Home > Entertainment > K-pop

SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo-man unveils new agency, A2O Entertainment

Published: 28 Oct. 2024, 11:06 Updated: 28 Oct. 2024, 15:11

A trainee featured in a video posted by A2O Entertainment. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Lee Soo-man, the founder of SM Entertainment, is returning to the music industry with his new agency, A2O Entertainment.

The agency revealed its lineup of trainees through a video posted on its official YouTube and Weibo channels on Oct. 25.

The video introduced three groups of trainees categorized by age and gender: "Rookie HTG" (High Teen Girls, 16 and older), "Rookie LTG" (Low Teen Girls, 15 and younger) and "Rookie LTB" (Low Teen Boys, 15 and younger). A total of 15 trainees were showcased in the video.

“These rookies will perform solo or in groups on the A2O channel as part of their training,” the agency said in the video.

Producer Lee Soo-man [NEWS1]

The video ends with the phrase “Produced by S.M. Lee,” highlighting Lee Soo-man's return to production approximately one year and seven months after the SM acquisition dispute in March 2023.

A2O called its music “Zalpha-Pop” in the video description, signaling a focus on audiences in the Generation Zalpha bracket (Generations Z and Alpha), referring to those born in the mid-1990s and later.

Lee Soo-man founded his investment company, Blooming Grace, after his exit from SM Entertainment in February last year. Blooming Grace registered the trademark for A2O Entertainment on May 3, fueling speculation about Lee’s plans to re-entry the industry.

Due to a noncompete clause after selling his SM shares to HYBE, Lee’s production activities are currently limited to overseas projects.

BY CHAE HYE-SEON [[email protected]]