SM Entertainment Cancels Share Issue To Kakao As K-Pop Corporate Battle Intensifies

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hybe Corp., the talent powerhouse behind K-pop sensation BTS, said on Friday that it will sell its share stake in agency rival SM Entertainment. The move would finalize Hybe’s admission of defeat in a dramatic takeover battle in which it was out-gunned by Korean tech leader Kakao Corp. Hybe initially bought a 14.8% stake in SM in February from SM’s founder and K-pop pioneer Lee Soo-man. Hybe expected to be able to buy the remaining 3% tranche held by Lee according to agreed conditions and then launched an open offer to other shareholders to buy a further 15%. But SM’s management opposed Hybe’s quasi-takeover and harnessed Kakao and its subsidiary Kakao Entertainment with a range of measures. These included a content distribution deal and the sale of newly issued shares and bonds to the Kakao pair.

Asian canteen, foodhall, bakery and supermarket Hello Oriental is bringing in a raft of new dishes and cocktails for its spring menu, one of them featuring a Manchester institution. The Vimto Sour will feature on its new cocktail list, blending vodka, lychee syrup, lemon and the iconic cordial.

TWICE member Chaeyoung has issued an apology after she posted a photo of herself wearing a shirt with a Swastika symbol.In the now-deleted Instagram post, the K-pop idol was seen posing while wearing a shirt that featured a graphic of Sex Pistols‘ Sid Vicious sporting a T-shirt with a Swastika. Since the 1920s, the symbol has become heavily associated with the German Nazi Party and was used on the the party’s flag, badge and armband.#TWICE’s Chaeyoung posted a photo wearing a Nazi swastika on her shirt.

K-pop collective Balming Tiger have shared their thoughts on the current K-pop industry.Last week, Balming Tiger performed at SXSW’s Tiger Den event, where they spoke to Rolling Stone about what K-pop is in their view and their hopes for the future of Korean music.“In our opinion, [K-pop] is not a genre because, in K-pop, there’s R&B, hip-hop and everything. So, you can’t really specify what genre it is.

NCT 127‘s ‘Limitless’.NCT 127 and its labels SM Entertainment and Universal Music Group have teamed up with Z2 Comics – which has worked with other musicians including Weird Al Yankovic and Gorillaz – on the new original graphic novel ‘NCT 127: Limitless’.The graphic novel shares its title with the boyband’s 2017 single ‘Limitless’ and will be “presented in the manhwa format”, according to the Z2 Comics website. The novel is set to follow in the boyband in a “reality-crossing mystery” that will take place in both the real world and “new, surreal dreamscape” as they prepare for a sold-out concert in New York.‘NCT 127: Limitless’ will be available in 10 different hardcovers – one for each active member of the boyband, alongside a general cover with the full group – starting from US$21.99.

RM, also a member of the boyband BTS, has opened up about K-pop’s pursuit of perfection and how its viewed in the West.On a recent trip to Spain, RM took the time to speak with Spanish newspaper El País, where he was asked about whether the pursuit of youth, perfection and overachievement in K-pop is characteristic of Korean culture as a whole.“In the West, people just don’t get it,” RM replied. “Korea is a country that has been invaded, razed to the ground, torn in two.

Jeff Benjamin The past year has seen the K-pop industry expanding into everything from ETFs to Broadway, and today, March 15, marks its leap into the comic and graphic novel world: Top group NCT 127 has teamed up with Z2 Comics alongside Universal Music Group and its Korean label SM Entertainment for “NCT 127: Limitless,” an original graphic novel from the act to mark the first officially licensed K-pop print comic. With its title taken from the group’s 2017 single of the same, “Limitless” is both a hardcover and deluxe hardcover manhwa (a general term from South Korea for comic books and graphic novels with a distinct, detailed artistic style) to share a multiverse-hopping, reality-blurring tale of NCT 127 rehearsing for a sold-out stadium show in New York City.

HYBE founder Bang Si-hyuk has opened up about its battle against Kakao to acquire shares of K-pop agency SM Entertainment.Today (March 15), Bang delivered a keynote speech at the Gwanhun Forum, hosted by the Gwanhun Club, an association of senior journalists in Korea. Held at the Korean Press Center in Seoul, South Korea, the forum provided attendees the opportunity to gain insight into Bang and HYBE’s vision of the K-pop industry.During a Q&A session at the event, Bang opened up about HYBE’s recent attempt to acquire SM Entertainment, and its battle against South Korean internet giant Kakao over the K-pop agency.

K-pop and other Korean pop culture content – or “hallyu”.According to non-profit organisation Korea Foundation’s annual Global Hallyu report, published in cooperation with the Soiuth Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there’s an estimated 13million hallyu fans in Europe as of 2022, per The Korea Times. That number is a 37 per cent increase from the year before.In its report, the Korea Foundation suggests that Europe could be used as a springboard to grow demand for Korean pop culture in the West.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korean tech giant Kakao has gained the upper hand in the battle for control of K-pop agency SM Entertainment, after HYBE Corp., the firm behind music idols BTS, said Sunday that it had called off its takeover bid. SM is the second largest talent Korean music talent firm and is behind music acts including Super M, Aespa, BoA and Red Velvet, Girls’ Generation, H.O.T., EXO, Super Junior, SHINee and NCT Dream. HYBE said on Sunday that it will “discontinue the acquisition process […] after observing that the market has been showing signs of overheating due to competition with both Kakao and Kakao Entertainment,” something that it said could “damage shareholder value.”

