Two Vietnamese to compete in K-pop survival show

Even though the show doesn't start airing on the Korean channel Mnet until February, organizers have already released profiles, introduction videos, and performances of the show's theme songs by 98 contestants.

Among the overseas contestants are Hai and Cong.

Hai, 19, was born in Ben Tre Province. He is 180 cm tall and speaks English and Korean well. He claims in his online profile that he has one of the best voices in the competition.

Before coming to the show, he competed in Vietnam's The Voice Kids in 2016 and trained for three years at the South Korean entertainment company Fantagio Co.

Many Vietnamese fans have created fan pages for him, with some having tens of thousands of likes already.

Cong, 22, attended the Military University of Culture and Arts and is now an agency-free trainee in South Korea.

He weighs 58 kg and is 1.74 cm tall.Cong can play guitar and organ. In addition, he was a member of the Oops! dance crew in Vietnam. He speaks English well and is working to improve his Korean.

"Boys Planet" was filmed like a reality TV show with the judges challenging the contestants to test their singing, choreography, and performance skills. One contestant will be eliminated at the end of each episode.

At the conclusion of the season, the top nine contestants will have the chance to debut in a new idol group.

After Vietnamese singer Ngo Ngoc Hung (stage name Hanbin) and Vietnamese-Australian Pham Ngoc Han (Hanni) made their respective singing debuts in the K-pop group TEMPEST and NewJeans last year, many fans are hoping Cong and Hai will reach a high position in the program for a chance to debut.

Six Vietnamese-origin artists have debuted as K-pop idols so far, according to K-pop news site Koreaboo.