Seoul's #1 K-pop Academy RIIZE Choreographers aespa Vocal & Movement Trainers In-House Auditions: JYP · PLEDIS · KOZ · Source Music NewJeans Choreographer Girls' Generation · SHINee · EXO Lineage Red Velvet · aespa · RIIZE Netflix: KPOP DEMON HUNTERS 5 min from SM Entertainment HQ Seoul's #1 K-pop Academy RIIZE Choreographers aespa Vocal & Movement Trainers In-House Auditions: JYP · PLEDIS · KOZ · Source Music NewJeans Choreographer Girls' Generation · SHINee · EXO Lineage Red Velvet · aespa · RIIZE Netflix: KPOP DEMON HUNTERS 5 min from SM Entertainment HQ

Founded by

Jae Shim

Former SM Entertainment Director · Keens Seoul

Jae spent 25+ years at SM Entertainment — shaping Girls' Generation, EXO, SHINee, Red Velvet, aespa, and RIIZE. He built Keens Seoul in the same district where K-pop's biggest acts are trained right now (5 min from SM Entertainment HQ). He knows exactly what it takes to go from trainee to debut — and he built this program to give you that path, wherever you are in the world.

25+ Years at SM Entertainment

#1 Academy in Seoul

12+ Working K-pop trainers

Jae Shim — Former SM Entertainment Director, Founder of Keens Seoul

Seoul, Korea 5 min from SM Entertainment

The question

What's been
holding you back?

You're training blind

Most trainees are grinding without knowing where they actually stand. No benchmark, no roadmap, no honest feedback. Without that baseline, it's impossible to know what to work on — or whether you're getting better at all.

You don't have the right access

Real K-pop training means someone who actually knows the Seoul standard watching you and correcting you. Not YouTube. Not a local instructor who learned it from YouTube. People who were there — inside the agencies.

You're not in Seoul

The world's best K-pop trainers live and work in one city. That used to mean it was out of reach. Keen to Train was built to close that gap — without diluting what makes Seoul's training the standard every agency uses.

The Keen to Train Program

Real training.
Real results.

We didn't build a content library. We digitized a real Seoul academy — every class filmed in our professional studio 5 minutes from where K-pop is made. Every evaluation written by a working professional.

Keens Academy Seoul studio — floor-to-ceiling windows with KEENS SEOUL branding

Full Curriculum

Full curriculum access: structured levels from foundation through advanced, filmed in the same room where our Seoul students train every week.

6+ courses: vocal, dance, stage performance
Structured levels — begin where you are, progress at the right pace
Practice Hall tools for drills and choreography (beta)
Stream on any device

Keens Academy trainee community on Circle

Community & Accountability

Train with other serious students from around the world. A members-only community where you can share practice clips, get peer feedback, and stay accountable alongside people who take this as seriously as you do.

Private trainee community on Circle
Group challenges and study tracks
Peer feedback and accountability partners
Direct access to program updates and content drops

Monthly Evaluation

Once a month, your progress is evaluated across all key dimensions — the same framework used at Keens Seoul. You get a score update, written assessment, and an adjusted training focus for the month ahead.

Evaluated across vocal, dance, stage presence, consistency
Written assessment with specific scores
Adjusted training focus based on where you stalled
Structured exactly like a real agency check-in

In Their Words

The artists
speak for themselves.

Seulgi (Red Velvet) speaking about Jae Shim at Keens

"심재원 선생님의 수업을 듣는 것이 꿈이었어요"

"It was my dream to take Jae Shim's class."

— Seulgi, Red Velvet

"재원이형은 SM 내에서 절대적인 존재에요"

"Jae hyung is an absolute presence within SM."

— KAI, EXO

"The monthly evaluation completely changed how I train. Seeing a real score for each skill every month keeps me focused in a way nothing else has."

— Maya, 21 · Level 4 → 5 in 8 months

The Trainers

They trained the artists
you grew up on.

