Life As A Foreign Trainee At BIGHIT — According To A Former Trainee

Ever wondered what it’s like to be a K-Pop trainee? We have the answers!

Jason Yu, a former trainee at BIGHIT MUSIC (formerly Big Hit Entertainment), was interviewed for YouTube channel Dave Disci Vlogs and revealed what it was like being a K-Pop trainee at the company.

Jason Yu | Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

First, Jason spoke about his audition process. While it didn’t take long for him to hear back from BIGHIT and be made an offer, he didn’t get to go to Korea for another seven months.

Your browser does not support video.Jason Yu (left) and Dave Disci (right). | Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

So, when the time came, and Jason finally got to go, the company covered his travel costs. After arriving in Korea, one of BIGHIT’s staff picked him up.

Right when I land, I get picked up by one of the managers of the company, and then they’re like, ‘Hey, we’re going to drop your bag off at your dorm room real quick, and then we’re going to drive you over to the company where you can look around.’

— Jason Yu

| @jason.yu_/Instagram | @jason.yu_/Instagram

It was just his first day in Korea, but they had already taken Jason to look around the company building. There, they let him get a first look at what was to come, so he went and watched a dance practice as well as met other trainees, including roommates.

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

The living conditions weren’t the worst, but they certainly weren’t the best. Jason revealed that he shared a small bedroom with four other guys.

They were kind of small. It was like an apartment that they had rented out … it was in the middle of Gangnam, so it was kind of tiny. They had like three bunk beds in one tiny room. It was really crowded.

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Jason remembered his first day as a trainee. While he expected a busy schedule, it was not as bad as imagined.

I knew they were gonna put me in Korean lessons since I don’t speak Korean, but I expected the dance lessons to be like a lot longer and to have like vocal lessons.

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

The average class was just about two hours. This gave trainees some freedom, although they were encouraged to use some of their free time to do solo practices.

We had a lot more like free time than I thought a trainee would. I took Korean for about two hours every day. I had dance classes for two hours every day…

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Jason shared that he had to attend classes Monday to Saturday. While Sunday was technically a free day, trainees were still expected to come in to do some practicing.

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Dance lessons can certainly be challenging, but it all depends on a teacher. Thankfully, Jason said, “For the most part, my instructors were pretty cool.” 

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Still, there were some challenges. He had two specific classes, a choreography class, and a pop and dance class, and the teachers couldn’t have been more different.

The choreography teacher… I loved. He was really cool … he tried his best to help me learn. …The pop and dance teacher was really scary, and I always like hated going to that class because he always, like, calls people out…

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Nevertheless, Jason had a lot of positives to say about BIGHIT. Not only were most of the staff not strict nor mean, but he didn’t owe the company anything. In fact, BIGHIT covered most costs.

For the most part, they weren’t strict at all.

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

One downside was that BIGHIT only provided $8 USD for trainees’ meal costs. So, this only covered one of three meals.

It was just enough for lunch, so then breakfast and dinner … I usually paid for myself.

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Jason also didn’t have to worry about BIGHIT restricting his diet as a trainee. He explained that the company didn’t want to make too many changes, whether changing one’s hair or plastic surgery.

We had to tell them everything we wanted to do like, every time we got a haircut, we had to inform them we’re getting a haircut, every time we want to like dye our hair, we have to inform them…

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

He clarified that BIGHIT gets more strict with the artists than trainees. The company had told him that if he were to be signed, there would be a weight goal in place for him.

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

Jason had a full evaluation at the end of the scheduled two months as a trainee. This determined whether he would stay or go.

Over the two months, I had to learn this nine-minute choreography … and then at the end of the two months, they gave me an evaluation test where I had to perform the whole nine minutes in front of a camera and a couple of the managers. In the end, I guess I just didn’t make the cut for the evaluation.

— Jason Yu

Your browser does not support video.| Dave Disci Vlogs/YouTube

While Jason’s trainee experience ended quickly, he said that he would consider auditioning to be a K-Pop idol again! Read about his audition process here or watch Jason’s full interview with Dave Disci below: