Upcoming boy band ABO changes name to ATBO

Soon-to-debut boy band ABO has changed its name to ATBO. [IST ENTERTAINMENT]

IST Entertainment announced Friday that its soon-to-debut boy band ABO will change its name to ATBO. The decision comes as the boy band’s international fans raised voices of concern that the term could be misunderstood as an offensive slur in Australia.

“We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the viewers of ‘The Origin – A, B, Or What?’ Through [the program], which last aired on May 7, we showed the process of recruiting members for the global idol group,” the agency said in a statement. “During this process, we revealed that the team would carry out its activities under the name ‘ABO.’ It stands for ‘At the Beginning of Originality,’ a name that contains the team’s ambition to unfold a new and original story.”

It continued to say how it “fully understands the international fans’ concerns over how the name ‘ABO’ may be mistaken for the wrong meaning in certain regions” said that the team’s name will be changed “after internal discussion.”

According to IST Entertainment, the meaning of ATBO will still remain the same.

“ATBO is currently preparing to make their debut by the latter half of this year. We would truly appreciate your love and support toward the members of ATBO,” the agency said.

The seven members of the boy band were selected via the agency’s survival audition program “The Origin - A, B, Or What?” which aired from March 19 to May 7 in collaboration with MBN and Kakao TV. The seven finalists were Jeong Seung-hwan, Oh Jun-seok, Seok Rak-won, Ryu Jun-min, Bae Hyun-jun, Yang Dong-hwa and Kim Yeon-kyu.

The agency is behind popular K-pop acts such as girl group Apink and boy band The Boyz. ABO will debut during the latter half of this year.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]