How Agencies Make Idols: Big Four, Auditions, Platforms
Start from the fact that Stray Kids belong to JYP: J.Y. Park and Twice, SM and YG, HYBE founded by a former JYP composer, CJ ENM and the Mnet audition that formed Iz*One, and the fan platform Weverse.
This course starts from a single fact — Stray Kids belong to JYP — then moves through J.Y. Park's JYP and Twice, the major agencies SM and YG, Hybe founded by a former JYP composer, Iz*One formed through a CJ ENM/Mnet audition, and the fan platform Weverse. It widens from knowing one group to the agency, audition and platform structure around it.
- 1
Stray KidsK-pop groupsOpens with Stray Kids, the eight-member JYP boy band, and its run on the Billboard 200. - 2
JYP EntertainmentCompaniesMoves to JYP Entertainment, the agency behind Stray Kids, shifting to the industry's company side. - 3
J.Y. ParkSingersContinues to J.Y. Park, the singer-producer who founded JYP in 1997, the source of its name. - 4
TwiceK-pop groupsCrosses to Twice, another flagship group produced by J.Y. Park's JYP. - 5
SM EntertainmentCompaniesMoves to SM Entertainment, another major agency often named alongside JYP. - 6
YG EntertainmentCompaniesContinues to YG Entertainment, the second entertainment company to list directly on Kosdaq after SM. - 7
HybeCompaniesCrosses to Hybe, founded by former JYP composer Bang Si-hyuk, adding another lineage of agency. - 8
CJ ENMCompaniesMoves to CJ ENM, the broadcaster behind audition shows, entering the channel through which TV creates groups. - 9
Iz*OneK-pop groupsContinues to Iz*One, the Korean-Japanese group formed through Mnet's Produce 48 audition. - 10
WeverseCompaniesCloses with Weverse, the fan platform Hybe built, completing the line from agencies and auditions to platforms.
Related issues and features
IssuesStray Kids' STRAYCITY in Latin America — Rock in Rio headline and the Mexico palace mix-upIssuesTWICE's 2026 JYP contract renewalIssuesOne Hundred / Big Planet Made unpaid-settlement disputeIssuesUNIS contract expiry and disbandmentResearch featuresHow Fandom Works—and ActsResearch featuresThe 10 Most-Cited Hallyu Studies Since 2023
Where to go next




Starter · 10 articlesK-pop Generations: From Seo Taiji to KatseyeStart at BTS, rewind to Seo Taiji and Boys in 1992, then ride forward through the groups that reset the game in every generation, back to Katseye today.


Starter · 10 articlesGirl Groups Now: 4th and 5th GenerationFrom newcomers Katseye, Babymonster and Illit back to Le Sserafim, NewJeans, Ive, Aespa and I-dle, past the end of Unis, and out to the full list of girl groups.