia Liu

        Chocolat. But they have two HALF white people. Tia & Melanie are half korean, half white. But they look more white than anything.

  • Annie Meyer

    I’m Japanese and Puerto Rican what does that mean? xD lol

  • Jyjtvxqforever

    I’m American, I have noticeable Native American in me, which are actually Asian, and I’m going to audition. I know I probably don’t have a chance, my friends and sisters tell me that I look like Kpop stars sometimes. I know that I’m only going to make a fool of myself, I’m still auditioning, there might be a chance to were they accept a non Asian, and they are coming to America they should expect non Asians, so I am going to try

  • http://www.facebook.com/S.Suou Shannon Suou

    I’m going to the Los Angeles Auditions Sat. I’m African American/Japanese. I don’t really think I fit the SM product but I’m still gonna go for fun. I write lyrics for any Genre but I sing Alt Rock. 0_0 this should be interesting lol.