1.
Kep1er - Xiaoting & Yeseo over Chaehyun
After Kep1er debuted, all eyes were on the groups not only because this is where all
visuals and talents gather but also for the fact that in the history of Mnet’s girl
groups, there were no centers that faced so many mixed reactions from netizens.
In fact, the majority of opinions even believed that she shouldn’t have been the face of
the group and instead, Xiaoting and Yeseo deserve the position way more.
After Chaehyun had been confirmed to be the center, netizens on many forums immediately
voiced their opinions, saying that though they loved her vocal color and visuals, there
was no way she could outshine the center material of Xiaoting and Yeseo.
Of course, no one could deny that Chaehyun has all it takes to be a famous idol but considering
how K-Pop is way over the cutesy phase and now moved onto an empowered and badass era,
the fact that Chaehyun, whose both visual, vocal and aura fall on the bubbly side of
the spectrum, just doesn’t seem to fit well with the public taste.
The bigger issue is that, based on the impression of Kep1er’s debut song, many believed that
the group is set to pursue the girl-crush and self-confidence concept, Xiaoting should
have been the representative face considering her chic visuals as well as the captivative
aura.
Besides Xiaoting, many also said Yeseo should have been the center of Kep1er rather than
Chaehyun.
However, a bit different from Xiaoting, the debate now talks more about the skills and
aura because in general, both Yeseo and Chaehyun have that candy-sweet visual overwhelming
the classy look.
Putting both Chaehyun and Yeseo on the scale, many people felt that there was a huge gap
in capabilities because at the end of the day, Yeseo is almost like an ace considering
her ten-year experience as an actress.
FYI she was born in 2005 so that means she has been acting since the age of 5.
Besides, her idol nature was also perfected as a former member of CutieL and Busters.
Going through the making and breaking of two groups, some pointed out that Yeseo seemed
to always know what to do and how to shine in the crowd, which was also the reason she
was believed to have been the center of Kep1er.
This belief was even more solidified when more photos of Kep1er, including some important
ones like the teaser pictures of the group, were released and here, Yeseo and Xiaoting
were arranged to be in positions that garnered more attention than Chaehyun.
Despite the predictable outrage over the teaser photos, netizens believed Mnet still deliberately
did this because they themselves couldn’t ignore who represents the group best.
2.
fromis 9 - Nakyung over Jisun
In fromis_9, a similar case also happened.
Instead of Jisun, some pointed out that Nakyung deserved the center position way better on
all aspects, from visual to capabilities.
In fact, this stance wasn’t only supported by the majority of the public but was proven
to be also by Pledis Entertainment because in most fromis_9’s songs, Nakyung has always
been the member with most vocal and screen distribution.
Some even said it’s now implicitly understood among fans that Jisun was only the center
for fromis_9’s debut but for the years after that, especially in a temporary group like
this, the position must be changed whichever way the management felt most suitable and
in this case, it was Nakyung rather than Jisun.
However, it’s also hard to blame Pledis for this because in the eyes of many people,
Nakyung is the most well-rounded member in fromis_9.
Because the group is set to follow a bright and innocent image, her vocal color suited
the refrain of most title songs.
Besides talent, Naekyung is believed to be more center-material because of her biggest
reputation and the most headline-making visual out of all members.
In the past, Nakyung has been the hot topic online for her gorgeous face for various times
and back in 2019 when she dyed her hair pink, there was even a long article dedicated to
only showing how people were shook over her visual.
FYI, she was just 19 at the time and as her beauty matures, apparently there will be more
headlines for her to make with such a doll-like face.
3.
ITZY - Yeji over Ryujin
Sounds kinda hard to believe because Ryujin has established her name as a strong dancer
and singer in K-Pop but according to many people, though Ryujin is undeniably good,
Yeji is just simply a greater member in all aspects.
The impression Yeji has on people as a shining star is so strong that on Google, there are
even questions going as “Is Yeji the center of ITZY?,” or “Is Yeji the official center
of ITZY now?”
On multiple forums, lots of netizens also expressed their frustration, whining that
they were never able to wrap their heads around why she wasn’t the center of ITZY and how
a person like Ryujin was picked to represent the group.
Firstly, because JYP Entertainment is the house of some of the best dancers in the industry,
it’s nothing weird that Ryujin nails this category perfectly.
However, some netizens just found her stage presence and facial expressions kinda safe
or try-hard and she’s not as eye-catching as Yeji.
Some even aggressively said that probably the only reason she got the center position
was because she did fairly well on MIXNINE rather than being the real gem with real talent.
Then when it comes to Yeji, most people found her all the factors to take on the center
position.
On reddit, a thread titled “Yeji feels more like a center than Ryujin does in ITZY”
got up to 654 upvotes, making it a “too popular” opinion.
Besides, her chilling and powerful vocal color also believed to suit ITZY's songs really
well.
That’s why some said JYP ended up letting Yeji take on most of the choruses in the title
songs.
Plus, the fact that she could balance between her top-notch dancing capability, a stable,
on-pitch live singing while still managing to bring out the best stage presence also
proved her natural center-material.
4.
TXT - Yeonjun over Beomgyu
While HYBE doesn’t really assign the position for each member in TXT, it goes without saying
in the K-Pop community that Beomgyu is picked to be the center considering his standing
at the very middle every time TXT has a comeback.
However, despite the enthusiastic push of HYBE, netizens believed Yeonjun should have
been the center of TXT.
His presence is so overwhelming over Beomgyun that on Google, people often question things
like “Is Yeonyun the center of TXT?,” and even more shocking one like “Why is
Soobin the leader and not Yeonjun?”
To one point, some even said that Yeonjun’s influence had become so big that TXT ended
up being “Yeonjun and friends” though this wasn’t the thing HYBE intended to do.
According to many people, not only Yeonjun’s visual but even his vocal and dance techniques
also best suit the image that TXT pursues.
People also often found themselves unconsciously drawn to Yeonjun regardless of their initial
attention.
On all performances, Yeonjun’s groovy moves, good rapping, unique vocals and especially
the charismatic stage presence were said to enhance the group’s dynamics considerably
and make everything appealing to watch.
Under questions asking people to assign the roles of TXT members, Yeonjun was picked to
be the center of the group not only on one post of one forum but also on many different
threads of different platforms.
However, when it comes to Beomgyu, lots of people found it kinda hard to understand why
he was chosen to be the center.
Some said the appearance of Beomgyu is lit but it just had too many feminine elements
while a sharper, more powerful and unique look was expected.
Plus, in literally all of TXT’s songs, he always sings the least and that makes him
less of a remarkable face when standing next to Yeonjun.
The thing is, while the situation could have been saved had he had something unique in
the vocal capabilities, that sadly just wasn’t it because as a MOA herself pointed out, unless
people had a really skilled ears or had been following TXT long enough, there was no way
they could know Beomgyu was singing.
She also claimed that his dancing is also overshadowed and though he stands mostly in
the front line, he rarely stands out because firstly, he doesn’t have many lines to be
in the center and secondly, his moves just aren’t groovy and skillful like Yeonjun
to make people unconsciously navigate toward him.
So, do you agree with the opinion that the official center position of these groups should
belong to another member?
Comment down below to share your thoughts with us.
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