Although the A2K series from JYP Entertainment and Republic Records aired between July and September 2023, the actual contestants had spent closer to a year practicing and performing in the series. (We have a full summary of the A2K series, if you could use a refresher!) These girls proved themselves in K-pop under some of the most stressful circumstances, and in the series finale on September 21, 2023, A2K created the six-member North American K-pop group, VCHA. Now, the question is when they will debut. So here is the full, official answer to when Camila Ribeaux Valdes, Lexus Vang (Lexi), Kendall Ebeling, Savanna Collins, KG Crown, and Kaylee Lee made their debut as VCHA at JYP.
VCHA Made Their Debut on January 26, 2024 with Girls of the Year
VCHA officially made their debut on January 26, 2024 at midnight ET with single album Girls of the World, which contains two songs in its tracklist: “Girls of the World” and “XO Call Me.” “Girls of the Year” was composed and had lyrics written by Marcus Andersson, Lauren Aquilina, and Chloe Latimer, and it was also arranged by Andersson. “XO Call Me” was composed, arranged, and had lyrics provided by Stalking Gia (Tiffany Gia) and Daniel Weber. The VCHA Girls of the World single album is available to stream or purchase on music services, and the music video for “Girls of the Year” was released in tandem with the debut. However, the group’s pre-debut period was exciting as well, and we have the full story behind all of that below as well.
Incredibly, just two hours after the conclusion of A2K, VCHA made a pre-debut with the single album SeVit (NEW LIGHT), which contains the three songs featured on the two-part A2K finale: “Y.O.Universe,” “Go Getter,” and “Know Me Like That.” In fact, even a VCHA “Y.O.Universe” music video was released in tandem with the single album, at midnight ET on September 22, 2023.
VCHA furthermore performed “Y.O.Universe” on Korean music television: Music Bank on September 22, 2023 at 5:15 p.m. KST and Show! Music Core on September 23, 2023 at 3:15 p.m. KST.
On December 1, 2023 at midnight ET, VCHA released another pre-debut song, “Ready for the World,” which would receive a performance video. This release had originally been announced around midnight ET on November 20, 2023. This version of “Ready for the World” is a full-length release of the A2K theme song, with new vocals for all six VCHA members. The end of this performance video is where JYP originally announced the January 26, 2024 debut date for the group.
Prior to JYP Entertainment announcing an official debut date for the group, there had been several reports indicating that they would debut in Q1 2024. A Nylon interview with VCHA and JYP Entertainment, published October 24, 2023, had also described their debut as being “expected in 2024.”
Ultimately, VCHA debuted four months and five days after the conclusion of A2K. This means they actually debuted slightly quicker than another, somewhat similar group that debuted at JYP: NiziU. NiziU is a Japanese girl group that was created by the first season of the JYP series Nizi Project. Season 1 of Nizi Project concluded on June 26, 2020, and NiziU ultimately debuted on December 2, 2020 — a difference of five months and six days. It is a pleasant surprise that VCHA arrived a little faster than NiziU did.
Furthermore, it was announced on January 16, 2024 that VCHA would be a “special opening act” for Twice on three stops of their fifth world tour, being Mexico City, São Paulo, and Las Vegas. Having an “opening act” of any kind is extremely uncommon in K-pop concerts, making it a very special opportunity for VCHA as a newly debuting group. Additionally, at some point prior to debut, VCHA moved to a new home of operations, Los Angeles, where they began engaging in myriad English interviews.
So in summary, VCHA officially made their debut on January 26, 2024 with Girls of the World. VCHA made a pre-debut on September 22, 2023 with SeVit (NEW LIGHT), and they had a second pre-debut on December 1, 2023 with “Ready for the World.” For more about the group, check out how old the VCHA members currently are, who the leader of the group is, and what languages the group speaks. Or if you love MBTI, here is the MBTI for each VCHA member! But if you want to learn absolutely everything about the group, check out our comprehensive and meticulously researched VCHA members profile page, which contains fact-checked biographical trivia with citations for all six members.
Kaylee turns 14 this year already, late november 2023. Her birthday is november 24th and she was born in 2009. It’s on the official jyp vcha site. https://vcha.jype.com/Mobile/Profile
You are absolutely correct about that, and K-Pop Answers has that exact information elsewhere. The line you were referencing was erroneously updated from an earlier version of the article from before birth dates were confirmed. Thank you very much for bringing this to our attention, and I apologize for letting that erroneous sentence slip through.
You’re welcome!