The official new boy group ‘ALPHA DRIVE ONE’ has been born in 2025, with the final debut members confirmed as △Lee Sang-won, △Jo Woo-an-shin, △Heo Sin-long, △Kim Gun-woo, △Zhang Jiahao, △Lee Rio, △Jung Sang-hyun, and △Kim Jun-seo.
The final live broadcast of Mnet’s ‘Boys 2 Planet’ (directed by Kim Shin-young, Jung Woo-young, and Go Jeong-gyeong) aired on the 25th, setting a new record for its highest viewership ratings and concluding with a grand finale.
The household rating soared to a peak of 1.4%, and it ranked first in the 1539 target viewership and 2049 male and female viewership ratings, proving overwhelming interest. On the OTT platform TVING, the real-time peak share surpassed 95%, and the real-time unique viewers showed a remarkable growth of 25.5% compared to the previous season. The global live streaming on Mnet Plus also saw an explosive increase of about six times compared to the previous week, demonstrating the global viewing enthusiasm.
The interest of global star creators was also evident through global SNS platforms. On X (formerly Twitter), a remarkable achievement was made with 161 keywords ranking from 1st to 50th in nine countries, including the United States. Additionally, on Weibo, China’s representative SNS platform, the most searched keywords in the entertainment category ranked high, proving the popularity that continued to grow with each episode.
On that day, the 16 participants were divided into two teams to present ‘Brat Attitude’ and ‘Never Been 2 Heaven’. The killing parts were chosen by Zhang Jiahao and Jo Woo-an-shin, and they illuminated the final journey with the new song ‘How To Fly’. The final global voting that determined the final debut group was participated by 223 countries and regions worldwide, with a total of 26,569,300 votes counted from the 1st and 2nd rounds combined. Notably, within just one week of the first round, a total of 23,032,255 votes were recorded, showing unprecedented support that was about three times higher than the previous season.
In front of global star creators, the official YouTube channel and SNS accounts opened with the announcement of the debut group name saw a rapid increase in followers, generating explosive reactions. The catharsis created by the K-POP rush, ‘ALPHA DRIVE ONE’ signifies an official team with the goal, passion, and drive to become the best. The official group ‘ALPHA DRIVE ONE’, born from the support of star creators, is drawing the attention of global K-POP fans for its growth and leap on the world stage.
Meanwhile, Mnet’s ‘Boys 2 Planet’, which first aired on July 17, featured a record number of 160 participants in a survival show, building an infinitely expanding ‘Planet Universe’ beyond simple competition and opening a new chapter in K-POP debut survival. The friendships and chemistry formed over the three-month journey completed an emotional growth narrative. The heartfelt support from vocal, rap, and dance experts, as well as the Planet Masters who quietly assisted the participants' growth, added to the touching moments.
The achievements were as dazzling as the journey. With overwhelming support from female viewers aged 10-20, it ranked first in all channels during the same time slot, including terrestrial broadcasts, and the viewing enthusiasm through global platforms was intense. It never missed the top spot for real-time unique viewers on TVING, and the viewership of Mnet Plus, streamed in 251 countries and regions worldwide, continued to rise with each episode. It also ranked first in the K-POP category on Japan's representative OTT platform ‘ABEMA’ and first in the entertainment category on ‘iQIYI International’, confirming its ‘world scale’ status across global OTT platforms, including Europe and South America.
The global influence was remarkable. ‘Boys 2 Planet’ firmly maintained the top spot in the TV-OTT non-drama category for nine consecutive weeks in the buzz index announced by Good Data Corporation’s FUNdex, proving it to be the hottest program at present. Major overseas media outlets, including the American economic magazine Forbes, as well as those in China and Japan, reported on it daily, and the official SNS followers exceeded 2.2 million. The cumulative view count across digital platforms, including YouTube and TikTok, is approaching 900 million views.
Meanwhile, ‘ALPHA DRIVE ONE’, born under the fervent support of the global fandom, is set to showcase new possibilities and potential for K-POP on stages worldwide over the next five years. Attention is focused on the stories that the eight boys, selected as the final debut group after a fierce journey, will write together as one team.
[Son Jin-ah, MK Sports Reporter]
