Recently, a popular Indonesian TikToker known for sharing snippets of her life at The University of Oxford revealed her past experiences auditioning for major Korean entertainment companies and her close brush with appearing on a popular idol competition program before choosing a very different path for her life.
@lananinano ♬ Water (Slowed) – Tyla
Lana, who is known as @lananinano on TikTok, recently graduated from The University of Oxford and holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Science.
She’s often shared “day in [her] life” vlogs and videos about her Oxford student experience and her current lung cancer research.
@lananinano in my nadine era #fyp #dayinmylife #vlog #university #study #student #oxforduniversity
♬ Aesthetic – Tollan Kim
One video, in particular, gained attention thanks to her caption, “When you could’ve been besties with [IVE’s] Wonyoung, but now you’re doing quantum physics at uni.”
The video featured a compilation of video auditions and emails from companies such as HYBE‘s subsidiary label BELIFT LAB and SM Entertainment.
@lananinano it’s ok you can laugh #fyp #kpopfyp #kpop #fypシ #xyzbca #viral #hybe #smentertainment #foryou
♬ I would give the pain a 10 – Se’Neyah ♡︎
Eagle-eyed netizens spotted a clip of Lana on the MBC idol competition program, My Teenage Girl, which formed the K-Pop girl group, CLASS:y.
In the comment section on the video, Lana revealed that she had been dropped from the show.
While netizens are impressed with how close Lana came to becoming a K-Pop idol trainee, they’re even more impressed with the incredible achievements she has made since, referencing her career pivot as “Bridgit Mendler-core,” referencing the former Disney actress and singer-songwriter who recently became a space start-up CEO.
In a follow-up video posted by Lana, which went viral, she danced to TWICE‘s “Look At Me” while responding to a netizen comment about her interesting journey from K-Pop idol hopeful to oncology student at The University of Oxford.
@lananinano Replying to @adrian do u think belift would want me back #fyp #twice #kpop
♬ 날 바라바라봐 / LOOK AT ME – TWICE
Netizens have left multiple comments about how inspired they are by Lana’s research, academic career, and seeing fellow women in STEM.
