Epik High leader Tablo has revealed he once passed a JYP Entertainment audition and was offered a spot in a new boy group — an offer he turned down to stay in school.
According to Sports Chosun, Tablo shared the story in a video posted on his YouTube channel on October 13. While studying at Stanford University, he was active in an underground hip-hop crew when he got a call from an unknown number: JYP staff said they had heard his demo and wanted him to come by.
At JYP’s shabby Cheongdam office, Tablo did not realize he was being auditioned at first. He sang a Kim Jong-seo song — staff stopped him before the first hook — and when asked to dance, he refused, saying he had never auditioned before.
“The staff’s eyes lit up when I said I was a Stanford student, and it felt like I had already passed,” Tablo said. “They were making a boy group, and god had already debuted, so I thought it might be legit since it was where god was made. But I’m not idol material.”
He impressed the staff with a freestyle rap and later received an acceptance call, which he declined, saying he was in school mode. His guess is that the group was Noel: “Friends said that could have been me, but I’m so glad I turned it down. Noel is a vocal group — there was no place for a rapper.”
