MANILA, Philippines – Filipina candidate Sophia Laforteza will be advancing to Mission 3 of The Debut: Dream Academy after garnering the highest number of votes in the second mission.

Mission 2 saw the remaining 18 contestants divided into four teams, with each team tasked to perform a song by K-pop girl group LE SSERAFIM. Sophia was on Team A, which performed “ANTIFRAGILE.” 

On Sunday, October 8, the talent reality show unveiled the ranking of the 18 participants, as well as the team that received the most fan votes. 

Prior to the announcement of the results, each candidate was asked about the qualities they possess that would make them a key part of the debut group. 

“I put the work in and I feel like I’ve grown so much in my skill set,” Sophia said. 

Each candidate was also asked to pick which of their fellow members should join them in their ideal debut group. Fourteen of the contestants chose Sophia to be part of their lineup. 

With a total of 49,690 votes, Sophia’s Team A won over Team B by 12,681 votes. 

As for their individual rankings, Sophia led the candidates with a total of 69,098 fan votes. She was followed by Brazil’s Samara (68,165) and South Korea’s Yoon-chae (57,801).

Meanwhile, four candidates — USA’s Brooklyn, Japan’s Mei, USA’s Karlee, and Belarus’ Iliya — were eliminated from the competition. 

The remaining 14 contestants will compete in Mission 3 — the last mission before the show’s live finale. The finale, where they will announce the final members and name of the group, will air locally on November 18. 

Sophia was announced as part of The Debut: Dream Academy’s lineup in August, where she was selected from a pool of more than 120,000 hopefuls from around the globe. For Mission 1, the 20-year-old ranked second. 

The program is produced by South Korean entertainment company HYBE and American label Geffen Records with the aim of creating the ultimate global girl group. – Rappler.com