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On the Rise (sometimes stylised as ON THE RISE, on the rise or abbreviated to OTR; Korean: 온더라이즈) is a 5-member English-American boy group under Olympic Studio. They debuted on September 16, 2024 with the lead single "Boyfriend". They are based primarily in Los Angeles.
They were formed through the Olympic Studio reality show Rising Stars: Debut Academy.
History[]
2021-2023: Origin & Pre-Debut[]
During the Olympic Records conference in 2021, CEO Shin Mae-Geun expressed a desire to expand her company's global reach upon seeing the success of their existing four groups in Korea and Heli☼sa's storm over Japan.[1] She went on to attribute that it was BRITOMARTIS' success in America that had led to the "reshuffling of internal projects," causing many to conclude that previously discussed expansions into the Chinese and Vietnamese markets had been put on hold.[2] Furthermore, she asserted that it was her company's "primary priority to remain ever ambitious and ever vigilant for opportunities to stay at the top."[3] Shin detailed plans to settle the company in either the USA or the UK with multiple branches. The announcement was well-received; news outlets across Korea and the West wrote articles on the company's plan - many praising the innovation and the excitement of seeing a Western-style group created through a K-pop lens.[4]
In June 2021, Shin Mae-Geun caused controversy over her remarks regarding her intended plans with the Western expansion. In an interview, she mentioned that she wanted to bring the West "back to the age of boy and girl groups" and further suggesting that current musical artists in the West were lacking when compared to the Spice Girls, Destiny's Child, NSYNC and The Backstreet Boys.[5] Many took to Twitter to voice their complaints over the CEO's wording - particularly indicating a hostility towards the feeling of being 'guided' to something that the music industry wasn't missing. Shin posted an apology letter on all social media, stating that her words "had been taken out of context in the upmost degree."
In late 2021, job advertisements relating to the establishment of a new entertainment company were screenshotted and posted to Twitter. Those, alongside the copyright claim for Olympic Studio, indicated that Olympic Records had begun the process of Western expansion. In December 2021, Olympic Studio formally opened with dual headquarters in Los Angeles and London. Calls for trainees went out immediately, stressing an importance for diversity of races and nationalities and that the main focus of the company would be the English-speaking world.
During the 2022 Olympic conference, Shin Mae-Geun detailed her plans for Olympic Studio - namely the debut of a boy group within the next two years. She claimed that there was already a solid team of trainees working towards debut but the exact specifics of the musical act had yet to be determined.
On August 25, 2023, Olympic Studio teased Rising Stars: Debut Academy, an audition show aimed to take place in the United States and attracted 150,000 applicants around the world. The show, aimed to globalize the K-pop production system, would result in the creation of the aforementioned Olympic Studio boy group. The pool of 150,000 applicants was pared down to 25 contestants. On August 28, it was revealed that five existing Olympic Studio trainees would be entered into the show, rounding the pool of contestants at 30.
Rising Stars: Debut Academy premiered on September 1, 2023, with the live finale being broadcasted on December 1, 2023, with the boys ranking within the top five to make their debut as the resulting boy group, ON THE RISE. During the finale, five contestants were revealed to be those successful in achieving debut. Percy ranked first overall, Freddie ranked second, Lorenzo ranked third, Kian ranked fourth and Barclay ranked fifth.[6]
2024: Pop Star Academy: ON THE RISE, debut with "BOYFRIEND", "C@NV@5", OTR (Off The Record)[]
On June 13, it was announced that the group will debut with their debut EP in August. The EP will be supported by two singles. The first, slated for release on June 28, titled "BOYFRIEND" is a remake of Avril Lavigne's 2007 hit and the second, slated to release on July 26, titled "C@NV@5".[7]
The formation of the group and their preparations for their debut EP were serialised in the Netflix documentary Pop Star Academy: ON THE RISE, released throughout the summer of 2024. Though the debuting members received praise for their work ethic, natural charisma and dynamics, the show itself was criticised for its negative portrayal of the unsuccessful contestants.[8]
On June 28, the title for the group's first EP was revealed to be OTR (Off The Record), scheduled for release on August 16.[9]
2025:"Flipside", Summer Rays, Kian's hiatus[]
On April 16, ON THE RISE teased their comeback on Twitter with five spinning records and a text 'loading...'.[10] On April 23, it was announced that the group will be releasing "Flipside" on April 30.[11]
On May 6, ON THE RISE announced their second EP Summer Rays will be released on June 27.[12]
On May 18, Kian was revealed to be a contestant on STAR RAIL and would thus be inactive from group activities for the foreseeable future.[13]
On June 27, Summer Rays was released, headed by the title track "Soda Pop".[14] Member Kian, though still on hiatus due to participation on STAR RAIL, was present within both the recording of the music video and song itself. The "Soda Pop" challenge - wherein participants sway their shoulders akin to the song's choreography, usually accompanied by their favourite soda - went viral on TikTok, allowing the group to amass a record 50 million monthly listeners in July 2025.[15]
Members[]
| Name | Nationality | Rank | Colour | Position(s) | Years Active | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Korean | |||||
| Lorenzo | 로렌조 | 3 | Lead Vocalist | 2024-present | ||
| Freddie | 프레디 | 4 | Leader, Main Rapper, Vocalist | 2024-present | ||
| Barclay | 바클레이 | 5 | Lead Rapper, Lead Dancer, Vocalist | 2024-present | ||
| Kian | 키안 | 2 | Main Dancer, Lead Vocalist, Center | 2024-present | ||
| Percy | 퍼시 | 1 | Main Vocalist, Youngest | 2024-present | ||
Discography[]
Mini albums[]
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | KOR | UK | |||
| OTR (Off The Record) |
|
89 | 19 | 23 |
|
Single Albums[]
Singles[]
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOR | KOR Billb. | JPN | JPN Hot | JPN Dig. | US | US World | WW | |||
| Korean | ||||||||||
| "BOYFRIEND" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | On The Rise |
| "C@NV@5" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Flipside" | 2025 | 85 | 56 | 78 | 86 | 16 | 15 | 35 | 23 | Summer Days |
| "Soda Pop" | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||
Fandom[]
Awards and Nominations[]
Trivia[]
[]
| Olympic Records | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic Records · Olympic Records Japan · Olympic Studio · Label LG · ROSE&SHIELD Entertainment · The Pink Label | |||
| Olympic Records | Current | Groups | HERCULES · BRITOMARTIS · EROS · The Muses · CASTOR&POLLUX · After School Club · CORDELIA · PENDRAGON · AUTONOË
|
| Subunits | |||
| Project Groups | ZEUS · HERA
| ||
| Soloists | |||
| Actors | TBA
| ||
| Trainees | DEMIGXDS · Kim Yera · Peyton Wayan · Walter Park
| ||
| Former | Groups | ||
| Artists | |||
| Trainees | |||
| Project Groups | |||
| Olympic Records Japan | Current | Groups | |
| Former | Artists | ||
| Olympic Studio | Current | Groups | On The Rise
|
| Soloists | NALELI
| ||
| Label LG | Current | Groups | |
| Soloists | |||
| ROSE&SHIELD Entertainment | Current | Groups | |
| Soloists | Kwon Chanwook · 2HYUN · Paris
| ||
| Trainees | Zhoi Xiao Yi · Kim Euimin · Hamada Taizo · Tyler Alexander King · Levy Seo
| ||
| The Pink Label | Current | Groups | |
| Actors | Tegan Kim
| ||
| Former | Groups | Girl Talk · Voix · NVRLND
| |
| Artists | |||
| Related Topics | |||
| Mount Olympus · The Pantheon | |||
Reference[]
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