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· Carl Samson
K-pop idol leaves group hours after return over backlash for smoking, kissing a woman
Amid fan outrage over leaked photos, Seunghan departed Riize on Oct. 13, about 48 hours after Wizard Production, the SM Entertainment production team that handles the group, announced his reinstatement following a nearly year-long hiatus. Catch up: SM Entertainment initially…
· Carl Samson
Hybe CEO apologizes for leaked internal doc trashing Blackpink, other K-pop idols
Hybe CEO Lee Jae-sang publicly apologized on Tuesday after an internal document containing disparaging remarks about multiple K-pop artists was disclosed at a National Assembly audit on Oct. 24. The document, which was intended for Hybe executives, drew backlash for its…
· Carl Samson
12-year-old Cambodian princess dubbed ‘Little Lisa’ rejects offer to be K-pop trainee
Cambodia’s Princess Norodom Jenna, the great-granddaughter of former King Norodom Sihanouk, has declined an offer from a South Korean agency to become a trainee. The 12-year-old broke the news on her Weibo page on Oct. 15, following reports that she was considering moving to…
· Bryan Ke
K-pop soars over 300% in popularity in 5 years, Spotify reveals
K-pop saw a massive popularity surge in five years on Spotify, with the U.S. making the biggest contribution among all countries. Spotify shared the numbers at a “K-pop talks session” event in Seoul on Tuesday. Zoom in: From 2018 to 2023, K-pop streams on Spotify increased by…
· Michelle De Pacina
Wanna be a K-pop idol? Blackpink’s label to hold global auditions
YG Entertainment, the South Korean music label behind Blackpink, BigBang and 2NE1, is holding auditions across Asia in search of its next K-pop idols. In the Philippines, auditions will take place at Zero Studio in Quezon City on Nov. 24 and is open to those born between 2006…
· Bryan Ke
K-pop stars unite at 2NE1’s reunion concert
Legendary K-pop girl group 2NE1 has returned to the music scene, kicking off their “Welcome Back” Asia tour in Seoul. The event, which ran from Friday to Sunday, featured fellow YG Entertainment labelmate Babymonster and saw the attendance of Blackpink’s Jennie, Big Bang’s…
· Carl Samson
Meet Katseye, the latest mixed K-pop girl group taking on the global stage
Katseye, a new mixed-nationality K-pop girl group, is making waves across the globe. Created by Hybe Labels and Geffen Records and formed through the audition program “The Debut: Dream Academy,” the group consists of six members from South Korea, the Philippines, Switzerland and…
· Carl Samson
Most beloved K-pop groups of the 21st century crowned in Korea poll
Girls’ Generation, Blackpink and BTS were named the most beloved K-pop groups of the 21st century, according to a Gallup Korea poll conducted between Aug. 19 and Aug. 23. The survey, which polled 1,052 South Koreans aged 19 to 69, revealed that Girls’ Generation and Blackpink…
· Carl Samson
K-pop idol reveals she worked as a barista during mental health break
Twice member Jeongyeon revealed on the Aug. 31 episode of her YouTube show “The Inspector” that she worked at a friend’s cafe during her hiatus from the group in 2021. “When I had panic attacks, I had to take a break. And during the break, I worked as a barista at my friend’s…
· Bryan Ke
K-pop stars under fire for attending Ye’s South Korea listening party
Several K-pop stars, including Aespa’s Giselle and Winter, NewJeans’ Minji, Danielle and Hanni, as well as 2NE1’s CL and Minzy, are under fire after being spotted at Ye’s (formerly known as Kanye West) and Ty Dolla Sign’s “Vultures Listening Experience” at Goyang Stadium in…
· Carl Samson
Blackswan, Cravity and Jessi to star in Apple K-pop doc
K-pop girl group Blackswan, boy group Cravity and soloist Jessi are set to star in Apple TV Plus’ “K-Pop Idols,” a new documentary premiering on Aug. 30. The six-episode series, which will offer a behind-the-scenes look into the highly competitive industry, will follow the…
· Carl Samson
Trailer: Apple’s ‘K-Pop Idols’ exposes stars’ struggles
Apple TV Plus released the official trailer for its upcoming documentary series “K-Pop Idols,” which is set to premiere globally on Aug. 30. The six-part series offers an unprecedented glimpse into the intense world of K-pop, featuring stars such as Jessi, Cravity and Blackswan.…
· Carl Samson
Jungkook, Lisa lead K-pop nods at the VMAs
BTS’ Jungkook and Blackpink’s Lisa garnered top nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards. Jungkook received nods for best collaboration and best K-pop for his song “Seven” featuring Latto, while Lisa secured four nominations for her solo single “Rockstar” in categories…
· Carl Samson
SM Entertainment to debut world’s 1st British K-pop boy group
SM Entertainment unveiled its first British K-pop boy group, Dear Alice, at a press conference in London on Thursday. The five-member group — composed of Blaise Noon, Dexter Greenwood, James Sharp, Olly Quinn and Reese Carter — was co-produced by SM, SM & Kakao Entertainment…
· Carl Samson
Kakao’s billionaire founder arrested for alleged stock manipulation in K-pop deal
