They can't take off their sunglasses in public

By Charlene Chua

FOR the next five years as members of a new K-pop group, they will walk the red carpet, perform to crowds and rub shoulders with their once out-of-reach showbiz peers.

Singaporeans Ferlyn Wong and Elaine Yuki Wong have also been cast in an upcoming Korean drama that will likely see Korean teen idol Kim Junsu as their co-star.

The two girls were picked by Alpha Entertainment to form an as-yet-unnamed group that will debut next March and include three Korean girls as well.

The auditions that the Korean-based Singapore entertainment company held here last year drew more than 3,000 hopefuls.

Alpha Entertainment has employed staff members from Korea's entertainment giant SM Entertainment, which has produced successful K-pop acts like Girls' Generation, SHINee and Super Junior.

The road to K-pop stardom Click on thumbnail to view (Photos: Alpha Entertainment, Elaine Yuki Wong, TNP)

Boot camp

According to Mr Alan Chan, CEO of Alpha, the girls will earn about US$1 million (S$1.2 million) a year if they are successful.

It sounds like a fantasy come true.

But when Ferlyn and Elaine fly to Korea at the end of this month to undergo Alpha's K-pop "boot camp" and start their new careers, it will spell the end of life as they know it.

The Alpha Korean staff's list of what-to-dos and what-not-to-dos reads more like a girl's nightmare.

It's strictly no boyfriends, no mobile phones and no unsupervised trips - even to the toilet. When in public, the girls can't ever take off their sunglasses lest their tired peepers are caught on camera.

They must speak only Korean and respond to their Korean stage names.

They will address their Korean management as their family - the men they will call "appa" (father in Korean) and women "umma" (mother in Korean).