ALPHA DRIVE ONE had almost impossible expectations to meet when they were formed on BOYS II PLANET. Nearly a year since their debut, the group is starting to clear their own path.
ALD1 at KCON; CJ ENM
Long before ALPHA DRIVE ONE even debuted, the group had a high bar to clear.
More K-pop groups than ever are being formed on survival reality shows. One of the most consequential was IZ*ONE, a group that launched the careers of several “it” girls in K-pop’s fifth generation. When they disbanded in 2020, the members returned to their home companies, and several became icons in their own right. WONYOUNG and YUJIN led IVE to a massive hit with “LOVE DIVE”; CHAEWON and SAKURA joined LE SSERAFIM at the start of HYBE’s global domination. This year, YENA’s single “Catch Catch” became one of the year’s most viral songs, inspiring dance trends and a craze for second-generation K-pop.
Three years later, when ZEROBASEONE formed from the first generation of BOYS PLANET, the group quickly began to rival IZ*ONE on talent and popularity. They felt bigger and more important than a project group, and when they split in two earlier this year, it became clear they felt the same way. It was rare—and heartbreaking—to see such genuine camaraderie among the members.
ALPHA DRIVE ONE, then, comes in the footsteps and on the shoulders of these alpha groups. BOYS II PLANET followed a cultural phenomenon set by its predecessor, inspiring multiple project groups like EVNNE and XLOV. Yet the second iteration never fully captured the first season’s magic. Still, Mnet and CJ ENM tried. They recruited more heavily from existing groups and popular trainees, such as Trainee A’s LEO and SANGWON. They split the show into two halves: one for Chinese contestants, to reflect growing international popularity, and one for everyone else.
The show was bumpier than the first season. The contestants knew what was expected of them, even if there seemed to be an appalling lack of talent in favor of visuals. Still, the season also made clear how much pressure they were under from the start.
Still, when ALPHA DRIVE ONE was formed earlier this year, Mnet seemed to have amassed the most visually stunning group of boys—and a very talented roster. (The less said about controversy surrounding the member currently on hiatus, though, the better.)
For its debut single “FREAK ALARM”, ALPHA DRIVE ONE was positioned to compete with boy groups who go for a harder, highly masculine sound. The song charted. The group won some music shows. But in my view, it was disappointing because it didn't establish the group’s identity. The single failed to showcase the members’ vocals or their dance skills. The title, like the group’s name, also sounded embarrassing. For many fans, ALPHA DRIVE ONE was written off after their debut. They seemed derivative and directionless. In a fast-paced industry like K-pop, you’re cut out if you don’t immediately set the charts on fire.
ALD1 at KCON; CJ ENM
In August, I saw ALPHA DRIVE ONE perform at KCON in Los Angeles. I was skeptical about their performance, perhaps even more unsure of what WAKEONE’s vision was for the group. But I found the group charming, funny even, and the performance gave me reason to look again. At the Artist Stage performance, I laughed when the group’s leader LEO, an Australian who is fluent in English, said that they were “lowkenuinely nervous” about performing at KCON.
Later that night, at the main stage, their cover of BTS’s “FAKE LOVE” answered my questions about their potential. In ALD1’s performance, the boys seemed mercurial, ethereal even. While BTS’s performance could run grungy and at times even emo, ALD1’s interpretation was melancholy and somber.
Idols are, at their core, great interpreters, and the BOYS PLANET brand is built on how the best idols know how to appropriate pop music. If being a fan of ALD1 is frustrating, it is likely because the group was assembled with excellent idols whose music didn’t match their skill. Performing a song as iconic as “FAKE LOVE” was a gamble—but ALD1 had something to prove at KCON.
A few weeks later, ALD1 held their first comeback with “BORN DIRE”. It’s another single that focuses on gritty, heavy production. I wasn’t a fan of the single at first, but the performances began to sell me. The choreography is complex and challenging; there’s real tension, too, from members like SANGWON, who can inject a delicacy into his “killing part,” a moment where he dives to the ground and leans backward.
Things seem to coalesce more around a B-side like “Talk to me”. WAKEONE released a music video for the single four days ago, and the group returned to music shows this week to begin promoting it. “Talk to me” is sleeker and more mature than any of ALD1’s singles. It’s a style that suits the members far better than “FOCUS” or “FREAK ALARM”, and it also makes a strong case that groups should be given time to find their groove. Strangely, even with the backing of a major hit show and a company like WAKEONE, ALD1 still feels like an underdog group because they are still finding their footing. But I don’t see that as a bad thing; if anything, I see it as proof that K-pop groups should have more time to develop an identity and their skills.
It’s rare for survival show groups to have a clear, cohesive identity right away. Groups like IZ*ONE, ZB1, and CLOSE YOUR EYES are notable exceptions because so few get it right. ALD1’s contract is longer than most survival groups, and as LEO has commented, the members are still learning how to work together. That process is exactly why the group’s underdog status remains central. If things go right – and if the members are given more creative freedom – ALPHA DRIVE ONE might be a far different group in a year.
If K-pop mirrors the highs and lows of BOYS PLANET, then what makes the industry so exciting is its unpredictability and the way groups must course-correct, work together, and try again until finally, all at once, things seem to go right.
