Predebut
The members of 2PM all auditioned to become part of JYP Entertainment, to which the Wonder Girls also belong. Some members held their auditions in other countries; for example, Park Jaebeom, Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul auditioned in the United States. Other members already had experience in the entertainment industry prior to their acceptance into JYP Entertainment, such as Kim Junsu, who had won various singing competitions, and Ok Taecyeon, Lee Junho and Hwang Chansung, who had participated in the show 'SuperStar Survival'.
2PM's and 2AM's training days were filmed in a documentary called Hot Blood Men, which aired on Mnet. The show documented the rigorous training program of the JYP trainees who were to be part of the group One Day, as well as the elimination of three trainees from the group.
2008–2009: Debut, and eventual success
2PM debuted with their single "10jeom Manjeome 10jeom" (10 Points Out Of 10 Points/10 Out of 10) on September 4, 2008. On October 17, 2008, they started to promote "Only You," another song from their debut mini album "Hottest Time of the Day."
On April 16, 2009, the group released their second mini album "2:00 PM Time For Change". Promotions began April 23 on M!Countdown, as 2PM performed an introductory dance to "What Time Is It Now" that lead to the performance of their title single, "Again & Again". On May 9, 2009, they won their first Mutizen Song award on M!Countdown since their debut; in the same week, they won their second Mutizen on SBS Inkigayo. The group earned their third Mutizen the following week, completing the triple crown and making them ineligible to win for the following weeks. However, the award that had been eluding them - Music Bank - was quickly won soon after. On June 11, 2PM began promotions for "Niga Mipda" (니가 밉다, lit. I Hate You) on M!Countdown. On July 2 and 3, while in Thailand on a promotional tour, 2PM achieved first place on the M!Countdown and Music Bank charts for the song "Niga Mipda". The group thanked its fans for their support through a video made in Thailand posted in their account on Youtube for their win. They achieved the triple crown for the song on M!Countdown by July 16. On July 30, 2PM won the 'Only One Song' award on M!Countdown.
2009: Controversy and departure of Jaebeom
On September 4, 2009, articles surfaced on the internet regarding Jaebeom's posts on his personal Myspace account about his dislike for Korea and Koreans back in 2005 when he was still a trainee for JYP Entertainment. Jaebeom issued an apology regarding this matter. Although outraged protesters demanded that Jaebeom should be forced out of 2PM, JYP Entertainment CEO Park Jin-young stated on September 7 that he was going to continue to remain part of the group. The following day, Jaebeom announced on his offical fancafe that he would be leaving the group and returning to the United States, and apologized to the other 2PM members for not being a good leader and older brother to the group.
On September 4, 2009, articles surfaced on the internet regarding Jaebeom's posts on his personal Myspace account about his dislike for Korea and Koreans back in 2005 when he was still a trainee for JYP Entertainment. Jaebeom issued an apology regarding this matter. Although outraged protesters demanded that Jaebeom should be forced out of 2PM, JYP Entertainment CEO Park Jin-young stated on September 7 that he was going to continue to remain part of the group. The following day, Jaebeom announced on his offical fancafe that he would be leaving the group and returning to the United States, and apologized to the other 2PM members for not being a good leader and older brother to the group.
Cr: Wikipedia
