From breaking records on the court to packing arenas and bringing a taste of Asia abroad, this year’s 30 Under 30 Asia Entertainment & Sports stars are unstoppable.

Alexandra Eala got Filipinos fired up about tennis after she broke into the Women’s Tennis Association’s (WTA) Top 50 last year. She climbed as far as No. 29 in March 2026 to become the nation’s highest-ranking player in modern history before retreating to No. 44 in April. Her recent career has been a volley of firsts: Last year she became the first Filipina to beat two Top 10 players (Miami Open, March); to reach a WTA tour final (Eastbourne International, June); and to win a Grand Slam singles main‑draw match (U.S. Open, August). She capped 2025 by taking the women’s singles title at the Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok, a first for the Philippines since 1999, followed in January by a doubles victory against veteran player Venus Williams and partner at Auckland’s ASB Classic.

Tennis can sometimes feel quiet and serious, so having that energy makes it special.

Eala is one of the listees on this year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia: Entertainment & Sports list who are shaping the future of Asian pop culture and athletics.

The 20-year-old has enthusiastic Filipino-diaspora crowds rooting for her wherever she plays. “The support has been incredible,” she says in an email. “Tennis can sometimes feel quiet and serious, so having that energy makes it special.” The lefthander, who first picked up a racket at age 4, is a product of the Rafa Nadal Academy in Spain. She gained attention in 2022 when she captured the U.S. Open girls’ title, becoming the first Filipino junior Grand Slam singles champion.

A representative for Eala says she was the highest-earning Filipino tennis player of all time last year based on prize money totaling $876,000 while her endorsements, including from Nike, French sports equipment maker Babolat and Philippine food conglomerate NutriAsia, exceeded $1 million and are expected to rise to $3 million this year.

Another trailblazing Southeast Asian athlete is Shannon Tan. The 21-year-old golfer became the first Singaporean to win the Order of Merit title at the Ladies European Tour in 2025. She also competed in the Amundi Evian Championship, where she tied for 59th place, and the Women's British Open, tying for 40th place, the same year. In 2023, she won the inaugural Singapore Ladies Masters, part of the China Ladies Professional Golfers' Association Tour. Tan played golf at Texas Tech University before going pro in 2024, when she represented Singapore at the Paris Olympics.

Several athletes from the rest of the region continue their dominance on the field, earning them a spot on this year’s 30 Under 30 Asia list.

Wu Yanni is one of Asia's fastest hurdlers, emerging as a standout figure in Chinese track and field. At the Paris Olympics in 2024, she delivered China's best-ever time in the women's 100-meter hurdles, cementing her reputation as a top international competitor. A national record holder, Wu went on to win bronze at the Asian Athletics Championships in 2025 with a time of 13.07 seconds, and earlier reached a world ranking of No. 23, the highest ever achieved by a Chinese woman in the event.

In Australia, sprinter Gout Gout made headlines in 2025 when he set the Oceanian record for the 200-meter race with a time of 20.02 seconds–and, at the age of 17, drew comparisons to reigning world-record holder Usain Bolt. Months before his win, Gout signed a A$6 million ($4.1 million) contract with Adidas in a sponsorship deal that will run until the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.

The Reign Of K-pop Continues

As far as music is concerned, K-pop remains by far the dominant influence, with three K-pop bands making the list this year.

I-dle, a girl group created by Cube Entertainment in 2018 under the name (G)I-dle, is one of them. Members Miyeon, Minnie, Soyeon, Yuqi, Shuhua and Soojin debuted with the track 'Latata,' went on to release multiple chart-topping albums, and have about seven million monthly listeners on Spotify. Soojin left the group in 2021. In 2025, the group renamed itself I-dle and released its eighth EP, 'We Are,' which sold over one million copies in its first week. That year, it also won the Grand Prize at the 34th Seoul Music Awards.

Another girl K-pop sensation is Nmixx. The sextet was created by JYP Entertainment in 2022 with the release of the single album 'Ad Mare.' Its six members—Lily, Haewon, Sullyoon, Bae, Jiwoo and Kyujin—have gained recognition for a fusion sound called 'Mixx Pop' that combines a range of genres, including pop, rock, hip-hop and electronic music. Last October, the group's first studio album, 'Blue Valentine,' nearly topped Korea's Circle Album Chart and won ten music awards.

Cortis, derived from the phrase 'color outside the lines,' is a five-member K-pop boy group created in 2025 by Big Hit Music, a label under Hybe. It was the first boy group launched by the Hybe subsidiary in six years, after BTS and Tomorrow X Together. Branded a 'young creator crew' rather than a traditional idol act, members Martin, James, Juhoon, Seonghyeon and Keonho were all credited with choreography or production roles on their debut EP, 'Color Outside the Lines,' which debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and ranked first in first-week sales among 2025 rookie groups.

Besides bands, Leejung Lee, a South Korean choreographer and dancer who created the dance for 'Soda Pop' in Netflix's 2025 animated hit KPop Demon Hunters, also earned a spot on the list. She got her start as the first female member of the dance group Just Jerk Crew and has helped choreograph performances for K-pop groups including Blackpink and Twice. Lee regularly posts dance videos on Instagram to her audience of 2.6 million followers.

Up-and-Coming Southeast Asian Artists

There’s no shortage of musical talent coming out of Southeast Asia as well.

Making the list this year is No Na, an Indonesian girl group signed by 88rising. After releasing a single in May 2025 and debuting live the following month at the agency's Head In the Clouds festival in Los Angeles, No Na has racked up more than 1.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify. Its name comes from the Indonesian word 'nona'—a form of address for young women—and members Christy, Baila, Esther and Shaz incorporate elements of Indonesian culture, such as traditional dance and phrases, into their music. The group's latest single 'Rollerblade' was released in April and garnered 3.3 million views on YouTube.

Singaporean artist Regina Song's alt-pop tracks, which have been streamed more than 90 million times on Spotify, helped her become the only Singaporean nominee at the inaugural Music Awards Japan in 2025. Known for her TikTok-viral single 'the cutest pair,' Song did a Southeast Asia tour in 2025 with performances in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Jakarta and Manila.

Another Singaporean artist on the list is Iman Fandi, who made her musical debut in 2021 under Universal Music Singapore with "Timeframe." She left the label after five years and released her first independent single, "Tip Toes," in February. She's currently preparing to release her debut independent EP later this year.

Filipino pop star Zack Tabudlo's songs 'Pano' and 'Give Me Your Forever' went viral shortly after their release in 2021, making him the most-streamed Philippine artist of 2022, according to Spotify figures. A former contestant on The Voice Kids in 2014, Tabudlo embarked on a Southeast Asia tour in 2024 and signed with Mercury Records under the Universal Music Group in 2025. In September, he returned as a coach on The Voice Kids, and his mentee, Sofia Mallares, was named champion.

Read our complete Entertainment & Sports list here – and be sure to check out our full Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2026 coverage here.

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