5 K-pop idols from China: from Exo’s Lay and Aespa’s Ningning to (G)I-dle’s Yuqi and NCT’s Winwin and Chenle – what cities do they come from and how did they find fame?

Aug 27 , 2021

Did you know that some of K-pop’s biggest groups have members from China, like Exo’s Lay, Aespa’s Ningning, NCT’s Winwin, (G)I-dle‘s Yuqi and NCT’s Chenle? Photos: @layzhang; @aespa_official; @wwiinn_7; @yuqisong.923; @chenlele_nct/Instagram

(G)I-dle’s Yuqi went to one of the most prestigious middle schools in Beijing – President Xi Jinping is an alum – but Super Junior inspired her to become an idol

Winwin gave a fake number to SM Entertainment’s casting manager and Aespa’s Ningning admitted she thought the agency’s offer was a scam at first too

Although the K in K-pop clearly stands for Korean, the industry isn’t shy when it comes to drawing from global talent – most notably, Blackpink’s Lisa hails from Thailand while NCT’s Mark Lee is Canadian.

Closer to home, there are also many Chinese K-pop idols in various famous groups, with naturally interesting casting stories to tell.

So let’s take a look at five currently active K-pop stars from China, who they were before hitting the big time – and how they got where they are today.

Exo’s Lay is from Changsha, Hunan

Outside Exo, Lay has proved a successful solo artist, producing songs in English and Mandarin. Photo: @layzhang/Instagram

Zhang Yixing, better known as Exo’s Lay, comes from Changsha, Hunan. It looks like he had what it took to become an idol even at an early age – the now-29-year-old star started out with a small-screen role in Chinese TV drama We The People back in 1998 and also stole the spotlight when he won third place in the TV show Star Academy in 2005.

It didn’t take too long for him to make strides towards K-pop idol-dom, recruited as an SM Entertainment trainee after taking part in the company’s global audition in Changsha.

Lay often shows affection to his home city, even releasing a Mando-pop song named Changsha in 2020. However, being so active with his solo projects in China meant taking a step back from Exo from 2017 due to scheduling conflicts, and international fans were missing him as part of the group.

But that all changed when he joined members Xiumin and D.O., both recently returned from mandatory military service, for Exo’s June release Don’t Fight the Feeling. Indeed, when the reunion was announced a month earlier, the hashtag #Yixing immediately trended on social media.

NCT’s Winwin is from Wenzhou, Zhejiang

Winwin is known for his skills in traditional Chinese dance. Photo: @wwiinn_7/Instagram