ENTERTAINMENT
Sooman Lee "For me, 'The Best' is Hive. BTS' success is the pride of all the people."
Sooman Lee released the letter on the 3rd. He said, "SM's 'post-Lee Soo-man' has been a concern of mine for a long time. Entertainment is a world of creativity," and "I should not pass SM on to my children or relatives, but rather hand it over to the 'best' in the industry who can make it even more prosperous." “I thought it was possible. I also said that if there were any problems with SM’s governance structure, they should be improved, and if professional managers were needed, they should take charge.”
He continued, "To me, the 'best' is producing. Producing is a world of creativity and passion that endures day and night, enduring countless failures until the moment a star is born. It rushes into the hearts of fans and captures their singing along, tears, emotions, and emotions. And behind the scenes of stars who create hope, there is a world of producers who discover and nurture those stars. Without the public, there are no stars, without stars, there are no producers, and without producers, the music industry cannot succeed. This also works conversely. “It’s the same,” he added.
Lee Soo-man said, "For me, 'The Best' was Hive. Although it was a competition with SM, BTS' success is the pride of all our people. Hive's Chairman Bang Si-hyuk is a music producer like me who has experienced hungry times. Singer He is a person who was buried in the practice room eating snacks with aspiring trainees, and a person who has experience traveling to all corners of the country to find investors. Like me, he was also crazy about music, and he is the person who set a great record called BTS. I think he is the same person as me. “I felt that I treated artists with the same affection. That was the reason for my choice, which many people were curious about,” he explained.
Previously, the court ruled in favor of Soo-Man Lee on the request for a temporary injunction to block Kakao's capital increase and convertible bond issuance.Below is the full text of Lee Soo-man’s letter.“SM was a challenge, happiness, and blessing to me.”
To our beloved SM family, and to the many people who love SM.
Since becoming a ballad singer with messy hair in the 1970s, I have lived with the public my whole life. He received undeserved love as a singer and MC, and the singers he produced after becoming a producer also received great love from the public. That's why I feel even more sorry for the many things that have happened surrounding SM recently.
When I set up SM Planning in 1989, I was a young person and a startup. I liked the song, so I thought about the system a singer would need on the spot. SM's corporate structure was established by studying the Western model of the music industry.
The world of Korean pop and idols was created by combining a developed country business model with a Korean talent development model. The achievements made by K-pop around the world, including SM, JYP, YG, and Hive, are a miracle and blessing for Korea.
In the meantime, my youth passed by as much as those years, from Hyun Jin-young to HOT, BoA, TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, SHINee, EXO, Red Velvet, NCT and Aespa.
SM's 'Post Lee Soo-man' has been a concern of mine for a long time. Entertainment is a world of creativity. Rather than passing SM to my children or relatives, I thought I should give it to the ‘best’ in the industry who could make it more prosperous. He also said that if there are problems with SM's governance structure, they should be improved, and if professional managers are needed, they should take charge.
To me, ‘best’ is producing. Producing is a world of creativity and passion that endures day and night, enduring countless failures until the moment a star is born. Behind the scenes of stars who rush into the hearts of fans and create their singing along, tears, emotion, and hope, there is a world of producers who discover and nurture those stars. Without the public, there are no stars, without stars, there are no producers, and without producers, the music industry cannot succeed. This is also true in reverse.
The past two years have been a time of finding the ‘best’ that best suits SM. Meanwhile, he urged the current management to prepare for SM's era without Sooman Lee. I've already decided to get off SM's stage. Hive, Kakao, funds, large corporations, and overseas global companies wanted SM and came to see me.
For me, ‘The Best’ was Hive. Although they were in competition with SM, BTS' success is a source of pride for all of our people. Hive's Chairman Bang Si-hyuk is a music producer like me who has experienced hungry times. This is a person who was buried in the practice room eating snacks with aspiring singers, and a person who has experience traveling to all corners of the country to find investors. He, like me, was crazy about music and set a record with BTS. I felt he treated artists with the same affection I did. That was the reason for my choice, which many people were curious about.
After finishing the first act of my life as SM's chief, I am now moving on to the next act. My Next is where technology and culture meet. I walk steadily towards that place.
I speak not only to the SM family but also to the current management. I have no regrets about the days I spent with you. SM was a challenge, happiness, and blessing to me.
I would also like to say something to the artists who worked with me. I met you people full of dreams, and we cried, laughed, and made music together during a difficult time. You guys were my teachers, pouring all your energy from your fingertips and toes into your concentrated performance on stage. I respect, feel proud of, and thank you.
Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia reporter kkk39@tenasia.co.kr
