Who Are SuperM? A Complete Guide to the K-Pop Supergroup

Out of all the groups to debut over the years, SuperM was the most ambitious. The K-pop supergroup was created by SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo-Man and Capitol Music Group chairman Steve Barnett. They made their debut on October 4, 2019 with their self-titled mini album. They also released their first single “Jopping” on the same day.

According to Lee Soo-Man, SuperM would promote in the US, with the purpose of uniting the American and Korean music industries. The group comprises members of established boy bands that have already debuted under SM. Because of this setup, they’ve been marketed as being “The Avengers of K-pop”.

“We’re maintaining their groups, their solo careers, and on top of this we have this ‘Avengers’ group to pull them together. There’s already an Iron-Man, a Thor, etc; and just like how the Avengers can have their own successful movies, there is a different kind of energy when they are together as the Avengers. We are now creating that as a point of business. We want to create a synergy between their groups, them as solo acts, and the Super M group to create a big wave in this K-pop industry.” — Chris Lee, current CAO of the A&R branch of SM Entertainment.

Who’s in SuperM?

Baekhyun

Baekyun

Full name: Byun Baek-hyun
Birthday: May 6, 1992
Other group(s) he’s in: EXO, EXO-CBX
Social media: X/Twitter, Instagram

The leader of SuperM, Baekhyun was born in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. He started training to become a singer at age 11. He even received piano lessons from Kim Hyun-woo, a member of the Korean rock band DickPunks.

Baekhyun was spotted by a casting agent from SM Entertainment while preparing for his entrance exams for Seoul Institute of the Arts, and became a trainee in 2011. In 2012, he made his debut as the main vocalist in EXO. In 2016, became a member of the group’s first official sub-unit, EXO-CBX, alongside fellow members Chen and Xiumin. On July 1, 2018, Baekhyun collaborated with Privé to launch his own streetwear brand, “Privé by BBH”. He officially made his debut as a solo artist by releasing his EP City Lights on July 10, 2019.

In June 2023, Baekyun left SM along with fellow EXO Chen and Xiumin due to unfair contract terms. The trio would eventually work out a deal to allow them to remain in EXO. Baekyun now runs his own entertainment agency INB100.

Taemin

Full name: Lee Tae-min
Birthday: July 18, 1993
Other group(s) he’s in: SHINee, SM The Performance
Social media: Instagram

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Taemin originally wanted to be a pilot until he discovered dancing in the 6th grade. He credits Michael Jackson as being the main reason behind his decision to become a dancer.

He auditioned for SM’s 2005 Open Weekend Audition Casting, and was accepted immediately. In 2008, Taemin made his debut as the youngest member in SHINee. He was 15 when their single “Reply” was released. In 2014, he made his solo debut with his EP Ace. He has released two full length albums and EPs in Korean, and one full length album and three EPs in Japanese.

Taemin ended his solo contract with SM in March 2024, though he still participates in group activities for SHINee. He signed with BPM Entertainment as a soloist later that same year.

Note: This is technically the third time Taemin has been included in a supergroup. He was a member of Younique Unit in 2012, alongside Kai, former EXO member Luhan. SNSD’s Hyoyeon, former Super Junior-M member Henry, and Super Junior’s Eunhyuk. The unit was a collaboration between SM and Hyundai PYL, and have only released one song called “Maxstep“. He was also a member of SM The Performance. They were a dance project group SM created in 2012 with TVXQ’s U-Know, SHINee’s Minho, EXO’s Kai and Lay, Super Junior’s Donghae and Eunhyuk, and NCT’s Ten as members.

Kai

Real name: Kim Jong-in
Birthday: January 14, 1994
Other group(s) he’s in: EXO, SM The Performance
Social media: Instagram

Kai was born in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, South Korea. While his parents wanted Kai to learn Taekwondo and piano, he wanted to become a dancer instead. He originally trained in jazz dance, until he switched to ballet after watching The Nutcracker. Kai won SM’s Youth Best contest in 2007 and started training in hip hop, popping and locking after signing with the company.

Kai was announced as a member of EXO in 2011, and debuted with the group in 2012. In 2016, he made his acting debut in the web drama Choco Bank, and has since starred in other dramas, such as Andante, Miracle That We Met and a Japanese drama, Spring Has Come. In September 2019, Kai became the first Korean to be appointed as Gucci’s global brand ambassador.

Note: This is the third time Kai has been in a group with Taemin, who is a close friend of his. They were both a part of Younique Unit, and are current members of SM The Performance. Kai was also featured on the track “Pretty Boy” from Taemin’s debut album, Ace.

Taeyong

Full name: Lee Tae-yong
Birthday: July 1, 1995
Other group(s) he’s in: NCT, NCT U, NCT 127
Social media: Instagram, YouTube

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Taeyong was scouted on the street by an SM recruiter when he was 18. He joined the company after passing his audition (his audition song? The national anthem).

