Produce X 101 () is a 2019 South Korean boy group survival reality show on Mnet and the fourth season of the Produce 101 franchise. The public, referred to as "national producers", "produces" a boy band by choosing 11 members among the 101 trainees from 47 different entertainment companies and independent trainees through online voting and live voting with multiple elimination rounds. The public will also choose the group's concept, debut song, and group name. The show aired from May 3 to July 19, 2019. Contestant Kim Yohan from Oui Entertainment obtained the most votes at the end, becoming the debut group center. The group from this show was named X1, but after extensive voting manipulation was proven, the group was disbanded on January 6, 2020.
Promotions and broadcast
On February 28, 2019, Mnet announced that the debuting group under the show will promote for five years, with a -year exclusive contract and another two-and-a-half year non-exclusive contract, meaning that the eventual members can return to co-promote with their original agencies after the first half.
Filming for the show began on March 4, 2019. On the same day, the trainers were announced, as well as Lee Dong-wook announced as MC role. The trainees were first revealed through a runway show on March 20, 2019. On March 21, their first performance of their title track, "X1-MA" () was revealed on M Countdown later that day, revealing Son Dong-pyo of DSP Media as the center.
The show premiered on May 3, 2019, on Mnet in South Korea, Mnet Japan and AbemaTV in Japan, JOOX in Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Myanmar and Indonesia, YouTube and Vlive in Other international location. The series will be broadcast on tvN Asia in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Myanmar and Sri Lanka, 18 hours after the original South Korean broadcast from May 4, 2019, with English, Chinese, Malay, Thai and Indonesian subtitles.
New to this series is the X rank, the lowest rank where the contestants are at their most vulnerable to be eliminated. It is similar to the F rank used in the previous three seasons. Furthermore, the 11th member of the final group will be decided by the total number of votes they have accumulated throughout the whole season, meaning that the trainee who places 11th in the finale does not necessarily become the 11th member of the final group.
Staff members
The series was presented by Lee Dong-wook. Other artists featured as cast members:
Vocal trainers: Lee Seok-hoon Shin Yu-mi Dance trainers: Bae Yoon-jeong Kwon Jae-seung Choi Young-jun Rap trainer: Cheetah Guest trainers: One-day Vocal Trainer: Soyou (Episodes 1–2) Group X Battle Rap Trainer: Lee Joo-heon (Episodes 3–4)
Contestants
Color key (In order of contestant's rank on the show)
Episodes
Episode 1 (May 3, 2019)
Each contestant enters the studio chooses his preferred seat among chairs numbered 1 to 101, before being informed about several changes that will be applied in this season. Contestants then perform according to their company for evaluation. The mentors grade and assign them into temporary groups for training: A, B, C, D, and X, with A being the highest and X the lowest. At the ending, the popularity ranking is shown with Jellyfish Entertainment's Kim Min-kyu taking 1st place.
Episode 2 (May 10, 2019) The trainees react to the first episode along with Lee Dong-wook. The evaluation from Episode 1 continues until all the trainees are evaluated. The trainees in groups A, B, C, and D are taken to the dormitories and are given roommates and uniforms. They are told that they will be training and performing the theme song, "X1-MA", on M! Countdown. Instead of being sent home, the X trainees were secretly taken to a different training center to receive specialized training. Each contestant records video evaluations for the song. The episode ends with the popularity ranking showing Oui Entertainment's Kim Yo-han in 1st place.
Episode 3 (May 17, 2019) The trainees film themselves individually performing "X1-MA." Each video is watched by the mentors, who then reevaluate the trainees. Afterwards, the trainees are given their new grade and move into their new rooms corresponding to their rank. Following the reorganization, they are told that the center position of the "X1-MA" performance will be instead chosen by audience vote instead of trainee vote. DSP Media's Son Dong-pyo, Brand New Music's Kim Si-hun, and TOP Media's Kim Woo-seok are shown to be the Top 3, with Son Dong-pyo winning. Trainees who are reevaluated as X will not be able to appear in the performances.