Mnet’s hit reality competition series Queendom is returning in the form of a spin-off titled Queendom Puzzle. The South Korean show will this time follow individual contestants competing against each other, and a girl group will be formed with the winners eventually.
Ahead of the premiere of the series, representatives of Mnet have announced the first slate of contestants, along with the name of the MC. Read on to find out who will be competing in the reality show this year.
Queendom Puzzle Lineup
On April 24th, the network announced the names of the first few contestants who will be featured in Queendom Puzzle. These include:
- Lee Chae Yeon
- Jang Yeeun
- LABOUM’s Haein
- JooE
- Lovelyz’s Kei
- Shiroma Miru
- H1-KEY’s Riina
- Hwiseo
- Weeekly (Some members)
The rest of the names will be announced in the upcoming weeks. Lee Chae Yeon is a former IZ*ONE member, Jang Yeeun is a former CLC member, JooE is a former MOMOLAND member, and Shiroma Miru is a former “Produce 48” contestant.
“Weeekly will be starring on ‘Queendom Puzzle.’ However, it will not be all the members but only a few,” read the statement by Mnet. IZ*ONE members Yabuki Nako and Honda Hitomi were also previously rumored to be a part of the show. However, the network has now confirmed that the rumors were false.
Taeyeon will Return as the MC
Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon, who appeared as “Grandmaster” MC in the second season of Queendom will again be starring as the MC. The singer expressed her excitement about being a part of the show and said, “It is an honor to take part in ‘Queendom Puzzle’ following ‘Queendom 2.’”
“My shoulders feel heavy [from the burden], but I feel a sense of responsibility. I am already looking forward to what kind of legendary performances will be born this time around,” she added.
Mnet also released a statement announcing Taeyeon’s return: “Not only is Taeyeon [a member] of Girls’ Generation, receiving love from all over the world, she is also an artist who participated in unit and project groups with unique colors such as Girls’ Generation-TTS and GOT the beat.”
“We think that she is the MC most suited for ‘Queendom Puzzle,’ which will give birth to a new global project group by combining various girl group members,” the statement read further.
Queendom Puzzle Premiere Date
Mnet has confirmed that Queendom Puzzle will premiere sometime in June this year. The first two seasons of the show, which aired in 2019 and 2022 respectively, pitted six girl groups against each other. All the groups released their singles at the same time, and the winning act got a specially arranged comeback show.
The first season was won by Mamamoo, which competed with Lovelyz, Oh My Girl, (G)I-dle, Park Bom, and AOA. The second season featured Loona, Viviz, WJSN, Hyolyn, Kep1er and Brave Girls. WJSN was declared the winner of the season. The third season is expected to last ten weeks, keeping up with the previous installments.
Are you excited about the lineup of Queendom Puzzle? Tell us in the comments section.
