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Road to Kingdom
Promotional poster
Genre	Reality competition
Directed by	Jo Wook-hyung Lee Byung-wook Jo Hye-mi
Presented by	Lee Da-hee Jang Sung-kyu
Starring	Pentagon ONF Golden Child The Boyz Verivery Oneus TOO
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language	Korean
No. of episodes	8
Production
Running time	90–120 minutes
Production company	Mnet
Original release
Network	Mnet
Release	April 30 (2020-04-30) – June 18, 2020 (2020-06-18)
Related
Queendom (2019) Kingdom: Legendary War (2021) Queendom 2 (2022) Queendom Puzzle (2023) Road to Kingdom: Ace of Ace (2024)

Road to Kingdom (Korean: 로드 투 킹덤) is a South Korean reality competition series created by Mnet. It aired on Mnet from April 30, to June 18, 2020, every Thursday at 20:00 (KST). It was known as the first part of the male counterpart of Queendom, and the prequel of Kingdom: Legendary War. A press conference was held on April 21, 2020.

Season 2 of the show, better known as Road to Kingdom: Ace of Ace, made its premiere on September 19, 2024. The Road to Kingdom series would be re-branded as a standalone program, rather than a prequel to Kingdom.

Overview

Road to Kingdom was a battle for a spot in Kingdom (킹덤) between 7 boy groups with potential, but mostly unknown to many. Similar to Queendom, there would be Comeback Singles (newly produced songs) released on June 12, 2020.

During the season, special interview clips with Queendom contestants Park Bom, AOA (Chanmi), Mamamoo (Solar, Hwasa), Lovelyz (Mijoo, Kei), Oh My Girl (Hyojung, YooA) and (G)I-DLE (Soyeon, Yuqi) were shown in episode 1, as they shared their first thoughts about Road to Kingdom.

There were numbers as hints, which were given 1 week before the first recording of the show, and they were shown as follow:

• 1 boy group will advance to Kingdom, as part of winning the show; the number "1" also means the evaluation standards to be used
• 2 boy groups were eliminated throughout the show
• 4 performances (however, not all 7 boy groups will perform in all 4 performances)
• 7 boy groups
• 90 Seconds Performances (Preliminary Performances)

The Boyz, as the winner group of the show, secured a spot in the sequel program Kingdom: Legendary War.

Rules

• There will be 2 boy groups to be eliminated throughout the show:
  • 1 boy group will be eliminated when they obtain the lowest cumulative points of the 1st and 2nd performances
  • 1 boy group (out of the remaining 6) will be eliminated when they obtain the lowest cumulative points after the 3rd performance
• The overall final ranking of the show (for the remaining 5 boy groups in the final performances) is based on the following criteria:
  1. 3 preliminary performances (1st Performance - 10,000 points, 2nd Performance - 10,000 points, 3rd Performance - 15,000 points)
  2. Video view points (based on the number of views of the performance videos (Full Version only) on YouTube and Naver TV; maximum of 15,000 points)
  3. Digital points of the Comeback Singles calculated from the time of release till June 16, 2020, at 23:59 (KST) (maximum of 15,000 points)
  4. Finale live comeback stages text message votes (domestic and international fans' votes; maximum of 35,000 points)
• The overall 1st placed boy group will be able to take part in Kingdom.
• The boy group which does not rank 1st overall, but ranks 1st in only the Final Live Performances, can also advance to take part in Kingdom.
• In the event of 1 boy group having both 1st overall and 1st in only the Final Live Performances, the said boy group will be the only boy group to take part in Kingdom.

Preliminary Performances - 90 Seconds Performances

The 7 boy groups each perform a 90-second performance that best expresses themselves.

There is no order decided before the performances - the order is decided on the spot. The first performing boy group is decided by the boy group that volunteers themselves first. After the first boy group has performed, they will decide on the second performing boy group, and the second boy group that has performed will then decide on the third performing boy group. The process goes on until all performances have been completed.

The round's points are entirely decided through a self-evaluation where each boy group will rank the other boy groups' performances from 1st to 6th.

