Bang Si Hyuk, the CEO of HYBE, expressed his thoughts on the formation of a new girl group to succeed BTS and the expansion strategy of K-pop.
On the 11th of October, Bloomberg reported that Bang Si Hyuk, the CEO of HYBE, is preparing for the formation of a girl group that will become the “next BTS.”
Bang stated that there is no guarantee that BTS will regain the same popularity as before after completing their military service, and announced that the goal is to form a new girl group that can appeal to the world.
In fact, HYBE is currently conducting a global audition called “The Debut: Dream Academy” in collaboration with Geffen Records, a subsidiary label of Universal Music Group. Participants from 12 countries, including the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Switzerland, and Belarus, with diverse ethnic backgrounds, have joined the audition.
Unlike the groups previously created by HYBE, this group has a distinct advantage in that it specifically targets the “global” market. Bang stated that the new girl group will be a global group based in the United States, using English, and the goal is to overcome the differences between the Western and Korean markets.
In addition, in a video released on Bloomberg’s official YouTube channel on the 13th, Bang also discussed the expansion strategy of K-pop. Bang mentioned that K-pop indicators have been declining in Southeast Asia recently. While the factors are complex and difficult to analyze, it is clear that the growth of local music is taking away opportunities from K-pop, according to his analysis.
He further explained that although K-pop’s market share is increasing in the Japanese music market, the Japanese music market itself has not grown in the past 10 years. Therefore, even if K-pop continues to grow, it is undoubtedly limited from the perspective of the overall Japanese music market.
He argued that ultimately, each country wants to listen to songs in their own language, so the only area where growth is currently possible is the United States. He stated that when K-pop becomes the mainstream of pop music, it can maintain a certain level of competitiveness against local music in each country. Bang emphasized that this is why they continue to focus on the US.
Source: (A)
