| “ |
Catch your eye, catch your mind. Hello, we are Kep1er! |
” |
| —Kep1er | ||
Kep1er (케플러; read as Kepler) is a nine-member project girl group under WAKEONE and Swing Entertainment. Formed through Mnet's reality survival show Girls Planet 999, they made their debut on January 3, 2022 with their first mini album, First Impact.
Their name combines 'Kep', which means catching dreams, and the number 1, which means the nine girls coming together as one to be the best. It is also a reference to the planet 'Kepler', the Kepler space telescope and inspired by German astronomer Johannes Kepler.
They will be active for roughly two and a half years on a special contract before it ends sometime in July 2024.[2]
Contents
History
2021: Girls Planet 999 and pre-debut
On January 11, Mnet released a teaser about the the upcoming auditions for the future competitive girl group reality show, Girls Planet 999.[3] It would consist of female contestants from or representing Korea, China, and Japan who all shared the same dream of debuting.
Girls Planet 999 premiered on August 6, while the live finale was broadcasted on October 22, with the girls who ranked in the top nine to debut in the show's product group Kep1er. During the finale, nine different contestants were revealed to make their debut; Kim Chaehyun ranked first overall, presumably becoming the group's future center, Huening Bahiyyih ranked second overall, Choi Yujin ranked third, Kim Dayeon ranked fourth, Seo Youngeun ranked fifth, Kang Yeseo ranked sixth, Ezaki Hikaru ranked seventh, Sakamoto Mashiro ranked eighth, and finally, Shen Xiaoting ranked ninth overall and was the last contestant revealed to debut.
On October 22, following the conclusion of Girls Planet 999, they opened the staff and group's Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook accounts.[4] On the group's social media accounts, a teaser was posted showcasing the group's official logo which had previously been revealed during the final episode of the show.[5]
On October 25, an article was published on Naver, revealing that the group would carry out their activities as a group for roughly the next two and a half years and are currently already starting preparations for their debut album.[2]
The group's fan cafe and V Live channel officially opened on November 2 and 3, respectively.[6][7] On November 4, Kep1er held their first V Live.[8] On November 9, the group’s first Youtube video was uploaded onto their Youtube channel.[9]
2022: Debut with First Impact, fandom name and colors, Queendom 2
On November 22, 2021, the group's website officially opened, revealing that the group will debut in December 2021.[10] On November 24, 2021, the group's SNS posted teaser photos and announced that they will make their debut on December 14, 2021. Later on November 29, 2021, it announced that they will debut with their first mini album, First Impact. However, on December 5, 2021, it was announced that the group's debut will be postponed after a staff member tested positive to COVID-19. On December 8, 2021, it was announced through the group's fan cafe that the album would be postponed to January 3, 2022.[11]
On January 3, the group announced their fandom name and colors.[12]
On February 21, Mnet revealed that the group will be participating in their reality show, Queendom 2, which is set to begin airing on March 31.[13]
Members
| Rank | Name | Nationality[14] | Position(s)[15] | Agency | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Korean | Japanese | Chinese | ||||
| 3 | Yujin | 유진 | ユジン | 有眞 | Korean | Leader | Cube Entertainment |
| 9 | Xiaoting | 샤오팅 | シャオティン | 小婷 | Chinese | Lead Dancer | TOP CLASS Entertainment |
| 8 | Mashiro | 마시로 | 舞白 | 舞白 | Japanese | Co-Leader | 143 Entertainment |
| 1 | Chaehyun | 채현 | チェヒョン | 采炫 | Korean | Main Vocalist, Center | WAKEONE |
| 4 | Dayeon | 다연 | ダヨン | 多娟 | Korean | Main Dancer | Jellyfish Entertainment |
| 7 | Hikaru | 히카루 | ひかる | 光 | Japanese | N/A | Avex Artist Academy |
| 2 | Huening Bahiyyih | 휴닝바히에 | ヒュニン・バヒエ | 休宁巴伊叶 | Korean-American | N/A | IST Entertainment |
| 5 | Youngeun | 영은 | ヨンウン | 永恩 | Korean | Main Vocalist | Biscuit Entertainment |
| 6 | Yeseo | 예서 | イェソ | 睿序 | Korean | Maknae | 143 Entertainment |
Discography
Mini albums
- First Impact (2022)
Participation releases
- <Queendom 2> Part.1-2 ("Wa Da Da - Queendom 2 Ver.") (2022)
- <Queendom 2> Part.2-2 ("Pool Party - Rollin’ right now") (2022)
Concerts
Concert participation
- HallyuPopFest London 2022 (2022)
Filmography
Reality shows
- Kep1er-view (Mnet, 2021)
- Kep1er Zone (U+Idol Live, 2022)
- Queendom 2 (Mnet, 2022) - contestant[16]
Endorsements
- S2ND (2022)
Awards and nominations
- Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Kep1er
Trivia
- Multiple members were or are members of other groups.
- Dayeon was a contestant on Produce 48.
- Xiaoting was a contestant on Produce Camp 2020.
- On Girls Planet 999, Kep1er was teased as a "global girl group".
- The group is made up of members from South Korea, Japan and China.
Gallery
Promotional
.png "Kep1er First Impact group concept photo (1).png (9 MB)")
.png "Kep1er First Impact group concept photo (3).png (1.19 MB)")
Pictorial
.png "Kep1er Dazed Korea December 2021 (1).png (5.99 MB)")
(December 2021) (1)
.png "Kep1er Dazed Korea December 2021 (2).png (2.35 MB)")
(December 2021) (2)
(February 2022) (1)
(February 2022) (2)
(Mashiro, Xiaoting, Chaehyun, Dayeon)
(February 2022) (3)
(Yeseo, Huening Bahiyyih, Youngeun, Yujin, Hikaru)
(April 2022)
Miscellaneous
.png "Kep1er official logo (2).png (165 KB)"){kind=logo}
(First Impact)
References
Official links
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