Former SM Entertainment Idol & Trainee Spotted Together – Are They Dating?
On social media platforms, a photo of a popular idol and former SM Entertainment trainee went viral. According to those who spotted the two stars together, they seemed to have a close relationship more than friends. Are they dating?
Former EXO Tao & Ex-SMROOKIES Yiyang Sparks Dating Rumor After THIS Photo
On February 14, former EXO member Tao and ex-SM Entertainment trainee Xu Yiyang were once again embroiled in a dating rumor after a witness netizen shared a photo of the two allegedly dining out together.
According to the netizen who shared the photo, the idols enjoyed a Valentine's Day date, while wearing couple items.
As soon as the photo was shared, it immediately spread online, especially on Chinese media such as Weibo.
In the photo released along with the sightings, Tao and Yiyang are sitting facing each other while wearing a speculated couple hats. They are dressed in comfortable clothes, but they match the color of their clothes to create a similar look.
With this, the romantic relationship rumors surrounding the K-pop stars turned Chinese idols since 2019 were strengthened. In particular, netizens and insiders claimed that they were dating after claims of their cohabitation and greetings to each other's families emerged. Their close relationship also led to speculations that they were seriously seeing each other to get married.
However, fans and supporters of Tao and Xu defended them, stating that the two just have a senior-junior relationship. After all, Yiyang is an artist signed under L. TAO, the entertainment agency established by Huang Zitao himself.
During their dating rumors, Tao also personally clarified through a live SNS broadcast that he doesn't see Yiyang like that, saying:
"It's my girlfriend who's supporting me hard? They're all younger sisters. All the artists in our company are my family."
Tao & Xu Yiyang in SM Entertainment
Meanwhile, both Tao and Yiyang came from SM Entertainment and trained as idols in Korea before coming to China to pursue their respective careers.
Tao debuted as EXO in April 2012 and rose to popularity with "Growl" until he left the group in 2015 after a conflict with SM. Since then, he moved to China and started his activities as an artist and actor. Later on, he established his own entertainment company L. TAO and is currently working as its CEO.
On the other side, Xu Yiyang joined SM in 2014 and was officially introduced as a trainee through the pre-debut group SMROOKIES in 2016. She is one of the most anticipated trainees who's expected to debut with SMNGG (hereinafter aespa), however, she suddenly left SM in 2018 to start her solo career in China. At the time, it was also announced that she signed with Tao's company, L. TAO.
In 2018, she joined her first survival show, "The Next Top Bang," which led to her debut in a girl group called Legal High in January 2019. Unfortunately, the team disbanded in June of the same year, just five months after they were launched.
In 2020, she joined her second survival show, "Produce Camp," but failed to re-debut after ranking 8th place in the 10th episode.
After the show, Yiyang announced her solo debut with her single, "Listen."
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Written by Eunice Dawson.
