SEOUL: South Korean entertainment company HYBE said on Friday (Feb 10) it will buy shares worth 423 billion won (US$335 million) in rival SM Entertainment, seeking management rights to strengthen its position in the K-pop industry.
The move will make HYBE the largest shareholder of SM Entertainment as it takes over a 14.8 per cent share in its rival purchased from an 18.4 per cent stake held by the previous largest shareholder and SM founder, Lee Soo-man, it said in a statement.
“HYBE fully agrees with former Chief Producer Lee’s strategic initiatives including metaverse, a multi-label system, and the sustainable vision campaign,” said HYBE Chairman Bang Si-Hyuk.
HYBE is the agency that manages K-pop mega band BTS. SM is home to other popular K-pop acts including NCT and Aespa.
HYBE has also tendered an offer on Friday for SM shares held by minority shareholders, seeking to buy up to 25 per cent of the rival agency with the intention of acquiring management rights.
The South Korean pop music industry was dominated for years by three major companies – SM, JYP and YG Entertainment – until the K-pop boy band BTS rose to international fame, making HYBE bigger than the other three.
But all seven BTS members are expected to begin their military service over the next couple of years, starting with Jin, the group’s oldest member who joined the military in December. The septet is set to return in full only in 2025.
With the group on hiatus, SM Entertainment’s extensive portfolio will prove commercially beneficial for HYBE, said music critic Kim Do Heon.
“HYBE became a behemoth but its weakness was not having legacy. SM is a company that existed throughout K-pop’s history and will bring heritage to HYBE,” Kim said.
HYBE and SM Entertainment shares were up 6 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively, as of 11.05am (0205 GMT).
Earlier this week, South Korean tech firm Kakao Corp said it would acquire a 9.05 per cent stake in SM Entertainment to pursue joint projects including global K-pop auditions.
K-Pop giants, BLACKPINK and BTS, have been nominated for the iHeartRadio Music Awards 2023. BTS member Jungkook has also bagged himself a solo nomination in the Best Music Video category for his collaboration with Charlie Puth for the song ‘Left and Right’. This makes him the first K-Pop soloist to be nominated for the awards.
BTS has been nominated for two categories – Best Music Video for their title track ‘Yet to Come’ and Best Fan Army for their ARMY. This is the sixth consecutive time BTS has been nominated for iHeartRadio Music awards.
Meanwhile, BLACKPINK has been nominated for four categories of the 2023 iHeartRadio Music awards including Best Fan Army, Best Music Video, Best Duo/Group of the Year and Favourite Use of a Sample. BTS’ official Twitter handle shared the announcement with ARMY on January 12.
For the first time, BLACKPINK has been nominated for Best International Group for the 2023 BRIT awards. The nominations were announced on January 12 and the ceremony will be held on February 11. BLACKPINK is the first female K-pop group ever to be nominated for BRITs.
The 2023 iHeartRadio Music Awards will be held on March 27 at 8:00 pm in Los Angeles. The nominations were announced recently which include artists like BLACKPINK, Taylor Swift, Drake, BTS and Justin Bieber.
Photo: The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins via Getty Images
South Africa is the top market for K-pop in Sub-Saharan Africa.
There has been a 93% year-on-year increase in K-pop streams in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2022
The most popular K-pop artist is BTS, their Coldplay collaboration song My Universe being the most streamed K-pop song on Spotify.
According to a press release by Spotify, South Africa is the top market for K-pop in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). South Africa’s number one position is followed by Kenya and Nigeria, respectively, states the press release.
K-pop, or Korean pop, can feature a range of musical styles, including “Pop, Hip Hop, R&B, Rock, Jazz, Reggae, Disco, and even traditional and folk Korean musical stylings”, states the press release. K-pop is usually performed by Korean artists known as idols.
K-pop keeps growing
The popularity of K-pop has seen significant growth in SSA. “There’s been a 93% year-on-year increase in K-pop streams in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2022, accounted for by over 3 billion hours of streaming,” says Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s head of music for Sub-Saharan Africa, in the press release.
Music markets like Nigeria have seen a 267% increase in K-pop streams, with Ghana seeing a 236% increase and Kenya with a 140% increase, says the press release.
The top three most streamed K-pop artists are BTS at the number one spot, followed by Stray Kids and BLACKPINK. The top three most streamed K-pop songs were Coldplay and BTS’ My Universe, followed by Left and Right by Charlie Puth, which features Jungkook from BTS and then Dynamite by BTS.
The reason behind K-pop’s meteoric rise
The popularisation of K-pop is congruent with the rise in popularity of South Korean culture, which has been propagated through South Korean television shows, referred to as K-dramas, according to the press statement. The South Korean series Squid Game has raked up 1.65 billion hours of streaming alone on Netflix, according to CNET. The viral hit Gangnam Style by Korean artist Psy may even be a contributing factor to the popularity as well, says the press release.
