# NCT Wish

NCT Wish (Japanese: エヌシーティー·ウィッシュ, Hepburn: Enushītī Wisshu) is a Japanese boy band and the sixth and final sub-unit of the South Korean boy band NCT, formed and managed by SM Entertainment and Avex Trax, with SM director and soloist BoA in charge as the producer. The group consists of six members: Sion, Riku, Yushi, Jaehee, Ryo, Sakuya. They released the single "Hands Up" under the tentative name NCT New Team on October 8, 2023, ahead of their scheduled debut in 2024. They officially debuted on February 28, 2024, with the single "Wish" in both Japanese and Korean versions.

## Name

On January 17, 2024, NCT Wish was announced as the group's official name of the NCT Tokyo-based sub-unit, multi-national boy group that would promote actively in Japan. The name "NCT Wish" combines the acronym for Neo Culture Technology with the word "Wish" from the catchphrase 'WISH for Our WISH' meaning the ambition to support everyone's wishes and dreams and make them come true together through the music and love.

## History
### 2019–2023: Plans, formation and NCT New Team

Prior to the group's debut, Yushi was first introduced as a member of Japanese boy group Edamame Beans at the age of 11 but shortly left the group before debut in the same year. Yushi first auditioned for SM Entertainment in his fourth grade of elementary school and was accepted as a trainee in his sixth grade of elementary school. He later came to Korea in his 6th grade of elementary school and trained for about seven years prior joining the survival show. Riku had filmed a visual advertisement for his cousin Ai Takahashi's own cosmetics brand Aimmx in October 2021. Riku was cast through the 2022 SM Global Audition and was a trainee for about one year prior joining the survival show. Sion was cast through Instagram's direct messaging and trained for four years prior joining the survival show. In 2022, Ryo was first scouted by SM while he was watching NCT 127's concert. In January 2023, Jaehee was scouted by SM Entertainment.
In January 2016, SM founder and producer Lee Soo-man announced plans for a new boy group NCT with different units to be based in cities around the world. On June 20, 2019, SM producer Chris Lee announced in a presentation that NCT would continue to debut international units, mentioning that the company was in the process of creating a Japanese one. This was re-iterated in an interview with Billboard the following day, where the unit's activities were confirmed to be managed between Avex Trax and SM Japan.
On December 1, 2022, SM confirmed plans for a Japanese subunit based in Tokyo following the opening of their Southeast Asian branch. As part of their 2023 strategy, the company revealed that the next NCT subunit, tentatively named "NCT Tokyo", would be debuting in the third quarter of the year. On February 24, SM announced that NCT Tokyo would the group's final subunit.
On May 23, 2023, SM announced that two future SM Rookies would be part of the new unit's lineup, with the remaining members selected via a pre-debut survival show. The rookies were revealed to be Yushi and Sion on June 28; two days later, SM confirmed that the survival show NCT Universe: Lastart would begin airing on July 27. The official lineup of the group, now referred to as "NCT New Team", was unveiled during the final episode: Sion, Riku, Yushi, Jungmin, Daeyoung, Ryo, Sakuya. The group served as the opening for the rest of NCT at their Japanese NCT Nation: To the World concerts at Yanmar Stadium Nagai in Osaka from September 9 to 10 and again at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo from September 16 to 17. The new NCT unit later embarked on a pre-debut tour beginning on 8 October, which consisted of 28 performances across 10 cities in Japan.
On October 2, 2023, SM announced that Jungmin, who had been absent from previous performances, would be departing NCT for health reasons. The unit released their pre-debut single "Hands Up" on October 8, with their official debut confirmed for 2024.

### 2024–present: Debut, subsequent single releases, Steady, and Wishful

On January 17, SM released a teaser titled "NCT Wish: Wish for Our Wish" and confirmed that NCT New Team would be debuting under the name NCT Wish scheduled in February. On February 21, NCT Wish performed their debut single "Wish" for the first time at SMTOWN Live 2024 SMCU Palace at Tokyo. The group made their debut on February 28 with the release of the single "Wish" in both Japanese and Korean versions. They took their first music show win on SBS M's The Show, 21 days after they debuted.
On April 11, NCT Wish announced their first fan meeting titled "NCT Wish: School of Wish" which would be held for four times at Myunghwa Livehall in Seoul on May 25–26 and the pre-sale tickets were sold out within 15 minutes. Later they added five more dates with a total of 14 meetings in five cities.
On May 3, NCT Wish attended and performed their songs at GirlsAward, one of the biggest fashion events in Japan. On June 25, NCT Wish released their second Japanese single "Songbird". The Korean version of the single was released as the lead track for the single album of the same name on July 1.
On August 28, NCT Wish confirmed that they would release new music at the end of September and were in the final stages of preparations. The release was preceded by a pre-release track in early September. Their first EP, Steady was released on 24 September. On October 15, NCT Wish released the single "Make You Shine", the second ending theme for the Korean dub of Pokémon Horizons: The Series.
NCT Wish's debut studio album, Wishful, was released on November 27, 2024. The 13 track album contains the group's six previously-released Japanese singles, as well as seven new tracks, including the single "Wishful Winter".
On January 22, 2025, NCT Wish released the digital single "Miracle", a remake of the song of the same name by Super Junior, as the second single from the album 2025 SM Town: The Culture, The Future.