Before making his debut, Taeyong was a featured artist on Red Velvet’s song “Be Natural”. He officially debuted as a member of NCT U (one of NCT’s many sub-units) in April 2016 with their first single “The 7th Sense“, and became the leader for another sub-unit, NCT 127, later that year. Taeyong is also a songwriter who has written over 70 songs for himself SuperM and NCT, including “Fire Truck“, “Cherry Bomb“, and “Regular“.

In July 2019, Taeyong released his first solo single “Long Flight” as a part of SM Station. He officially debuted as a soloist in June 2023 with his mini album SHALALA. Taeyong is currently fulfilling Korea’s mandatory military service in the Navy. He’s expected to be discharged in December 2025.

Ten

Real name: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul
Birthday: February 27, 1996
Other group(s) he’s in: NCT, NCT U, WayV, SM The Performance
Social media: Instagram

Ten was born in Bangkok, Thailand to a Thai Chinese family. He won Teen Superstar, a Thai TV competition series, in 2010 and was given an opportunity to sign with South Korean agency Starship Entertainment. However, Ten turned down the offer, eventually signing with SM in 2013 after coming in first place of their global audition in Thai.

Ten made his debut in 2016 as a member of NCT U and was featured in their single “The 7th Sense”. In 2017, he released his first solo song “Dream in a Dream” through SM Station, which was followed by his next solo track, “New Heroes” in 2018. Later that same year, Ten was revealed to be a member of WayV, a China-based unit associated with NCT. WayV made their debut in January 2019 with their EP, The Vision and the Chinese version of “Regular“. Ten made his official debut as a soloist in February 2024 with his self-titled mini album.

Lucas

Full name: Lucas Wong Yuk-hei
Birthday: January 25, 1999
Other groups(s) he’s in: NCT, NCT U, WayV
Social media: Instagram

Lucas was born in Sha Tin, Hong Kong to a Chinese father and a Thai mother. In 2015, Lucas passed an audition SM had in Hong Kong and went straight to South Korea. He was accepted into the company after striking three model-like poses.

Lucas made his debut in NCT on March 14, 2018, with the release of the group’s debut full length album NCT 2018 Empathy. His vocals were included in three songs off the album: “Boss“, ”Yestoday” (both with NCT U) and “Black on Black” (with NCT 2018). He released his first solo track “Coffee Break” later that year for SM Station featuring Jonah Nilsson and Richard Bona. In 2019, he became a member of NCT’s Chinese sub unit, WayV.

In 2021, Lucas paused all idol activities after fans accused him of dating them just to exploit them financially. In 2023, SM announced that Lucas would leave NCT and WayV to pursue a solo career. He made his debut a year later in April 2024 with the single album Renegade.

Note: Before his debut, Lucas made a cameo in Ten’s “Dream in a Dream” music video (you can see him at the 0:51 mark).

Mark

Full name: Mark Lee (Korean name: Lee Min-hyung
Birthday: August 2, 1999
Other group(s) he’s in: NCT, NCT U, NCT 127, NCT Dream
Social media: Instagram, YouTube

The youngest in SuperM, Mark was born in Toronto, Canada, but later moved to Vancouver. He was cast through an SM global audition in Vancouver, and moved to Seoul to become a trainee.

Mark debuted in 2016 with NCT U and was featured in their single “The 7th Sense”, which he helped write. Later that year he became a member of NCT 127 and NCT Dream, where all of the members are in their teens.

Mark graduated from NCT Dream on December 31, 2018 after turning 20 in Korean age (19 internationally). In 2020, SM abolished their age-based graduation system, allowing Mark to return to NCT Dream. He released his first single “Child” in January 2022, and his first album The Firstfruit in April 2025.

What Happened to SuperM?

It’s hard to determine what the current status of the group is, because SM hasn’t said a word about them for years. Following the release of their first studio album Super One in 2020, the group just disappeared. Most fans seem to agree that SuperM has quietly disbanded.

The group’s story wasn’t supposed to end like this. They initially went on an indefinite hiatus so that Baekyun and Taemin could complete their mandated military service. That’s when everything went to hell. Lucas had his scandals, which left his status as a SuperM member unclear.

Then Lee Soo-Man’s relationship with SM soured to the point that he left the company in 2022. Things would deteriorate even further when Soo-Man went to war with his nephew-in-law when SM accepted a deal that would make Kakao its largest shareholder. Despite these issues, SM swore that SuperM would return in 2023. They even posted a teaser on January 1, 2023. Yet as of 2025, no plans for a comeback have materialized. Since SuperM was Lee Soo-Man’s brainchild, some fans theorize that SM killed the group out of spite.

It’s a depressing end for a group that was only active for less than two years. SuperM was a project filled with talent, but also untapped potential. There’s no telling what they would be doing now that K-pop is growing more popular in the U.S. At least we have these music videos to remember them by.