READ MORE | 10 years after Gangnam Style South Korean rapper Psy is happier than ever
National Geographic has attributed K-pop’s global rise to the pandemic, which also turned the world’s attention to East-Asian countries, states the press release. Another factor that may also be considered is increased internet access, especially with a youthful and online population, according to the press release. The press statement says that results from a survey that polled 400 000 global BTS listeners found that 50% of BTS fans are under 18 and 42% are between the ages of 18-29, indicating a youthful fanbase.
“In an increasingly connected world, on-demand streaming services like Spotify have certainly made it easier than ever to tap into another country’s music,” according to Okumu. “Streaming has become instrumental in not only enabling the discovery of African music abroad but also in exposing African listeners to new and unexpected sounds,” she added.
Before becoming idols, there are many idols who are K-Pop fans themselves, and that’s how most of them sparked their dream of becoming idols. They dream of being like the people they look up to, and it’s the cutest thing to see how similar they are to us as fans, when they get all excited about their favorite idols! Here are some idols that are K-Pop fans themselves.
SHINee Fans
SEVENTEEN Hoshi
Hoshi has never been shy about admitting that he’s a huge fan of SHINee, and everyone knows it. Fans would buy him a SHINee lightstick and give it to him as a gift at SEVENTEEN fan sign events. Hoshi’s been a fan from a young age and specified that he is Key’s fan in particular. Hoshi revealed in a fan cafe post that it was the SHINee‘s SHINee World and the repackaged AMIGO albums that sparked his dream of becoming an idol.
TXT Taehyun
Despite being only six years old when SHINee’s song “Replay” was released, Taehyun said that he was inspired to become an idol after watching the music video of the hit song. Taehyun also became a successful fanboy after receiving an invitation from Taemin to eat out together. The invitation would have to wait a little longer until Taemin is discharged from his mandatory military service.
Enhypen Ni-Ki
If only we all could be as lucky as Ni-Ki, who is such a big fan of SHINee from a young age. He even had the chance to perform on stage with SHINee at the Tokyo Dome. After performing, Ni-Ki became so overwhelmed with emotion that he began crying, but sweetheart Key gave him a reassuring hug.
Monsta X Fans
WEi Yongha
Yongha, who introduced himself as a “Monsta X” fan as one of his charming points, is also nicknamed “Yongbebe.” To show his love for the group, he even suggested that his group perform “Love Killa” for the Weekly Playlist” segment during their appearance on Weekly Idol.
Jongho is also another proud Monbebe, and a successful one too! He received an autographed “Shoot Out” album, and his members said that he has been a fan long before that and was excited to have received the gift.
BTS Fans
IZ*ONE & IVE Yujin
Here’s a life glow-up story. Before attending the Melon Music Awards as an IZ*ONE member, she attended the award show as an ARMY back in 2016. She was seen in the audience with a BTS lightstick as she screamed with joy when the boy group won the Daesang for that year. For those who may be skeptical if that is truly Yujin, she has personally addressed it herself.
ATEEZ Wooyoung
If fans have to take a shot every time Wooyoung fanboyed over BTS, we’d all be so drunk. There are so many moments where Wooyoung proves that he is the biggest ARMY yet. From only remembering Jimin’s birthday, and not his fellow members, to getting excited seeing a Jungkook poster hanging in a fan’s room during a video call fan meet, he is relatable when he turns into an absolute fanboy for BTS!
Stray Kids Seungmin – DAY6
It’s no secret that Stray Kids member Seungmin is the biggest DAY6 fan. To show his love for his sunbaenims, he has uploaded many covers of their songs and cutely fanboy about the group in different interviews and VLIVEs. It must also make him feel over the moon that fans often say that he looks like Wonpil from DAY 6.
Both Juyeon and Eric are known to be huge EXO fans, and they proved it when they did a VLIVE of just them dancing to several EXO songs. What was more surprising was that Eric danced to “They Never Know,” an underrated gem unknown to non-EXO-Ls or even some new fans. Eric even performed Sehun’s solo dance to the song, which only true fans can remember.
Mirae Junhyuk – ATEEZ
Junhyuk has been very vocal about Yunho being his role model. He even wrote him a sweet letter after learning that his favorite group would be on a radio show the following week that his group was on. A year after, Junhyuk’s dreams as a fan came true when he got to meet and talk to Yunho in person on Idol Radio 3! He was so overwhelmed he could not hold back his tears.
The Boyz, Kevin & Jacob – Sam Kim
How would you react when you’re casually working, and the very person you look up to as an artist just walks in? That is exactly how Kevin and Jacob were when they saw Sam Kim walking into their snack shop. These two Canadians are such huge fans of the very talented singer, and they even got the opportunity to perform for him.
Momoland Jane – INFINITE
When you go from taking photos of your favorite idols and rooting them on to standing next to them for a music show, you’d be as nervous as Jane too. Prior to debuting with Momoland, Jane used to be a fansite master for the group INFINITE. She used to run the account ‘Baby’s Breath’ for INFINITE members L and Sunggyu under the nickname ‘Pudding.’
