K-pop supergroup Super M: Here are all their famous members

Ready to get obsessed with a new K-pop group? SuperM is no regular K-pop band, as they’re considered a supergroup, including established K-pop idols from SM Entertainment who are already beloved by many fans. SuperM’s members include EXO’s Baekhyun & Kai, SHINee’s Taemin, and NCT’s Taeyong, Ten, Lucas, & Mark. 

While their international tour was unfortunately cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, SuperM is still actively releasing music and performing live online concerts during this difficult time, allowing their fans to still get some comfort from the idols they adore. 

Here’s a who’s who of SuperM and everything you need to know about one of the biggest K-pop groups of recent years. 

SuperM

Formed in 2019, SuperM is a K-pop “supergroup”, consisting of seven popular K-pop idols from various bands managed by SM Entertainment. With members from SM Entertainment’s catalog, SuperM has been compared to the Avengers & even the famous “Dream Team” of basketball. Since their debut, SuperM has sold out arenas and was called “unprecedented” & “the next phenomenon in K-pop” by the Los Angeles Times.

As for their name, according to The Korea Times, “Super” means the “‘super’ synergy the members are expected to show”. Meanwhile, “M” stands for “matrix” & “master”. SuperM debuted in the United States, an unusual move, which drew some criticism from K-pop fans. Nevertheless, SuperM found immediate success in October 2019 when they premiered their debut EP and gave their first concert in Los Angeles.

Just before COVID canceled their tour, SuperM embarked on their We Are the Future Live tour in November 2019. While their April concert in Tokyo was canceled, SuperM was the first SM Entertainment band to perform in a live online concert, which had over 75,000 viewers, Forbes reported. SuperM has been busy during the pandemic, releasing singles & their first full-length album, Super One, and holding a few live concerts.

Baekhyun

As he’s the oldest idol in SuperM, Baekhyun is the unofficial leader of SuperM, according to Rolling Stone. Baekhyun is one of the main vocalists in EXO and is also a part of EXO’s sub-unit EXO-CBX. In 2019, Baekhyun made his solo debut, releasing his first EP, City Lights. He’s also released soundtrack music for K-dramas and broke records when he released his second solo EP, Delight. 

Baekhyun also dabbles in the fashion world, making his own streetwear label in a collaboration with Privé. Baekhyun called his label, “Privé by BBH”, which stands for his full name, Byun Baek-hyun. Baekhyun now acts as the label’s co-director, telling Forbes he hopes “Privé by BBH” will make people “fearless” when wearing his uni-sex clothes. 

Taemin

K-pop veteran Lee Tae-min, who goes by Taemin, originates from SHINee, an early SM Entertainment K-pop band which formed in 2008. Taemin was just fourteen when he joined SHINee and has been a K-pop idol ever since. Since achieving fame, Taemin has appeared in many K-dramas, been a main cast member in numerous variety shows, and even starred in the musical Goong: The Musical in 2014. 

Along with these non-music ventures, Taemin has been making his own solo music since 2014, releasing music in both Korean & Japanese. Taemin most recently announced he would be releasing his third Korean solo album, Never Gonna Dance Again, which he’s been slowly releasing since August 2020. 

Kai

Kim Jong-in, whose nickname is Kai, is the other member of SuperM originating from EXO. When he was younger, he trained in dancing, making him a perfect candidate for becoming a future K-pop star, as he began training in hip hop dancing upon signing with SM Entertainment. 

Primarily a rapper & dancer for SuperM, Kai told Rolling Stone he thinks SuperM will “level up the K-pop genre”. Kai was the first EXO member to be introduced to the public in December 2011. He’s also a part of the dance group, SM The Performance, alongside other K-pop idols, including fellow SuperM member Taemin & EXO’s Lay. 

Taeyong

Taeyong is the first of four SuperM members on this list to be a part of NCT, which stands for “Neo Culture Technology”. NCT’s name references the number of idols attached to the band, as NCT has an unlimited number of members and numerous sub-units within NCT. While Taeyong was originally in NCT-U, the group’s first sub-unit, he’s now a member of NCT-127, which represents Seoul. 

Taeyong’s full name is Lee Tae-yong and he was first scouted by SM Entertainment when he was eighteen. Taeyong is SuperM’s regular songwriter for NCT & NCT-127 and is additionally a solo artist, having debuted in July 2019. Taeyong also co-wrote a song on SuperM’s first self-titled EP and another for their first full-length album. 

Like Kai, Taeyong is a rapper & dancer for SuperM. When speaking to Rolling Stone, Taeyong said he hopes SuperM will “make K-pop shine even brighter”, despite the growing competition within the K-pop industry. 

Ten

Ten, whose full name is Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, is the only Thai member of SuperM and, like Taeyong, is a member of NCT. Before he was a K-pop star, Ten was first noticed by SM Entertainment through the TV competition show, Teen Superstar, in 2011. He was eventually cast by SM Entertainment in 2013 & started his training through SMROOKIES.

In 2019, Ten joined NCT’s sub-unit WayV, a China-based unit, consisting of members from China, Hong Kong, & Thailand. While Ten primarily works on his music, he’s appeared in multiple game shows, including Elementary School Teacher, which followed contestants practicing Korean & learning about Korean culture. 

While Ten occasionally raps, he mostly dances & sings for the group. Ten is also multilingual and can speak Thai, Mandarin, Korean, and English. Though he has yet to debut a solo career, like many other SuperM members, Ten collaborated with Taeyong when they released a duet together under NCT-U, the original sub-unit of NCT.

Lucas

Like Ten, Wong Yuk-hei, who goes by Lucas, is a member of both NCT & WayV. Lucas is the only member of SuperM from Hong Kong and acts as SuperM’s lead rapper. Lucas first joined SM Entertainment in 2015 after he was scouted and passed Hong Kong auditions. Like some of his fellow members, Lucas trained through SMROOKIES until 2017, when he also appeared in a music video for fellow NCT & SuperM member Ten. 

Because his native language is Mandarin, Lucas learned to speak Cantonese & Korean leading up to his debut with NCT. As one of the youngest K-pop idols, Lucas didn’t burst into the scene until 2018, but he’s been busy ever since, collaborating with fellow K-pop stars and joining the main cast of reality & variety shows including South Korea’s Real Man 300 & China’s Keep Running.

Mark

Mark Lee, who goes by simply Mark, is unique in that he’s the only Canadian in the group. Mark joined SM Entertainment after passing auditions held in Vancouver and was trained through SMROOKIES. Coincidentally, Mark would’ve had the chance to meet EXO & NCT when he appeared on EXO’s reality show Exo 90:2014, though this occurred while Mark was still in training. 

Mark was placed in NCT in 2016 and later joined NCT subunits, NCT-127 & NCT-Dream. NCT-Dream was originally made to represent NCT’s teenagers, but they’ve since rebranded themselves as the idols have become adults. Speaking of age, Mark is the “maknae”, or the youngest of the group, as he’s just eight months younger than Lucas. 

Like Taeyong, Mark is a prolific songwriter, having written songs for all of the bands he’s been a part of, including SuperM. In fact, Taeyong & Mark have collaborated outside of NCT & SuperM over the years.