The “Peak Time” Participant Who Has Already Debuted 4 Times

The new JTBC survival show Peak Time, recently began airing.

The goal of Peak Time is to give opportunities to groups that have been hit hard by the pandemic, had long breaks or frequent member changes, have disbanded, or recently debuted and would like a boost of attention by showcasing their skills.

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Each group is assigned a time as their team name and are to remain “anonymous” until the show ends or they are eliminated.

While the groups have not been named on the show yet, fans watching are aware of each team’s actual names. One group gaining attention for their performance is BAE173, specifically leader Hangyul.

lee-hangyul-blancpool-2-scaled — BAE173’s Hangyul | *Blancpool*

Following their performance, judge Kyuhyun pointed out Hangyul and asked why he was appearing on the show. Kyuhyun clarified that he recognized him because Hangyul participated in Produce X 101.

While Hangyul may be recognizable from his time on Produce X 101, this was not where his career in the music industry began.

In 2017, Hangyul debuted as a member of MBK Entertainment‘s four-membered group, IM, at 17. IM was initially meant to be a 10-member group, but the members of IM ended up appearing on KBS‘s The Unit as participants.

IM_debut_promotional_photo — IM | *MBK Entertainment*

IM_Hangyul_Sad_Story_promo_photo — Hangyul | *MBK Entertainment*

While Hangyul did not make this group, another member of IM did and debuted in the project group UNB. During UNB’s promotions, Hangyul appeared as a special guest on the song “Black Heart.”

In 2019, Hangyul joined the cast of Produce X 101 and ultimately made it into the debut group, X1. X1 made their debut in August 2019 with Quantum Leap.

Unfortunately, after the vote manipulation scandal involving the Produce series, X1 was disbanded, leaving Hangyul without a group.

In April 2020, he and fellow labelmate and X1 member Dohyon debuted as the duo H&D, and remained a group until September 2020, when it was announced that the pair would debut in the upcoming group PocketDol Studio, a subsidiary of MBK, was planning.