K-Pop Hitmaker SM Entertainment Signs First-of-Its-Kind Deal With CAA
CAA has signed Korean entertainment and lifestyle company SM Entertainment for representation in all areas.
CAA has signed Korean entertainment and lifestyle company SM Entertainment for representation in all areas. Based in Seoul, SM Entertainment is the K-pop management company behind NCT 127, EXO, Super Junior, Red Velvet, Girls’ Generation and the new supergroup SuperM, among others.
SM Entertainment’s deal marks the first time one of the major three K-pop management companies — SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment and Big Hit Entertainment — has signed with an American agency for company-wide representation.
“It is a great pleasure working together with the largest entertainment and sports agency in the US,” said SM Entertainment executive director Soo-Man Lee in a release. “We believe that SuperM and NCT 127 will expand further to the global market together with CAA. Furthermore, this contract is only the beginning of our collaborations, and as an executive producer, I am hoping to contribute to our forthcoming global entertainment business by providing new visions and by creating more meaningful content.”
More than 20 million people have attended SM Entertainment concerts across the globe and its YouTube channel has more than 28 billion views. CAA will explore opportunities with SM Entertainment’s other industry leading groups including live events, advertising, food and beverage, and lifestyle brands.
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“Seeing an SM Entertainment show is an amazing experience,” said CAA president Richard Lovett in a release. “Soo-Man Lee and his talented team have an incredible eye for high energy and charismatic talent. We are honored and excited to be working with the incredible SM team to support the growth of what is already a huge fan base around the world.”
The signing formalizes a growing relationship between CAA and SM Entertainment. CAA recently brokered a series of promotional events for K-pop headliners NCT-127, including an appearance on The Late Late Show With James Corden and an upcoming North American tour for Billboard 200 chart-topping so-called “K-pop Avengers” SuperM.
SM Entertainment signing with CAA is the Korean company’s latest move to further establish themselves in the U.S. market. Earlier this year, SM partnered with Capitol Music Group to build a bigger following for NCT 127 in the States. And in August, the two companies, along with Capitol’s independent distribution and label services division Caroline, announced they would launch SuperM together.
