JIHYO of K-pop girl group TWICE revealed that before joining her current agency, JYP Entertainment, she had been a trainee at SM Entertainment.
JIHYO guested on the July 31 episode of 'Hyo's Level Up', K-pop girl group Girls' Generation member Hyoyeon's YouTube show.
Hyoyeon shared how surprised she was to discover that JIHYO had been a trainee for 11 years.
"I was shocked when I heard about it. Only a few have trained longer than me, and you are one of those! I watched your recent solo activities and thought all that practice had paid off.", she commented, making JIHYO smile.
During their conversation, JIHYO said, "Actually, I met you when I was little.", catching Hyoyeon off guard.
"This is my first time talking about it. Before joining JYP Entertainment, I spent a year at SM Entertainment. You and some other Girls' Generation members were there and told me how cute I was.", JIHYO added.
She also recounted a memory about Yoona, another Girls' Generation member: "I'm not sure if it was her since I was very young at the time. But I remember how she once brought a CD and playfully compared its size to my small face when I was a child."
"Sooyoung is the only Girls' Generation member who would do something like that!", Hyoyeon exclaimed, causing everyone to laugh.
When Hyoyeon asked why she left SM Entertainment, JIHYO replied, "The person who first scouted me moved to JYP Entertainment, and I followed them."
"If you had stayed at SM Entertainment, you might have joined Girls' Generation!", Hyoyeon remarked, "I mean, you started very early, and some members in our group joined after 2005."
"If I had known, I would have held on to you and never let go! Like, 'Don't go! Let's do this together!'.", Hyoyeon said with laughter.
In a separate interview, Hyoyeon shared how surprised she was to know that JIHYO used to be a trainee at SM Entertainment.
"I'm stunned right now. I can't believe JIHYO was at SM Entertainment for a year! I guess I don't recall because I was also young at the time."
She resumed, "JIHYO might have joined our group if she hadn't left, considering the time she joined SM Entertainment. I mean, she might have been a Girls' Generation member!"
"Of course, she's doing amazingly well with TWICE now! But staying would have been good, too. She's so talented, and it's a shame we lost her.", Hyoyeon added.
(Credit= '효연의 레벨업 Hyo's Level Up' YouTube)