Amidst a sea of participants from around the world, 20-year-old Sophia Laforteza stood out not only for her promising skills but also for representing her country with grace and flair.
Korean entertainment agency HYBE has teamed up with American record label Geffen Records to launch a global audition program titled “The Debut: Dream Academy”, which aims to form a girl group comprised of members from different countries.
Candidates were hailed from the United States, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Sweden, Japan, Belarus, Switzerland, Slovakia, Thailand, The Philippines, and South Korea.
The selection process began in November 2021, screening 120,000 submissions from aspiring talents which were then narrowed down to a final 20.
Sophia was the lone Filipina finalist and only one of two participants from Southeast Asia to be chosen to take part in the show.
She comes from a lineage of talent born of theatre actress Carla Guevara Laforteza and former theatre performer and now-executive chef Godfrey Laforteza who have both openly supported their daughter’s journey to becoming an idol.
During The Debut: Dream Academy press conference, Sophia showcased her bilingual ability to fluently introduce herself in both Filipino and English.
“Hello, my name is Sophia. I’m 20 years old and I’m from the Philippines. Magandang araw, ako po ay si Sophia, mula sa Pilipinas. Mabuhay sa inyong lahat,” she said in a video shared by X (formerly twitter) fan account @DreamAcademy_UP.
In the “Art Film” trailer of the program, Sophia, with her forte in singing, was teamed up with a vocal-focused group.
![[HYBE x Geffen] The Debut: Dream Academy - Art Film](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/3pzu8Ej-xhQ/hqdefault.jpg)
Unlike most K-pop idols, Dream Academy trainees seem to be allowed to keep their social media accounts up in public.
Looking through her Instagram and TikTok, it appears that Sophia is also a big K-pop fan (together with her dad), namely of groups under HYBE such as BTS, TXT, Le Serrafim among others. And based on her Instagram stories, it looks like her bias in BTS is V.
Her TikTok videos also reveal more of her prowess in singing and dancing while also demonstrating her ability to play musical instruments, especially the piano.
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On her recent Instagram post, Sophia described herself as a bit “hysterical, but still caring, and dilligent”, along with her nicknames “Sophie, Fifi, and Sopheezy”.
The Debut: Dream Academy is set to premiere on YouTube this Friday, September 1. The show will present new challenges every other week.
The final members and their group’s name will be announced in the concluding episode, which is set to air on November 18.
Viewers and supporters will be given the opportunity to pick their bets by participating in voting through TikTok and Weverse.