• 1st place: 100 points
• 2nd place: 80 points
• 3rd place: 60 points
• 4th place: 40 points
• 5th place: 20 points
• 6th place: 5 points

1st Performances - Song of King

The 7 boy groups each perform one song from their boy group seniors, and is rearranged into a different style.

Rules

• The 1st placed boy group for the 90 Seconds Performances will get a benefit of arranging the cue sheet for this round of performances.
• The round's points are entirely decided through a self-evaluation, where each boy group's members will rank the other boy groups' performances from 1st to 6th.
  • 1st place: 100 points
  • 2nd place: 80 points
  • 3rd place: 60 points
  • 4th place: 40 points
  • 5th place: 20 points
  • 6th place: 5 points
• As ONF and Oneus each have only 6 members, the remaining 5 boy groups will each send 6 of their members to vote for this round. (Total of 42 boy group members voting in this round)
• Each boy group would receive self-evaluation points from the other 6 boy groups' 36 members, and they will be added up to become the round's total points obtained for the boy group.
• The 1st placed boy group gets the full 10,000 points, and the remaining boy groups will each get points based on the proportion of their self-evaluation points to the self-evaluation points of the 1st placed boy group.

2nd Performances - My Song

The 7 boy groups each perform one of their representative hit songs, that is rearranged and different from their usual stages of the song.

Rules

• The 1st placed boy group for the 1st Performances will get a benefit of arranging the cue sheet for this round of performances. However, the other boy groups do not find out their own spots, nor the ones of the others, in the cue sheet until the day of the performances.
• The round's points are decided through 2 categories:
  • Self-evaluation that was used for the 1st Performances voting, where each boy group would receive points from the other 6 boy groups' 36 members. (30% of the points for this round)
  • Online audience votes from 140 individuals. Each boy group will gather 20 individuals, and each individual only gets to vote for the top 3 performances in this round. (70% of the points for this round)
• The 1st placed boy group gets the full 10,000 points, and the remaining boy groups will each get points based on the proportion of their total points obtained to the total points obtained for the 1st placed boy group.

3rd Performances - Part 1 (Collaboration) + Part 2 (Your Song)

The 6 remaining boy groups will have 2 performances for this round: the first being a collaboration performance, and the second being the performance of a song chosen by another boy group.

Rules (Collaboration)

• The 3 pairs of boy groups were matched by random picking of one boy group, followed by random picking of the next boy group to be paired with the boy group picked earlier on. The process goes on to form the remaining 2 pairs.
• There are no restrictions in the number of members each boy group would involve and their song choices.
• The round's points are decided through 2 categories:
  • Self-evaluation, where each boy group will send 6 members (total of 36 boy group members voting) and rank the 3 collaboration performances. (30% of the points for this round)
  • Online audience votes from 120 individuals. Each boy group will gather 20 individuals, and each individual ranks the 3 performances in this round. (70% of the points for this round)
  • 1st place - 10 points, 2nd place - 5 points, 3rd place - 1 point
• The 1st placed collaboration performance gets the full 5,000 points each for the boy groups involved, 3,000 each for the boy groups involved in the 2nd placed collaboration performance, and 1,000 each for the boy groups involved in the 3rd placed collaboration performance.

Rules (Your Song)

• The 6 remaining boy groups each pick a song, with no restriction, for this round.
• The songs chosen will each then be allocated to another boy group, but only within the pairings that were formed for the Collaboration round.
• The 1st placed boy group for the 2nd Performances will get a benefit of arranging the cue sheet for this round of performances. However, the other boy groups do not find out their own spots, nor the ones of the others, in the cue sheet until the day of the performances.
• The round's points are decided through 2 categories:
  • Self-evaluation, where each boy group will send 6 members (total of 36 boy group members voting). (30% of the points for this round)
  • Online audience votes from 120 individuals. Each boy group will gather 20 individuals, and each individual would only vote for the top 3 performances in this round. (70% of the points for this round)
• The 1st placed boy group gets the full 10,000 points, and the remaining boy groups will each get points based on the proportion of their total points obtained to the total points obtained for the 1st placed boy group.