Kim Beom-su, the billionaire founder of South Korean tech giant Kakao Corp., was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly manipulating stocks during the acquisition of SM Entertainment — the label behind acts such as Aespa, NCT and Red Velvet — last year. Prosecutors claim Kim, also…
· Bryan Ke
K-pop star reveals his horrifying encounters with stalkers
Jaejoong, a former member of SM Entertainment’s TVXQ, shared some of the encounters he has had with sasaengs, a Korean term meaning “private life” which also refers to obsessive fans or stalkers, in his 20-year career, including one who broke into his house while he was asleep.…
· Carl Samson
Grammy Museum to exhibit K-pop memorabilia
The Grammy Museum, located in Los Angeles, will run “HYBE: We Believe in Music,” an immersive exhibit featuring articles from Hybe acts — including BTS, Seventeen, Tomorrow X Together, Enhypen and Le Sserafim, to name a few — from Aug. 2 to Sept. 15, 2024. The exhibit will cover…
· Editorial Staff
K-pop legend is now a professor at leading Korean university
G-Dragon on Wednesday was named a visiting professor at the department of mechanical engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), one of South Korea’s top public universities. The Big Bangleader, whose real name is Kwon Ji-yong, will give…
· Ryan General
North Korean defector chases K-pop stardom on idol reality show
A young man who defected from North Korea has now set his sights on becoming a K-pop idol. Key points:
· Carl Samson
K-pop star Hyuna says she only ate 1 kimbap a day to maintain weight
K-pop star Hyuna recently shared extreme dieting practices she endured in her early days as an idol, including going a week without eating. Key points:
Answer
BTS connects to HYBE, Weverse, memberships, merch, and tickets.
People & Works
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Artist · K-pop
&TEAM
&TEAM is HYBE's first homegrown Japanese boy group -- a localization play that plants the HYBE system directly inside the world's second-biggest music market rather than exporting Korean acts into it.
Artist · K-pop
2PM
2PM invented the 'beast idol' -- JYP's masculine, acrobatic counter-brand that opened the Japanese arena market for K-pop boy groups and made Thai member Nichkhun one of the first non-Korean idols engineered as a pan-Asian sales asset.
Artist · K-pop
aespa
SM's flagship 4th-gen group turned streaming dominance into arena-scale global touring — the clearest sign K-pop's next tier can headline, not just chart.
Artist · K-pop
AKMU
AKMU are the sibling duo who won K-Pop Star and picked YG on their own terms -- 'The Nation's Siblings' whose songwriting-first model gave YG a rare non-idol prestige asset that outlasted a full 12-year label run.
Artist · K-pop
BABYMONSTER
YG built BABYMONSTER as its designated BLACKPINK successor, and the pressure is the point -- the label bet its next decade of revenue on a seven-member group that had to shatter rookie sales records just to justify the comparison.
Artist · K-pop
BIGBANG
BigBang were the original architects of K-pop as a global export business -- the first mainstream Korean hip-hop idols whose stadium tours and merch empire proved a Korean act could out-earn Western pop stars and became the template YG monetized for a decade.
Artist · K-pop
BLACKPINK
The genre's biggest girl group returned as a group after years of solo dominance — testing whether K-pop's Western peak was a moment or a plateau. 'GO' answered.
Artist · K-pop
BOYNEXTDOOR
BOYNEXTDOOR is rapper Zico's KOZ Entertainment absorbed into the HYBE machine -- an artist-founded label that HYBE bought and turned into a hit factory, showing how HYBE grows by acquiring creative shops, not just building them.
Artist · K-pop
BTS
BTS didn't just come back — they re-coronated K-pop's top tier. 'Arirang' fuses Korean folk roots with global pop, and the tour proved the machine HYBE built scales to stadiums worldwide.
Results
Culture · artist
BTS
BTS connects to HYBE, the company behind BTS, Weverse, albums, merch, memberships, tickets, and concerts.
Company · Korea · KOSDAQ:035760
CJ ENM
CJ ENM is behind TV, music, film, award shows, and major cultural exports that shape what people watch.
Company · Korea · KRX:352820
HYBE
One of the layers behind BTS, SEVENTEEN, TXT.
Company · Korea · KOSDAQ:035900
JYP Entertainment
JYP is tied to groups that drive albums, tours, subscriptions, merch, and international fan activity.
Company · Korea · KOSDAQ:041510
SM Entertainment
SM is tied to idol groups, tours, fan clubs, and the long-running system behind some of K-pop's most recognizable acts.
Company · Korea · KOSDAQ:122870
YG Entertainment
YG connects global K-pop attention to touring, brand deals, fan demand, and artist-centered entertainment revenue.
Company · Korea · KRX:251270
Netmarble
Netmarble is Korea's mobile-game powerhouse that turns pop-culture IP into games — from BTS titles to Marvel — and is one of HYBE's largest shareholders, linking K-pop and gamin...
HYBE · K-pop · KRX:352820
A BTS comeback is not just songs. It’s albums, merch, tickets, and Weverse.
A BTS comeback can start with one stream on your phone, then turn into a fan-club sign-up, merch order, livestream ticket, and more time spent inside Weverse.