TV Chosun’s hit audition show “Miss Trot 2” recorded a viewership rating of 30 percent Thursday, emulating the success of the men’s version last year .

The 30 percent viewership share has traditionally been the threshold for a local entertainment show being considered a success.

“Miss Trot 2” is officially the third season of the audition show series, following “Miss Trot” and its male version “Mister Trot,” which aired in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Song Ga-in and Lim Yeong-woong, two of the hottest trot singers right, now rose to stardom as the shows’ winners.

Fourteen contenders for the semifinals were revealed during the eighth episode of “Miss Trot 2” aired Thursday. Incidentally, the show’s previous season “Mister Trot” recorded 30 percent viewership rating with its eighth episode.

The 30 percent viewership rating Thursday was a 1.7 percentage point rise from the previous episode which aired Jan. 28.

Meanwhile, Jin Dal-rae, a contestant who announced she was stepping down from the show after admitting to a school bullying accusation, was shown on Thursday’s episode leaving the show in tears, saying that she did not want to cause damage to other contestants. Criticism about her tearful exit’s inclusion on the show followed.

While Thursday’s episode was recorded on Feb. 1 and did not show Jin competing, the segment showing Jin in tears had been recorded earlier.

Also, on Wednesday, claims were filed with the Korea Communications Commission, questioning the fairness of the show, and accusing it of failing to protect the rights of underage contenders. The production team denied the accusations.

Though not without controversies, “Miss Trot 2” has been a hit with its viewership ratings on the rise.

From April, the cast members will go on a nationwide tour.

According to show production company Showplay, the 13-city tour for “Miss Trot 2” will kick off in Seoul, April 9-11, and continue until July, traveling across Korea. The 14 semifinal contenders and some other cast members are to join the tour.

TV Chosun and Showplay co-produced the concert tour for “Mister Trot” last year for which tickets quickly sold out. However, some concerts had to be postponed or canceled due to the social distancing rules regarding COVID-19 and those concerts are to resume in March.

The next episode of “Miss Trot 2” will air at 10 p.m. on Thursday. Viewers can support their favorite singers by voting on a mobile app for the show. The votes will count toward the final scores.

By Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)