SHINee Key – BoA
Just because Key is looked up to by many does not mean he does not have his own idol that he looks up to. Key is a huge fan of the undisputed queen of K-Pop, BoA. Being in the same label has given the opportunity two of them to grow closer than ever. Key is living all of our dreams to be best friends with his idol.
Though BTS has announced plans to go on hiatus until 2025, in order to complete their mandatory military service, we certainly won’t have a shortage of music from the boys anytime soon. Today, the band announced through their official Twitter account that BTS’ Jung Kook is set to perform at the World Cup opening ceremony in Qatar.
“Proud to announce that Jung Kook is part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Soundtrack & will perform at the World Cup opening ceremony,” read the tweet. “Stay tuned!”
방탄소년단 ‘정국’이 2022 FIFA 카타르 월드컵 공식 사운드트랙과 월드컵 개막식 공연에 참여합니다. 많은 기대 부탁드립니다! Proud to announce that Jung Kook is part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Soundtrack & will perform at the World Cup opening ceremony. Stay tuned!#FIFAWorldCuppic.twitter.com/MwJ2kdNRBp
Though the band is on hiatus, each of the BTS members are gearing up for solo releases. Though it may be awhile until we hear solo material from Jung Kook. In a recent interview with Weverse, Jung Kook admitted that he is a perfectionist with his music, and has scrapped several songs as he wasn’t satisfied with the final products.
“That’s why there’s so many songs I’ve written that I haven’t been able to release,” he said. “After making the effort to write them, I should have realized I should just edit them as much as I can and release them, but when I heard them again after a while, they didn’t sound good, so I just deleted them all.”
In the K-Pop industry, having a sub-unit within the group is pretty ubiquitous. There are many subunits formed by both big and small groups. A sub-unit helps in showcasing more individual colors and talents of the members. Rap line units, rap/vocal units, dance line units, and vocal line units are some of the common units that can be found in K-Pop. But even after their popularity peaked, several well-known groups still do not have a sub-unit. Here are eight of these groups where fans want to see sub-units.
BLACKPINK
BLACKPINK earned the title of “The biggest girl group in the world.” It’s been six years since their debut, but still, BLACKPINK doesn’t have a sub-unit. Fans think this is the right time to form a sub-unit, and there is a high demand from fans for Chaelisa, Jenlisa, Chaennie, Chaesoo, and Jensoo sub-units. Blinks are disappointed with BLACKPINK’s agency YG Entertainment for not yet creating a sub-unit for the group.
BTS
Despite being the most popular K-Pop group, BTS hasn’t formed a sub-unit yet. Debuted in 2013, BTS has been in the industry for nine years. There are plenty of unit songs like “Luv In Skool,” “Zero O’clock” by the vocal line, “Intro: Skool Luv Affair,” “UGH!” by the rap line, etc. However, BigHit Entertainment hasn’t officially labeled those works as sub-units.
TWICE
Although TWICE is the largest group of JYP Entertainment, there is still no sub-unit. Recently all nine members of the girl group renewed their contract with the agency and made a comeback. There are rumors circulating around the web that TWICE is set to debut their first official sub-unit with the Japanese members of the group Mina, Sana, and Momo.
SHINee
The only male K-Pop group from SM Entertainment without a sub-unit is SHINee. A quartet, SHINee made their debut in 2008 and has spent fourteen years working with SM Entertainment. Even though SHINee members have been in groups like “SM The Performance,” “SuperM,” “Younique,” “Toheart,” and “SM The Ballad,” there is no sub-unit formed within the group to date.
iKON
Presently composed of six members, YG Entertainment’s third-generation boy group iKON debuted in 2015. It’s been seven years of their debut, but they still haven’t formed a sub-unit. Although the main rapper of the group Bobby used to be a part of YG Entertainment’s hip-hop duo unit “MOBB” along with labelmate Mino, there is no sub-unit within the group to date.
WINNER
WINNER is a four members group that debuted in 2014. Composed of two vocalists and two rappers, WINNER is another group from YG Entertainment without a sub-unit. Rapper Song Mino from the group was in “MOBB,” the hip-hop duo unit of YGE, along with iKON’s Bobby. Though members of the group featured each other in their solo releases, there is no official sub-unit in WINNER yet.
2PM
The second-generation masculine group from JYP Entertainment, 2PM is a boy group with six members. The group debuted in 2008, and 2PM returned to the music industry as a whole group after four years of hiatus in 2021. Although being a veteran K-Pop band, 2PM never formed an official sub-unit. Instead, 2PM together with 2AM known as a unit group named “One Day,” recorded the theme song of their documentary film.
MONSTA X
Six-piece South Korean boy band Monsta X is managed by Starship Entertainment. In 2015, the group made their official debut. With the exception of I.M, every member of the group renewed their contract with the agency this year. Though all Monsta X members were a part of Y-Teen, a project group of Monsta X and WJSN, the group hasn’t yet formed a sub-unit within the group. They’re one of the most popular grounders under Starship entertainment.
Is it necessary to have sub-units within a group? Which is your favorite sub-unit? Which K-Pop groups and members do you want to go for a sub-unit?
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