Meet Chanty, the Filipino actress turned K-pop idol trainee: Chantal Videla is set to debut in girl group Lapillus and hosts a YouTube channel with her bandmate-to-be, Nonaka Shana

K-pop isn’t limited to Korean listeners by any means – it has attracted a massive following from fans worldwide. And same goes for the talent. Although charisma and fluency in the language are certainly prerequisites, you don’t actually need to be of Korean descent to debut in a K-pop group. As groups from 2PM and Super Junior to Twice and Aespa have proven, members in the current K-pop landscape aren’t always Korean by blood. The past few years have opened doors for aspiring K-pop stars with different Southeast Asian backgrounds. Nichkhun of 2PM, BamBam of GOT7, Ten of NCT, Minnie of (G)-Idle, and Lisa of Blackpink– all hailing from Thailand – have proven the trajectory possible. Dita of Secret Number (Indonesia), Kriesha Chu (the Philippines) and Isaac of IN2IT (Malaysia) have followed suit. The present marks an exciting time for many aspiring artists from Southeast Asia. While the information on new idols is typically scarce before their debut, there is one trainee from Momoland’s label, MLD Entertainment, who is expected to join its circle of successful Southeast Asian K-pop stars this year. In November 2021, MLD Entertainment introduced one of their new trainees via a Twitter post with crayon-like doodles in the accompanying photo. In the centre of the image was a bright-eyed, beaming Chanty. What happens to failed K-pop stars? 4 former idols who changed careers However, this isn’t the first time the world has been introduced to Chanty. Before signing with MLD Entertainment, Chanty was known as Chantal Videla, an up-and-coming actress from the Philippines. Here’s everything you need to know about Chanty, the Filipino celebrity-turned-idol-trainee. 1. She is trilingual Born to a Filipino mother and an Argentinian father, Chanty is fluent in Tagalog, Spanish and English. As a fairly new trainee, she is still learning the foundations of Korean, which has led to a few instances wherein Chanty jumps from one language to another. Despite having to occasionally switch between languages, fans have been quick to notice that Chanty’s Korean skills have drastically improved in the space of a few months. 2. She was signed to one of the biggest Filipino talent agencies Chanty is no stranger to the spotlight. She first stepped into the public eye as a child model, an opportunity that led her to be discovered by an agent from Star Magic. A large-scale talent agency based in the Philippines, Star Magic is known for propelling actors like Liza Soberano and Kathryn Bernardo to fame. Chanty was introduced as a Star Magic talent in March 2018. Between 2018 to 2020, she acted in a number of local TV dramas. Despite training to become a singer, Chanty hasn’t lost touch with her thespian roots. She recently showed off her acting chops in music videos with her label mates, JT & Marcus. 5 times Blackpink’s Lisa proved she’s Thailand’s unofficial princess 3. She has impressive vocal abilities In addition to regular updates posted on the MLD Audition pages, MLD Entertainment trainees post occasional song covers on YouTube. Through these covers, fans are able to get a glimpse of Chanty’s musical talents. Compared to her fellow trainee Nonaka Shana, Chanty has a deeper, lower register. On Christmas Eve, Chanty and Shana released a cover of Ariana Grande’s Santa Tell Me. Chanty has also uploaded videos of her singing on her personal Instagram page. 4. She and Nonaka Shana have a YouTube show together Together with Shana, Chanty hosts a show called ChanSha World. Available on YouTube, each episode features the pair playing games and completing challenges, allowing fans to discover more about them ahead of their debut. New episodes of ChanSha World are posted every week on the Nadol YouTube channel. 5. She is expected to debut in June 2022 In an interview with Star News, MLD Entertainment CEO Lee Hyung-jin revealed that the agency’s newest girl group is set to debut in June this year. Following in the footsteps of Momoland, the act will debut with the name Lapillus. Chanty is one of the confirmed members of the forthcoming group, along with her co-trainee Shana. Want more stories like this? Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.