Lenzo Yoon, world CEO of Big Hit Entertainment shared the corporate’s plans.
Edited excerpts…
Q: Big Hit Entertainment has been instrumental in placing together the massively common BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) band. How essential has BTS been to your journey?
A. Big Hit was a small firm with solely eleven workers members after I first got here to Big Hit. Everyday we’d collect to consider the work we do, the methods of doing it and the route we’re headed to. After placing a lot thought into it, we selected Big Hit’s scope to be ‘specializing in contents and followers’. And below such circumstances is how BTS got here to be. BTS’ songs have been about their tales from the start. They’ve engaged with followers with open hearts and confirmed their true selves via unique contents.
We shared all the fun and sorrows together, from acting at a small venue in Korea to touring stadiums worldwide, topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart and being nominated for a Grammy. Big Hit and BTS have always grown together upon mutual trust and respect, and will proceed to take action.
Q: Reportedly, greater than 97% of your gross sales got here from BTS in 2019. How do you intend to diversify and stability this reliance on one band?
A: Most of the music leisure corporations function on revenues from album gross sales (bodily and streaming mixed), live shows and look charges. In the start, Big Hit was no exception and 80% of whole revenues got here from enterprise involving the artist immediately. But our considering was that we would have liked to create an atmosphere the place the artist can concentrate on their inventive work, backed by a secure revenue.
So we branded artist contents and diversified the merchandise derived from them in order that we will create and develop a revenue-stream construction that includes the artist not directly. Now the income that comes from artists’ oblique involvement accounts for round 40% of whole revenues.
And this is applicable not solely to BTS however all of the artists below the Big Hit Labels. We additionally present video games and studying contents utilising artist and music IP. Such makes an attempt transcend gross sales diversification and in the end purpose to indicate the infinite potentialities of the leisure life-style that may be supplied via music.
Q: Today, Ok-pop has grow to be a rage, however until 2018, many within the western world didn’t know a lot about it. There have been one or two breakout hits. What modified for the style?
A: Ok-POP is a tradition that has regularly advanced in Korea for the previous 20 years. Countless corporations, producers and artists have contributed to Ok-POP as we all know as we speak. One distinct attribute of Ok-POP is that it’s a full manufacturing comprising music, dance, vogue, music video and communication. To me, it appears that evidently the excessive stage of execution and fashionable visuals are what appeals to the worldwide viewers.
In case of BTS, with ‘I Need U’ in 2015 as their turning level, they regularly amassed a much bigger following with “DOPE,” “FIRE,” “Blood Sweat & Tears” and different releases since.
Digital platforms and social channels performed a key position in spreading BTS’ music, message and their charming character all around the globe. As we, Big Hit, realized from varied Ok-POP labels and artists’ trials that had preceded us, I feel many Ok-POP artists are displaying good performances globally based mostly on the milestones that Big Hit has achieved. Ok-POP is regularly evolving.
Q: How did Covid-19 pandemic have an effect on your progress targets/ enlargement plans?
A: Due to the pandemic we weren’t in a position to proceed with considered one of our most essential plans, the BTS world tour, final 12 months. And to be trustworthy, each the corporate and artist have been deeply dissatisfied by that. But the pandemic didn’t change Big Hit’s enterprise objectives or plans. It’s simply the pace and tempo of reaching that purpose that has been altered. We expedited a number of companies involving expertise collaborations and checks, and because of this, we got here out as pioneers within the face of a contactless atmosphere.
Q: What is the longer term roadmap you have drawn for Big Hit Entertainment?
A: Our most essential perception is reassuring, therapeutic and inspiring individuals via music and artists. In order to take action, we have to create an atmosphere the place artists can concentrate on their content material creation. And then, these high quality contents created by artists inside this atmosphere should be delivered to followers in an modern approach. Ultimately, Big Hit’s future enterprise will likely be companies overarching fan existence based mostly on music. The growth of Korean language studying contents ‘Learn! KOREAN with BTS’ and world fan group platform ‘Weverse’ are the results of our philosophy and route to resolve inconveniences in fan actions and enrich fan experiences.
Q: You not too long ago introduced the platform enterprise. Is it a approach of future-proofing your organization? How is it going to assist arrest the drop in revenue margins?
A: We launched a worldwide fan group platform referred to as ‘Weverse’ in 2019. ‘Weverse’ operates fan communities of not solely Big Hit Label artists, but additionally varied Korean and abroad artists, from the US for instance, and plans to constantly develop. Fans from around the globe get pleasure from fan actions and talk via group, commerce, live-streaming, and membership companies with artists and amongst themselves. ‘Weverse’ just isn’t solely a gateway to leisure life-style companies gathered and supplied by Big Hit, but additionally an area the place followers can create and unfold a greater Ok-POP tradition as they grow to be producers and shoppers of content material themselves. It is the core of the Big Hit ecosystem with infinite potential.
Q: So far, what number of new artists have you signed and are planning to launch?
A: Five music labels are a part of Big Hit Entertainment. Big Hit Entertainment’s Lee Hyun, BTS, Tomorrow X Together, Belift Lab’s Enhypen, Source Music’s Gfriend, Pledis Entertainment’s NU’EST, Seventeen, and Koz Entertainment’s Zico are at the moment lively (Zico is at the moment in necessary navy service).
Source Music plans to debut a brand new lady group this 12 months.
Recently, Big Hit Japan, a Japanese subsidiary of Big Hit Entertainment, launched the ‘Big Hit Japan Global Debut Project’ to create artists who will act within the world stage whereas based mostly in Japan. Big Hit America, the US subsidiary, can be set to announce a brand new mission. Over the previous few years, Big Hit has been getting ready methods to localise its enterprise and maximise synergy. Starting this 12 months, the corporate plans to utilise Korea, Japan and the US as its base to grasp the native market and talk with followers with none boundaries.
Q: How profitable have you been within the efforts of cleansing up unreasonable practices within the music business and creating an ecosystem?
A: Above all else, we wished to create a tradition that respects followers. Our perception is that followers themselves are the core that helps not solely Ok-POP but additionally the cultural business, and they’re those who ought to be supplied official companies. Big Hit Entertainment continues to enhance on inconveniences and develop obligatory programs for followers to get pleasure from our companies in additional handy and numerous methods.
In addition, we hold inspecting the working atmosphere of the professionals on this business in order that they will work with satisfaction, and we’re firmly dedicated to defending our rights and tasks as mental property holders. We imagine that if these are set into place, that’s when artists can proceed to carry out music based mostly on secure incomes, followers get pleasure from high quality companies, and the corporate stays sustainable. Furthermore, we imagine that the music market and the business are on its technique to develop concurrently.
