SM Partners with UK Entertainment Company to Launch Local Boy Group Targeting European Market

SM and UK Entertainment Company M&B Collaborate to Produce Boy Group
First Joint Project with the 'Home of Pop' UK
Strategic Agreement Signed Between Both Companies at SM Headquarters in Seongsu-dong, Seoul

SM Entertainment is making a full-scale push into the European market. SM and the UK entertainment company MOON&BACK (M&B) have joined forces to debut a new British rookie boy group that will be active in the global market. On the 16th, SM announced that it held a strategic partnership signing ceremony with M&B at its office in Seongsu-dong, Seoul. This agreement was reached through close consultations between the two companies.

(From left) Lee Sung-soo SM CAO, M&B Co-CEO Nigel Hall, M&B Co-CEO Russ Lindsay, M&B Co-CEO Dawn Airey, Jang Cheol-hyuk SM CEO, Kangta SM Creative Director, Music Director Ben Karter, Jang Yoon-joong SM CBO (right)
[Photo by SM Entertainment]

Attending the event were SM CEO Jang Cheol-hyeok, SM CBO (Chief Business Officer) Jang Yoon-joong, CAO (Chief A&R Officer) Lee Sung-soo, and Creative Director Kangta. From M&B, a total of nine people attended, including co-CEOs Nigel Hall, Russ Lindsay, Dawn Airey, and music director Ben Karter.

This agreement is significant as SM is intensifying its development and investment in global music/artist IP (intellectual property). With SM, a leader in K-POP, partnering with M&B, a specialist in TV reality show production, a boy group poised to dominate the global market is expected to emerge. In particular, the debut of a joint boy group between Korea and the UK, the 'home of pop,' for the first time is likely to attract global attention.

M&B is an entertainment and TV program production company headquartered in London, UK. It was founded by three experts: Nigel Hall, who produced famous TV programs such as 'The X Factor' and 'Britain's Got Talent' that created the world-renowned boy group One Direction; Russ Lindsay, the architect of the UK James Grant Media Group; and Dawn Airey, a broadcasting content expert who previously served as Yahoo's senior vice president and CEO of Getty Images.

M&B will directly cast members who will debut as a boy group in the UK, while SM will provide K-POP expertise in music, music videos, choreography, and more. The songs performed by these groups will be overseen by KMR (Kreation Music Rights), SM's music publishing subsidiary.

SM CBO Jang Yoon-joong said, “This project is significant as it marks our first step into Europe,” adding, “Through SM’s unparalleled K-POP production capabilities and global network, we will expand into key markets such as North America, South America, and Europe, playing a pivotal role in accelerating the global growth of the K-POP industry.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.