and that translated into them spending on music because there were no shows. During that time, we had a very big net profit at the company, because physical sales is a very high margin business. But, naturally, once Covid ended [and live events returned], physical sales decreased and we had to consider how we could make sure that we didn’t lose revenue. That’s why we had to find a way to grow our concerts business, as well as merchandise.”
For many veterans of the music industry, K-pop did not exist when they started. How would you sum up SM’s role in the development of what is now a global genre?
“We can’t yet say that K-pop is extremely popular in the mainstream in Europe or in the US. It is growing and consumption has increased, but it’s still a little bit of a niche market. K-pop is very straightforward, it’s either a boy group or a girl group, they have very powerful, eye-catching performances. When I think about what was attractive for me about the rock bands I used to listen to, I think that’s how K-pop is seen by Western fans. It’s very powerful, very different and very straightforward. Also, in K-pop, the message is about embracing youth, love... it’s all positive. That’s why I think a lot of music fans who are teenagers can relate to it. And of course, at SM, we take pride in being one of the companies that established what K-pop is.”
Given the focus on youth, what’s your plan for the older artists now that the genre is over 30 years old? “Going back to those UK bands, when their fans look back at the photos or listen to their music, it’s really going to be a little bit difficult to distinguish [between] them, because it seems like all the same noisy music, with long-haired men coming
54 | Music Week
Live and direct: (Clockwise from top left) SM Entertainment acts at SMTown Live in Seoul in January, Hearts2Hearts, Aespa and NCT 127 on stage at the LA event in May
out and playing their guitars and shouting. With K-pop, it’s all very distinguishable because the artists each have their own concept, they have their own storytelling and experience. So, I think those could be developed over time, so that fans can also relate at different stages of their life.”
Why was it important for SM to launch its publishing arm? “We have more than 80 artists currently under SM Entertainment, and in order for us to smartly establish a network with songwriters worldwide, to find the right song, the right creative, the right producer to fit our artists, it’s really important for us to maintain that relationship with the writers. It’s also very important for us to be able to produce the right song and to get that song at the right moment before anybody else does. That’s why we have established a publishing subsidiary, for us to continue to search for good writers, build a relationship and have their songs be shown to the world through SM artists.”
“We are very precise about how we present
new acts – we don’t just rush into the market” DANIEL JANG
SM ENTERTAINMENT
SM also operates across records, management, production, distribution, promotion and more. That’s a lot of ground to cover. Can you give an overview of how you do it?
“At the very beginning of K-pop, things were very similar to the Western market where everything was divided: record labels and management were separate. SM started out by discovering artists, but with K-pop, it was not just about music, creative or performance; everything had to come together. That’s why we started to discover artists and train them through a very sophisticated training programme. [For it to be successful] we needed to find the music, then create and produce the album itself and, after
musicweek.com
PHOTOS: SM Entertainment
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