SBS's Our Ballad, which sparked a heart-touching ballad syndrome on television last year, is holding an open call for Top-100 Ears for its second season to help discover new stars.

Our Ballad 2 is a large-scale audition project co-planned and produced by SBS and SM C&C. It began its open call on July 7 for Top-100 Ears, a group of viewer judges who will help discover aspiring stars.

Season 1 of Our Ballad, which premiered last year, featured young participants with an average age of 18.2. They reinterpreted classic ballads from different eras with their own fresh and deep sensibilities, resonating with viewers of all generations.

During its broadcast, the program consistently ranked first in its time slot for the 2049 viewership rating, a key indicator of popularity, and appeared in the top 10 of the Korean series category on the global OTT platform Netflix every week. Furthermore, it dominated both the music and video markets, surpassing 100 million cumulative views on digital platforms including YouTube. The 12 finalists, including winner Lee Ye-ji, Lee Ji-hoon, Cheon Beom-seok, and Choi Eun-bin, formed a powerful fandom, selling out all seats for their nationwide tour concert held after the show concluded.

For this second season, which aims to continue the success, the role of the Top-100 Ears—who will identify hidden gems from the perspective of the general public—is expected to be crucial. Anyone who loves popular music and is confident in their ability to pick the definitive public favorite, regardless of genre, age, or gender, is eligible to apply.

Applications will be accepted for approximately three weeks, from July 7 to Sunday, July 26. Detailed application procedures and guidelines can be found on the official SBS Our Ballad 2 website. Those ultimately selected as the Top-100 Ears through a lottery will be given the opportunity to participate in the first recording of the highly anticipated Round 1, held over two days on August 8 and 9, where they will be the first to watch and evaluate the performances of the contestants.

Our Ballad 2 will begin full-scale filming in August and is scheduled to premiere in the second half of this year.

Reported by Kang Sun-ae

(Photo: Getty Images Korea)