Queens of K-pop. The girl group TWICE has continued to dominate the music industry, both in Asia and around the world.

Nam Tae-hyun, lead singer of South Korean band South Club, has issues an apology following his DUI incident.Earlier this week, Nam was booked by Seoul police booked for drunk driving in the Gangnam District. The singer’s breathalyser test, taken soon after the incident, had reportedly shown his blood alcohol level at around 0.114 per cent.

TWICE has dropped their new album and we also have new photos of the group!

Rosé of girl group BLACKPINK and Oscar-winning actress Youn Yuh-Jung are set to co-host an event at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.Today (March 9), The Met announced that Rosé and Youn, along with Chinese actress Song Jia, will co-host an event for Korean beauty brand Sulwhasoo at the museum later this month on March 29. Notably, all three celebrities are global ambassadors of the beauty brand.In its press release, The Met revealed that it is partnering with Sulwhasoo in a year-long agreement that aims to boost programmes and activities at the Museum to help “celebrate global heritage”.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund (PIF) has increased its stake in Japanese film and TV studio Toei Company, from 5% to 6.03%, according to a report by the Reuters financial news agency. The move comes shortly after Toei published a ten-year plan for international expansion. Toei includes film and TV production operations, the T-Joy cinema chain and Toei Animation. Last month, it said that it had beaten its film revenue record, thanks to the success of titles including “The First Slam Dunk,” “The Legend of Butterfly” and “One Piece Film Red.” The stake increase also follows PIF’s February announcement that it had increased its stake in Japanese games and console maker Nintendo to 8.26% and that (along with the Singapore state fund GIC) was a buyer of a $966 million bond issue from Korean entertainment-tech firm Kakao Corp.

Starship Entertainment has bid goodbye to WJSN members Luda, Dawon, Xuanyi, Chengxiao and Meiqi following the expiration of their contracts.On March 3, Starship released a statement announcing the departure of WJSN members Luda and Dawon, as well as inactive Chinese members Xuanyi, Chengxiao and Meiqi from the agency.“Starship Entertainment recently renewed contracts with the eight members Exy, Seola, Bona, Soobin, Eunseo, Yeoreum, Dayoung and Yeonjung of our agency artist WJSN,” said the agency, per Soompi.“We carried out sincere and in-depth discussions with members Luda and Dawon for a long time, but unfortunately our exclusive contracts [with Luda and Dawon] will come to an end. We express deep gratitude for the great efforts and dedication shown by Luda and Dawon until now,” Starship added.The agency revealed that members Xuanyi, Chengxiao, and Meiqi, who joined WJSN through Starship’s partnership with Chinese entertainment agency Yuehua Entertainment, would also be leaving the group.

NewJeans swept the K-pop categories at this year’s Korean Music Awards, beating out popular contemporaries such as (G)I-DLE, LE SSERAFIM, IVE and more.The quintet took home the awards for both Best K-pop Album and Best K-pop Song, with their self-titled debut EP and the hit song ‘Attention’ respectively. In addition, the girl group also clinched the trophy for Rookie of the Year, besting fellow K-pop acts LE SSERAFIM and IVE, among others.Meanwhile, the biggest winner of the night was DJ and producer 250 – real name Lee Ho-hyung – who took home four awards: Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Best Electronic Song, and Best Electronic Album.

BLACKPINK member Jisoo has finally announced a date for her long-awaited solo debut.At midnight KST today (March 6), the K-pop idol teased her upcoming solo debut on Instagram with an intriguing “Coming Soon” poster. The image confirms a release date of March 31, and features a bright red dress in the middle of a field.Jisoo’s post was accompanied by the caption “See you soon” in Korean.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A court in Seoul on Friday blocked a proposed move to issue new shares in K-pop talent agency SM Entertainment to Korean tech giant Kakao Corp. and its Kakao Entertainment subsidiary. An injunction was sought by Lee Soo-man, one of the pioneers of the Korean contemporary music industry, but who is recently at the center of a storm of controversy. Lee, who has fallen out with his company’s current management team, announced at the beginning of February his plans to sell a 14.8% stake in SM to HYBE Corp., the firm behind hit group BTS and a rival to SM. It then emerged that SM’s management was proposing to issue new shares to the Kakao pair, giving them a 9.05% holding, and sign an exclusive distribution contract. The share stake would make Kakao the second biggest shareholder in the firm after HYBE and dilute its influence.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief HYBE Corp., the talent firm behind K-pop sensation BTS, has launched a campaign to woo the shareholders of SM Entertainment, the rival Korean talent empire in which it is poised become the largest single shareholder. In a letter and video package, issued Thursday, HYBE said that it was launching a campaign website detailing its business strategy and the ways in which it plans to prioritize SM shareholders. The documents directly criticized SM’s current management and also struck out at Korean entertainment-tech giant Kakao, with which SM has recently struck an alliance.