## Public image

In January 2024, US Grammy selected NCT Wish as "11 Rookie K-Pop Acts to Know in 2024" through their website.

## Members

* Sion (シオン, 시온)
* Riku (リク, 리쿠)
* Yushi (ユウシ, 유우시)
* Jaehee (ジェヒ, 재희)
* Ryo (リョウ, 료)
* Sakuya (サクヤ, 사쿠야)

## Discography

* Wishful (2024)

## Filmography

* NCT Universe: Lastart (2023)

## Tours and concerts
### Headlining tours
#### NCT Wish: School of Wish (2024)

| Date | City | Country | Venue |
| May 24, 2024 | Seoul | South Korea | Myunghwa Live Hall |
| May 25, 2024 | Seoul | South Korea | Myunghwa Live Hall |
| May 26, 2024 | Seoul | South Korea | Myunghwa Live Hall |
| June 1, 2024 | Busan | South Korea | Busan Dream Theater |
| June 8, 2024 | Jeonju | South Korea | Samsung Cultural Center |
| June 15, 2024 | Daegu | South Korea | Suseong Artpia Grand Theater |
| June 22, 2024 | Cheongju | South Korea | CJB Media Center Eden Art Hall |

#### NCT Wish Asia Tour Log In (2024–2025)

| Date | City | Country | Venue |
| November 3, 2024 | Ishikawa | Japan | Hondanomori Hokuden Hall |
| November 4, 2024 | Ishikawa | Japan | Hondanomori Hokuden Hall |
| November 9, 2024 | Kyoto | Japan | ROHM Theatre Kyoto |
| November 10, 2024 | Kyoto | Japan | ROHM Theatre Kyoto |
| November 27, 2024 | Kanagawa | Japan | Pacifico Yokohama, National Convention Hall |
| November 28, 2024 | Kanagawa | Japan | Pacifico Yokohama, National Convention Hall |
| November 30, 2024 | Hyogo | Japan | Amasaki Amashin Archaic Hall |
| December 1, 2024 | Hyogo | Japan | Amasaki Amashin Archaic Hall |
| December 6, 2024 | Fukuoka | Japan | Fukuoka Sunpalace Hotel&Hall |
| December 7, 2024 | Fukuoka | Japan | Fukuoka Sunpalace Hotel&Hall |
| December 12, 2024 | Aichi | Japan | Nitera Hall |
| December 13, 2024 | Aichi | Japan | Nitera Hall |
| March 21, 2025 | Seoul | South Korea | SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium |
| March 22, 2025 | Seoul | South Korea | SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium |
| March 23, 2025 | Seoul | South Korea | SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium |
| April 5, 2025 | Macau | China | Broadway Theatre |
| April 6, 2025 | Macau | China | Broadway Theatre |
| April 12, 2025 | Manila | Philippines | New Frontier Theater |
| May 3, 2025 | Hong Kong | China | AsiaWorld-Expo Hall 10 |
| May 17, 2025 | Singapore | Singapore | Arena @ Expo Hall 7 |
| May 24 2025, | Taipei | Taiwan | Taipei Music Center |
| May 31, 2025 | Jakarta | Indonesia | Tennis Indoor Senayan |
| June 7, 2025 | Bangkok | Thailand | Thunder Dome |
| Total | Total | Total | Total |

### Concert participation

* NCT Universe: Lastart Pre-Debut Tour (2023)
As opening act
* NCT Nation: To the World (2023)

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, award category, nominee(s) and the result of the award :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee/work | Result |
| Asia Star Entertainer Awards | 2024 | The Best New Artist | NCT Wish | Won |
| D Awards | 2025 | Rookie of the Year (Daesang) | NCT Wish | Won |
| D Awards | 2025 | Dreams Silver Label | NCT Wish | Won |
| D Awards | 2025 | Best Popularity Award – Boy Group | NCT Wish | Nominated |
| Golden Disc Awards | 2025 | Rookie Artist of the Year | NCT Wish | Won |
| Golden Disc Awards | 2025 | Most Popular Artist – Male | NCT Wish | Nominated |
| Golden Disc Awards | 2025 | Album Bonsang | Steady | Nominated |
| iHeartRadio Music Awards | 2025 | Best New Artist (K-pop) | NCT Wish | Nominated |
| Korea Grand Music Awards | 2024 | IS Rising Star | NCT Wish | Won |
| MAMA Awards | 2024 | Artist of the Year | NCT Wish | Nominated |
| MAMA Awards | 2024 | Best New Male Artist | NCT Wish | Nominated |