Kep1er bids farewell to two of their members, to continue as a 7-piece girl group

By: Gelene Peñalosa - 6 months ago

Project K-pop idol groups always have the most bittersweet of ends.

The fates of groups formed by an idol trainee survival competition is usually this—the group has a contract for a couple of years, stay active in that time releasing a couple of EPs and possibly a full-length album, then disband.

This was the case with popular project K-pop idol groups I.O.I., Wanna One, X1,and IZ*ONE.

Currently, there are 2 project K-pop idol groups from idol trainee survival shows active—Kep1er (Girls Planet 999) and ZEROBASEONE (Boys Planet).

Kep1er debuted on January 3, 2022, with their first EP, ‘First Impact’, and since then have been regularly active in the K-pop entertainment industry. The girl group is formed by 9 members—Choi Yujin, Shen Xioating, Sakamoto Mashiro, Kim Chaehyun, Kim Dayeon, Ezaki Hikaru, Huening Bahiyyih, Seo Youngeun, and Kang Yeseo.

Following their first EP, the girl group participated in the second season of ‘Queendom’, a comeback battle reality show between 6 trending girl groups.

In the same year, Kep1er released their 2nd and 3rd mini albums, ‘Doublast’ and ‘Troubleshooter’, as well as their first Japanese single ‘Fly-Up’.

In 2023, Kep1er had their first Japanese arena tour titled ‘Fly-By’ and was held in Aichi and Hyogo. They also released their second Japanese single ‘Fly-By’ in March and their fourth EP ‘Lovestruck!’ in April. In July, Kep1er collaborated with the YouTube children’s channel ‘Tayo the Little Bus’ and released a single titled ‘Rescue Tayo’.

In September 2023, Kep1er released their 5th EP, ‘Magic Hour’, and 2 months later, released their 3rd Japanese single ‘Fly-High’.

From February and March 2024, Kep1er held their 2nd Japanese concert tour titled ‘Kep1er Japan Concert Tour 2024 ‘Fly-High’ in Chiba and Kobe. In May, the girl group released their first-ever Japanese studio album ‘Kep1going’. Then on June 3, 2024, Kep1er released their first-ever Korean studio album ‘Kep1going On’.

Amidst all their activities in 2023, there were speculations about the Kep1er members’ contracts being extended from the original 2-year and 6-month stint. Should the contract negotiations be unsuccessful, Kep1er would disband in July 2024.

On May 30, 2024, WakeOne and Swing Entertainment officially announced that 7 of Kep1er’s members have extended their contracts, excluding members Mashiro and Yeseo. Members Sakamoto Mashiro and Kang Yeseo will be returning to their agency, 143 Entertainment after Kep1er’s concert in Yokohama, Japan in July 2024.

This news came prior to the release of Kep1er’s first Korean full-length album on June 3rd. ‘Kep1going On’ will also be the group’s first and last work as nine-members.

On June 3, 2024, Kep1er held a press conference for their newest album where emotions proved to be high. Member Yeseo addressed her imminent departure from the group saying, “I just hope you remember that we will always stay as nine siblings.”

Kep1er’s leader Yujin, revealed that talks among the members about contract renewal had already been going on since 2023. “We’ve had such meaningful 2.5 years since ‘Girls Planet 999’—meaningful because we had fans by our side…But, ultimately, we wanted to renew our contract so we could continue under the Kep1er name.”

Member Chaehyun added that because they had built a deep bond among themselves, “they will continue to have good relationships with each other and consider themselves as a nine-member group in the times to come.”

‘Kep1going On’ includes 10 songs, including the title track ‘Shooting Star’, and the Korean versions of their Japanese releases ‘Gran Prix’ and ‘Straight Line’.

About their album, member Chaehyun and the rest of Kep1er hoped that fans would see it as a celebration of their 2.5 years together and their future, not as a “last hurrah.” “The album incorporates the skills and efforts that we’ve built up so far and features our message to our fans.”

Kep1ians, or Kep1er’s fans, all showed their support and emotions for the group on social media.

Even though it’s not yet time, we’d just like to thank Mashiro and Yeseo for a beautiful 2 and a half year run with Kep1er!

 

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