Final Live Comeback Stages

The 5 remaining boy groups will each perform a newly produced song live.

• For this round, live votes will be allocated in the following distribution:
  • Domestic fans' text message votes (70% of the live votes)
  • International fans' voting through the Whosfan application (30% of the live votes)
• In addition, the following categories are also considered to decide the final winner:
  • Total points accumulated in the Performances prior to the finale (except for the 90 Seconds Performances)
  • View counts of the performance videos on YouTube and Naver TV
  • Digital points of the Comeback Singles calculated (from time of release to June 16, 2020, at 23:59 (KST))

Cast

Hosts

• Lee Da-hee
• Jang Sung-kyu

Contestants

• Pentagon
• ONF
• Golden Child
• The Boyz
• Verivery
• Oneus
• TOO (later known as TO1)

Episodes

Each team will present a 90-second performance, which will then be evaluated by self-evaluation (i.e., the seven teams themselves). Each team will rank the other teams performances from 1st to 6th, wherein the following ranks shall corresponding to a number of points:

• 1st - 100
• 2nd - 80
• 3rd - 60
• 4th - 40
• 5th - 20
• 6th - 5

Then, the scores will be summed up and the ranking of the teams will be determined. The points for this round are not included in the overall points for the show.

Elimination table

Color key:

•   Eliminated in First Elimination
•   Eliminated in Second Elimination
•   Overall runner-up
•   Finale winner and highest overall score; joins Kingdom

Discography

Song of King Part 1

Song of King Part 2

My Song Part 1

My Song Part 2

Your Song Part 1

Your Song Part 2

Road to Kingdom FINAL

Ratings

In the ratings below, the highest rating for the show will be in red and the lowest rating for the show will be in blue. Some of the ratings found have already been rounded off to 1 decimal place, as they are usually of lower rankings in terms of the day's ratings.

Sequel

On October 29, 2020, Mnet confirmed the sequel of the show titled Kingdom: Legendary War (킹덤: 레전더리 워), and was aired on April 1, 2021.

On April 24, 2024 Mnet confirmed that season 2 of the show will be produced, and would air by the second half of the year. Road to Kingdom: Ace of Ace would air from September 19.

Notes

1. Member Yan An will not appear on the entire show.
2. Member Jinho has enlisted as an active duty soldier on May 11, 2020, hence after the 2nd Performances, the group will perform on the show without him.
3. ^ For each vote:
   • 1st place: 100 points
   • 2nd place: 80 points
   • 3rd place: 60 points
   • 4th place: 40 points
   • 5th place: 20 points
   • 6th place: 5 points
4. Included sample from their song "Magnolia".
5. Included sample of their song "Shine".
6. Included samples of their songs "We Must Love" & "Why".
7. Based on "The Phantom of the Opera". Included sample of their song "Twilight".
8. The 1st placed boy group gets the full 10,000 points, and the remaining boy groups will get points based on the proportion of their points to the points of the 1st placed boy group.
9. ^ After proportioning, such that the 1st placed boy group gets the full points.
10. ^ Rounded to the nearest number
11. Last performance to feature member Jinho.
12. Performance special guest: YooA (Oh My Girl)
13. Included sample of Caprice No.24 by Paganini, played by member Joochan on the violin.
14. Under the title "Reveal (Catching Fire)".
15. 5,000 for 1st place, 3,000 for 2nd place, and 1,000 for 3rd place.
16. Only members Hui, Kino and Wooseok were involved.
17. Only members Hyojin, J-Us and Wyatt were involved.
18. Only members Sangyeon, Juyeon, New, Q and Sunwoo were involved.
19. Six (6) members from each team will rank the other teams' performances (excluding their own) from 1st to 5th, with each ranking corresponding to a certain number of points (unrevealed).
20. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet".
21. Included sample of their song "Complete".
22. Inspired by the musical fantasy film "Aladdin".
23. Under the title "Quasi una fantasia".
24. Consists of Hui (Pentagon), Hyojin (ONF), Hyunjae (The Boyz), Yeonho (Verivery) and Seoho (Oneus)
25. Originally by BtoB
26. Not included in the overall score.
27. Total of 1st and 2nd Performances.
28. Total of 1st, 2nd and 3rd Performances.
29. Excluding the 90 Seconds Performance Score.
30. ^ Arranged by Hwang Hyun (MonoTree)
31. Arranged by Minit, Chiic and Hui
32. ^ Arranged by Minit and Hui
33. Arranged by DJ Kaesama
34. Arranged by Lee Hoo-sang and Mingki
35. ^ Arranged by Coke paris
36. Arranged by Yummy Tone (Big Sancho, Park Hae-il)
37. ^ Arranged by Ohway! (Prismfilter)
38. Arranged by Lee Hoo-sang, Mingki and Kim Young-hyun (Coco Tubu Father)
39. Arranged by 13 (Score, Megatone, Luke)
40. Original title "Shangri-la"
41. Arranged by Lee Sang-ho, Park Woo-sang, Lee Hoo-sang and Mingki
42. Arranged by Glory Face (Full8loom) and Jake K (ARTiffect)
43. Arranged by Imazine and Nathan
44. Arranged by Nathan and yunji