Girls' Generation. EXO. SHINee. Red Velvet. aespa. RIIZE. NewJeans. Our instructors aren't content creators — they're the people in the room making those artists right now. This is their day job.

Yunhwan

RIIZE Performance Director
Choreographed Get A Guitar, Love 119

Jaein

SM Entertainment Trainer
aespa Trainer

Juhee

SM Entertainment Trainer
Road to Kingdom
Phantom & Balance 2 Works

Chey

BlackPink Debut Group Trainer
aespa World Tour Performance Director
SM/YG Debut Group Trainer

Jinstar

RIIZE & NCT Trainer
ENHYPEN Choreographer
Pentagon Trainer

Paperman

SM Entertainment Trainer

Proof

The people behind
K-pop's biggest names.

Girls' Generation · EXO · SHINee · Red Velvet · aespa · RIIZE · NewJeans · NCT

Ejae

Netflix Star · Songwriter · Producer

In her earlier years, she was a trainee at SM Entertainment. She learned to dance and perform from Jae Shim. Although she didn't debut at SM, her early training prepared her for her career as a songwriter, producer, and (now) world-class performer.

"Shim Jaewon was my dance teacher."
심재원 선생님이 제 춤 선생님이었는데 — 유퀴즈 온더블럭, tvN

End-of-term showcase · Seoul studio

Duo performance at Keens Academy showcase

Keens Academy trainees mid-choreography under the KEENS LED sign

Pricing

Start here.
Go all the way.

Keen to Train

Full Membership

$99 /month

Train seriously. Access the full curriculum, Practice Hall (beta), the trainee community, and a monthly evaluation — all built on the same methods used at Keens Seoul. Cancel anytime.

Full curriculum — all levels, vocal, dance, stage performance
Practice Hall — choreography drills and movement tools (beta)
Trainee community on Circle
Monthly evaluation with written assessment & score update
Cancel anytime

Start Training — $99/mo

Level Check members

Your Level Check is a full credit.

Complete Level Check first and your fee is applied as a credit toward your first month of Keen to Train — you pay just $70. Upgrade window: 2 weeks from your Level Check purchase date.

$70 /mo one

Month 1 with credit

Common Questions

FAQ

What level do I need to be?

All levels are welcome. The curriculum is organized by skill level so you begin where you are. The monthly evaluation tracks your progress and adjusts your training focus each month.

Is everything in English?

Yes. All video lessons, written feedback, and evaluations are in English. Keen to Train is built specifically for English-speaking K-pop trainees worldwide.

How does the monthly evaluation work?

Once per month, your progress is evaluated across key dimensions — vocal technique, dance execution, stage presence, and consistency. You receive a written assessment with scores and an adjusted training focus for the next month. It's structured exactly like a real agency check-in.

Do I need a Level Check result to join?

No — Keen to Train is open to anyone. If you've completed Level Check, your fee is applied as a credit toward your first month, so you pay just $70 instead of $99. You have 2 weeks from your Level Check purchase date to use that credit. If not, you start at $99/month.

What equipment do I need?

A device to stream classes, a cleared floor space of about 2m × 2m, and a mirror if you have one. That's it. Onboarding materials cover how to set up your home practice space.

How is this different from other online K-pop programs?

The instructors. Our trainers are working professionals who currently train RIIZE, aespa, and NewJeans. They're not content creators — they're actively shaping K-pop right now. The second difference is the monthly evaluation: you get scored by a real instructor against the same criteria used in Seoul, not a self-assessment or AI tool.

Can I cancel anytime?

Yes. Cancel anytime — no lock-in, no back-and-forth. Your access continues until the end of your paid period.

Is this related to Keens Seoul?

Yes. Keen to Train is built by the same team behind Keens Seoul — Seoul's #1 K-pop training organization. Our curriculum, evaluation criteria, and training philosophy are directly adapted from the methods used there, not generic music education content.

Train Where
Idols Are
Made.

Jae Shim