Afterthought

Afterthought is an indie boy group that started as a collaboration performance at a school showcase among six students on June 5, 2016, with the studio version released through SoundCloud on June 30, 2016. They officially debuted as a group under the name Afterthought on April 1, 2018 with the digital single, *High Hopes*.

## **History**

### **2015-2016: Formation, First Performance**

In late 2015 during the winter holiday break, Justin made a post looking for students who would be interested in a collaboration performance at the end of the school year. The performance was a required piece for the graduating class at the school, where they would showcase their skills to friends, family and scouts from various agencies.

The group was made up of six students: Justin, Hyunwoo, Ming Tao, Byungchul, Mingyu and Sungmin. Justin, Hyunwoo and Ming Tao were in the graduating class. They were the seventh performance on the third and final day of the showcase on June 5, 2016. After much demand from the public and encouragement from Jason, who was a trainee at Spark Entertainment at the time, Justin released the studio version of the performance on June 30 titled *Lull-a-bye* through his personal SoundCloud.

The group released their second digital single on Christmas titled *Eggnog* as a surprise, also through Justin's SoundCloud, and was listed on SoundCloud's trending page within days. Eagle eyed fans noticed there were only five members featured in the track, and Sungmin confirmed on Twitter that Ming Tao was not included due to being away in China. They had not yet established themselves as an official group just yet.

### **2017: Transition to official group, Hyunwoo's participation in *Top3***

On February 14, the group released their third digital single, *Red Lantern*. Like *Eggnog*, only five members were featured and the song also reached SoundCloud's trending page. The release of *Red Lantern* was the first sign of the group forming officially, as fans noticed the username had changed from Justin's to Afterthought, which was believed to be the group's official name.

On June 9, Sungmin announced on his Twitter the six would officially be forming a group, with Justin confirming a few days later with the group's official Twitter handle, @anafterthought, where they would be posting updates of the group's future activities.

In October 2017, Hyunwoo was confirmed to be a contestant in the upcoming reality show, *Top3 - Boys Version*.

### **2018: Two digital singles, Hyunwoo's and Byungchul's participation in survival shows, Ming Tao's departure**

Afterthought released their first digital single, *High Hopes*, as an official group under their new name on April 1, 2018.

In May 2018, Byungchul was confirmed to be a contestant in the reality show, *When the Tide Rises*. A month later in June 2018, he was also confirmed to be a contestant in the reality show, *Star Maker X 101*, along with fellow group member Hyunwoo. This was further confirmed by Justin a few days later on social media, announcing the group was working on a new single, though it may not release until the end of the year due to Byungchul's and Hyunwoo's schedules. Justin also announced Ming Tao would be leaving the group officially in July due to personal reasons, following a collective decision and discussion by all the members, though he may potentially return in the future. There was no confirmation if he would be included in the upcoming single, though fans speculate he would be.

Shortly after Byungchul's and Hyunwoo's elimination in *Star Maker X 101*, the group released the digital single *Summer Clouds* on September 6. The single did not include Ming Tao as originally speculated.

## **Discography**

### **Digital Singles**

* *Lull-a-bye* (June 2016)
* *Eggnog* (December 2016)
* *Red Lantern* (February 2017)
* *High Hopes* (April 2018)
* *Summer Clouds* (September 2018)

## **Official SNS**

**Twitter:** @anafterthought

**SoundCloud:** @Afterthought

## **Trivia**

* Justin occasionally composes and produces for Lat(t)e and Rainbow Punch, along with for other smaller artists in the industry. He later became an official producer for Sprout Creative in 2018, following an announcement on social media.
* Hyunwoo was a contestant on *Top3 - Boys Version* and *Star Maker X 101.*
* Byungchul was a contestant in *When the Tide Rises* and *Star Maker X 101*.
* Rainbow Punch's Jun is a fan of the group since their showcase performance was uploaded online and has been following them closely since.