References

1. "Mnet 측 "'로드 투 킹덤', 4월 30일 첫 방송 확정"(공식)". YTN (in Korean). 2020-03-26. Retrieved 2020-03-26.
2. "'로드 투 킹덤' CP "펜타곤→데뷔 한달 TOO까지, 계급장 떼고 무대로 승부"". SportsSeoul (in Korean). 2020-04-21. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
3. "경연곡→투표·집계방식까지 '로드투킹덤' 스포일러에 몸살[TV와치]". Newsen (in Korean). 2020-04-15. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
4. ^ Ryu, Ye-ji (August 27, 2024). 태민 첫 단독 MC '로드 투 킹덤', 9월 19일 첫 방송 [Taemin's first solo MC 'Road to Kingdom', first broadcast on September 19] (in Korean). Ten Asia. Retrieved September 19, 2024 – via Naver.
5. "'로드 투 킹덤' 올 하반기 론칭..킹덤 프리퀄 아닌 '단독 브랜드화' [공식]". OSEN via Naver (in Korean). 2024-06-26. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
6. "Introduction to Road to Kingdom".
7. Road to Kingdom [1회] 다시 만난 QUEEN들, 그들이 들려주는 이야기 200430 EP.1. Mnet via YouTube. April 30, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
8. Road to Kingdom [1회] '1,2,4,7,90' 로드 투 킹덤의 비밀이 담긴 숫자 카드의 의미는? 200430 EP.1. Mnet via YouTube. April 30, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
9. "'로드 투 킹덤' 더보이즈, '킹덤' 진출 확정→온앤오프 '아쉬운 2위' [종합]". OSEN (in Korean). 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
10. "펜타곤 맏형 진호, 11일 입대…당분간 7인 체제". Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). 2020-05-08. Retrieved 2020-05-10.
11. "Nielsen Korea". www.nielsenkorea.co.kr. Archived from the original on 2017-05-13. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
12. "AGB Nielsen Korea 2". Daum.
13. "AGB Nielsen Korea 3". Naver.
14. "'로드 투 킹덤', 0.5%로 출발…첫 1위는 더보이즈". The Fact (in Korean). 2020-05-01. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
15. "[공식입장] 엠넷 측 "'킹덤', 내년 상반기 편성 목표…섭외 진행 중"". News1 (in Korean). 2020-10-29. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
16. "'로드 투 킹덤' 새 시즌으로 돌아온다…Mnet 측 "하반기 편성 예정" [공식]". Ilgan Sports (in Korean). 2024-04-24. Retrieved 2024-04-24.

External links

• Official website (in Korean)
• Road to Kingdom at IMDb 
• Road to Kingdom on Naver TV (in Korean)

• 2020 South Korean television series debuts
• 2020 South Korean television series endings
• Korean-language television shows
• Music competitions in South Korea
• South Korean reality television series
• South Korean music television shows
• Mnet (TV channel) original programming
• Reality music competition television series
• K-pop television series