Forget the skinny boys of BTS – Produce Pandas, Chinese plus-size boy band, is looking to make it big
- Chosen from 300 candidates, the five members of Produce Pandas are already topping the Chinese pop category on iTunes in Japan
- The band, whose debut album came out this week, was set up to be ‘an idol group that could be true role models for ordinary people’
Produce Pandas are a true anomaly in China’s music industry, which churns out dozens of cookie-cutter boy bands every year. These guys don’t have chiselled looks and eyeliner – this chubby, cuddly outfit is China’s first plus-sized boy band.
With ages ranging from 22 to 31, they’re practically geriatric considering many idols start training for a showbiz career in their teenage years. But maturity and a rotund figure is exactly what the star agency behind the band was looking for when they started recruiting members in 2018.
The five members were chosen from 300 candidates, said Young Luo of agency DMDF Entertainment’s artists and repertoire division, and the outfit made their debut in July with the single La La La.
“Using all kinds of channels, we asked star scouts to recommend chubby guys to us. We wanted to break the stereotypes and the industrial-factory standard on what an idol group should look and act like.
“We also wanted to create an idol group that could be true role models for ordinary people, showing that everyone can achieve success and their dreams as long as they are passionate. Unlike typical boy bands, Produce Pandas portray happiness, liveliness, fun, energy and adventure.”
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Meet Produce Pandas: China’s 'chubby boy band' is on a mission to become idols for the ordinary (landscape)
The chance to join Produce Pandas was a dream for Otter, who like all band members has not revealed his full Chinese name. The 22-year-old from Liaoning province, a former Amazon customer representative in Beijing, said when he was a child all he wanted to be was a pop star.