Opinion

How big is too big when it comes to K-pop groups like NCT? With three more singers possibly joining, how far can boy band go?

NCT was launched in 2016 as a boy band collective and currently has 20-plus members, who perform together and in subgroups NCT 127, NCT Dream and WayV

With talk of three K-pop rookies joining too, some observers are asking whether NCT fans will accept more new members or whether the group has reached capacity

4-MIN READ4-MIN

NCT is a 20-plus member K-pop collective, but should they take on more members? Photo: SM Entertainment

Tamar covers K-pop and related content for outlets such as Billboard, Forbes, and NBC News.

Published: 4:45pm, 6 Jul 2022

The start of July saw some fresh additions to SM Entertainment’s roster, with the South Korean music label sharing news of three possible K-pop stars of the future: Eunseok, Shohei and Seunghan.

Introduced through social media and interviews with Women’s Wear Daily Korea, the trio are the latest talent SM has teased as part of its “SM Rookies” pre-debut group.

It’s rumoured that they’ll become part of SM’s NCT boy-band brand. Although that is still to be confirmed – they could become part of a different entity under SM Entertainment, or never debut under SM at all, as some SM Rookies haven’t – the unveiling of the trio has spurred debate and concern over how much is too much when it comes to the size of a K-pop group built to be flexible.

NCT was launched initially by SM Entertainment in 2016 after the label had announced plans to create a boy band with a fluid line-up that would feature an unlimited number of performers and subgroups. Currently, the group has more than 20 members, who perform in three subgroups – NCT 127, NCT Dream, and WayV; there are plans for two more, NCT Japan and NCT Hollywood.