Hwang Minhyun Thought He Was Being Scammed When Pledis Entertainment Street Casted Him

BTS‘s Suga returned with a new episode of his variety program, Suchwita, and this time his special guest was idol-turned-actor, Hwang Minhyun.

BTS’s Suga (left) and Hwang Minhyun (right) | @bts_bighit/Twitter

During the episode, Hwang Minhyun and Suga bonded over their experiences debuting a year apart and shared stories about their experiences as trainees.

Hwang Minhyun debuted in the K-Pop boy group NU’EST in 2012 after being cast on the street.

The talented idol and actor had previously shared that he was eating chicken skewers when a casting agent approached him from Pledis Entertainment. He hilariously confessed that had he not stopped to eat the chicken skewers that day; he may not have become an idol.

Hwang Minhyun

He was street cast when he was only 15 years old, and he opened up more about the experience during his Suchwita episode, where he revealed that he initially thought he was being scammed.

Hwang Minhyun recalled that Pledis Entertainment wasn’t as big of a company as it is now and housed only two artists, Son Dambi and the girl group After School, at the time he was cast.

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He was skeptical after receiving a business card from the casting agent, as there was an increase in street casting fraud at the time.

He shared that he gave his mom the business card, and she called the agency to confirm their legitimacy herself. It was then that Pledis Entertainment confirmed they had three members cast for their upcoming boy group and were looking to add two more.

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Since he was already skeptical, the situation felt even more sketchy when the casting agent asked him to meet at a hotel the next day.

Suga admitted that it would have seemed like a “scary” situation, and Hwang Minhyun clarified that the Pledis Entertainment staff members were staying at that hotel in Busan since they were headquartered in Seoul.

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Regardless of the reasoning, Hwang Minhyun hilariously added that he was losing trust in the casting offer but went to audition anyway.

He shared he sang and danced in the hallway of the hotel and received a call a few days later asking him to travel to Seoul to audition again.

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After he auditioned in Seoul, he was extended a formal offer to become a trainee and was able to debut in NU’EST!

Check out the full story in the video below: