i-dle, CORTIS, NMIXX, And More Make Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia List For 2026
Several K-pop artists have made it onto Forbes’ “30 Under 30 Asia” list for 2026!
Every year, Forbes magazine selects 30 young Asian leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs to celebrate within 10 different categories, one of which is Entertainment & Sports.
This year, i-dle, CORTIS, NMIXX, and choreographer Leejung Lee were among the entertainers highlighted by the magazine.
Forbes introduced i-dle by stating, “i-dle is a K-pop girl group created by Cube Entertainment in 2018 under the name (G)I-DLE. Members Miyeon, Minnie, Soyeon, Yuqi, Shuhua, and Soojin debuted with the track ‘LATATA,’ went on to release multiple chart-topping albums, and have around seven million monthly listeners on Spotify. Soojin left the group in 2021. In 2025, the group rebranded itself as i-dle and released its eighth EP, ‘We are,’ which sold over one million copies in its first week. That year, it also won the Grand Prize at the 34th Seoul Music Awards.”
Furthermore, Forbes wrote about CORTIS, “CORTIS, derived from the phrase ‘colour outside the lines,’ is a five-member K-pop boy group created in 2025 by BIGHIT MUSIC, a label under HYBE. It was the first boy group launched by the HYBE subsidiary in six years, following BTS and TOMORROW X TOGETHER. Branded a ‘young creator crew’ rather than a traditional idol act, members Martin, James, Juhoon, Seonghyeon, and Keonho were all credited with choreography or production roles on their debut EP, ‘COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES,’ which debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and ranked first in first-week sales among 2025 rookie groups. CORTIS has won multiple rookie awards, including recognition at the 2025 Mnet Asian Music Awards and the 40th Golden Disc Awards.”
As for NMIXX, Forbes stated, “NMIXX is a South Korean girl group created by JYP Entertainment in 2022 with the release of the single album ‘AD MARE.’ Its six members—Lily, Haewon, Sullyoon, Bae, Jiwoo, and Kyujin—have gained recognition for a fusion sound called ‘Mixx Pop’ that combines various genres, including pop, rock, hip-hop, and electronic music. Last October, the group’s first studio album, ‘Blue Valentine,’ nearly topped Korea’s Circle Album Chart and won ten music awards. NMIXX has six million followers on Instagram and approximately 3.6 million monthly listeners on Spotify.”
Finally, Forbes described Leejung Lee’s influence by writing, “Leejung Lee is a choreographer and dancer who created the dance for ‘Soda Pop’ in Netflix’s 2025 animated hit ‘KPop Demon Hunters.’ She began as the first female member of the dance group Just Jerk Crew and has helped choreograph performances for K-pop groups including BLACKPINK and TWICE. Lee regularly posts dance videos on Instagram to her audience of 2.6 million followers.”
Congratulations to i-dle, CORTIS, NMIXX, and Leejung Lee!
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