PH’s Elisia Parmisano secures debut spot in Korean show ‘Universe Ticket’

Elisia Parmisano. Images: Courtesy of Universe Ticket

The Philippines’ Elisia Parmisano is the first candidate to officially secure a debut spot in the girl group UNIS, as announced on the Jan. 10 episode of the Korean survival show “Universe Ticket.”

Fourteen-year-old Parmisano was chosen out of the 16 finalists to debut in the upcoming girl group after advancing to the P-level in the show. She also garnered a total of 553,483.4 points in fan vote rankings.

Meanwhile, fellow Filipino Gehlee Dangca and Filipino-Korean Jin Hyeon-ju are still in the running for the seven remaining spots. On the other hand, Filipina candidate Aya Natsumi was eliminated in the sixth episode.

@limuelel Elisia is confirmed to debut and she rank 1 overall and she’s the only one in level P after universe ticket episode 9 🥰❤️ #elisia #엘리시아 #universeticket #universeticket_sbs ♬ original sound – muel~

To get a debut spot in “Universe Ticket,” contestants must advance to the P-level which is determined by the producers and fan votes. Their standing is also determined by fellow candidates in certain challenges, the most recent of which was broadcast on its Jan. 10 episode, as well as the appointed “unicorns” or mystery judges.

Lower levels are composed of R, I, S, and M, with candidates racing to be promoted to P-level. Dangca is currently ranked second on the R-level, while Jin is at the 10th spot on the I-level.

“Universe Ticket” consists of aspiring K-pop idols from South Korea, Japan, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Mongolia, Canada, Italy, Australia, Myanmar, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

The show’s coaches include South Korean solo artists Adora and Younha, as well as singer-actress Kim Se-jeong. Rounding up the coaches are Girls’ Generation’s Hyoyeon and Lachica’s Rian. Meanwhile, ITZY’s Yeji and Chaeryeong serve as celebrity mentors.

The lineup of UNIS, who will promote for two and a half years, will be determined on “Universe Ticket’s” final episode on Jan. 17. Before that, let us look back on the highlights of Parmisano’s journey in the show:

Profile

Parmisano was among the second batch of “Universe Ticket” contestants revealed to the public in July 2023. In her profile, she said her Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality type is INTP or “logician.”

She also hoped the show would be a “miracle” for her which is supported by the “universe.”

Check out the girls’ Profiles✔

✨#엘리시아 #ELISIA✨

✏Country : 필리핀
✏MBTI : INTP
✏A word of resolution :
우주가 응원하는 나의 기적이 <유니버스 티켓>에 기다리고 있길 기대해 봅니다!#유니버스티켓 #universeticket#SBS #fnfentertainment pic.twitter.com/UAC2hZJm3V

— Universe Ticket｜유니버스 티켓 (@_universeticket) July 17, 2023

Dangca and Natsumi were introduced in the first batch, while Jin was also unveiled in the same batch as Parmisano.

Before competing, Parmisano was one of the child actors featured in the 2019 show “Nang Ngumiti ang Langit.” She is also the cousin of Marcus, the youngest member of global pop group HORI7ON.

She was reported to have been scouted by HYBE sub-agency Belift Lab when she attended ENHYPEN’s concert in the Philippines back in December. However, neither Parmisano nor the label have commented on the rumors.

1 vs 1 battle

In the first episode, Parmisano introduced herself as someone who knows K-pop was “meant” for her, while singing and performing come naturally to her even when she was young.

“Singing has been natural for me since I was a child. I started dreaming of singing and performing in musicals,” she said in her introduction. “I developed a strong interest in K-pop and since then, I’ve been learning Korean. I’ve been consistently learning to dance to K-pop songs at the moment. I knew that K-pop was for me and the universe was giving me signs.”

Parmisano performed YooA’s “Selfish” for her audition and went up against Japanese contestant Yukino in the 1 vs 1 battle. She emerged as the winner, and was praised for her “live singing and rhythmic dance” skills.

‘Red Flavor’

Elisia also showed off her vocal skills in the fourth episode where she took on the chorus of Red Velvet’s hit song “Red Flavor.”

Elisia as possible main vocal

Parmisano also displayed her potential to be a main vocalist after taking on the high notes in the sixth episode. In the challenge, contestants were separated into groups and were asked to perform original songs.

She was part of the seven-member team “Forever” which took on a song titled “Whateva.” In the performance, Parmisano also showed off her dance and rap skills.

Elisia soldiers on

In the eighth episode’s “Position Battle,” the remaining contestants were divided into vocal, visual, and performance teams, where they performed Wanna One’s “Beautiful,” Orange Caramel’s “Catallena,” and ITZY’s “Loco,” respectively.

Parmisano and Dangca ended up in the vocal team, with the former taking on the bridge’s high notes with fellow candidate Lim Seo-won.

While preparing for their performance, Parmisano admitted that she was sick during rehearsals and hoped that she would be able to do the song justice.

Elisia seals her fate

The remaining semifinalists were asked to perform the original songs, “Yummy Yum” and “Dream Girl” at the “Final New Song Battle.” Parmisano ended up choosing the latter.

Meanwhile, Dangca also chose “Dream Girl” while Jin opted for “Yummy Yum.”

After the battle, eight contestants were eliminated. Only 16 contestants ended up in the running for a debut spot.

By the end of the episode, Parmisano, Dangca, Lim Seo-won, and Nana were revealed to be among the contestants who secured a debut spot. The 14-year-old Filipina was eventually confirmed to be the chosen.