Netizens React To SM Entertainment’s Co-CEO Lee Sung Soo’s Video Alleging Lee Soo Man’s Mismanagement
Netizens reacted to SM Entertainment‘s Co-CEO Lee Sung Soo‘s video in which he makes several allegations against Lee Soo Man and reveals a list of grievances against the label’s founder.
On February 16, Lee Sung Soo released a video titled “SM Entertainment CEO Lee Sung Soo’s Statement Presentation Part 1.” In the video, Lee Sung Soo appears in public and addresses the current state of SM Entertainment.
Hello, this is SM Entertainment’s CEO, Lee Sung Soo. Recently the media has been full of news of Lee Soo Man’s stock being acquired…
— Lee Sung Soo
Lee Sung Soo makes several allegations detailing the alleged mismanagement of SM Entertainment and its artists.
According to the SM Entertainment executive, Lee Soo Man had organized a response team for shareholders in hopes that he would be able to maintain his influence in the company.
The shareholder response team’s focus was to find a way for Lee Soo Man to return to the company and the ’emergency response’ meetings led by Lee Soo Man continued on while being meaningless. SM Entertainment’s current executive team, including myself, became exhausted from resisting.
— Lee Sung Soo
Lee Sung Soo then detailed Lee Soo Man’s contract with SM Entertainment that would pay him for the next 70 years.
Even after he stops producing, SM would need to pay Lee Soo Man 6% of revenue sales from artists’ albums for the next 70 years, as well as 3% of management revenue for three years from 2023. That’s approximately ₩80.0 billion KRW (about $62.3 million USD). I was so ashamed to meet SM’s employees, artists, and all of our investors.
— Lee Sung Soo
Lee Sung Soo also alleged that Lee Soo Man was the reason why aespa‘s long-awaited comeback had been delayed. The executive claimed that Lee Soo Man’s demands for aespa to include certain lyrics pushed the group to the brink of tears.
Lee Soo Man had ordered the AR Team and Yoo Young Jin to reflect planting trees and sustainability in songs. Even aespa, whose conceptual world has been spectacular, had been ordered to sing songs with lyrics about planting trees.
Parts of the lyrics include ‘just sustainability,’ ‘lowering the degree by even one,’ ‘co-existence,’ and ‘greenism.’ These words that have no relation to K-Pop at all appeared in the lyrics here and there. The early part of the song even contained ‘planting trees.’ The aespa members were so upset they even got choked up [with tears].
— Lee Sung Soo
Netizens were appalled by the accusations and criticized Lee Soo Man for allegedly mismanaging the label. Many netizens were especially infuriated by the allegations regarding aespa’s delayed comeback and the fact that they were pushed to tears.
- “Save SM ㅠㅠ. SM, don’t die! ㅠㅠ.”
- “I was wondering what was going on with aespa when their album kept getting pushed back…”
- “Money drove him mad…”
- “I feel bad for the employees who worked so hard.”
- “HYBE, leave (SM Entertainment) alone. Seriously, wtf is this? Is it normal to side with a senile old man just for profit?”
- “What did aespa do to deserve this?”
- “Aespa… It’s seriously so heartbreaking.”
- “I swear I’m not an SM fan, but I hope SM does well again. I hope they can cut off the rotten parts and get back on their feet.”
What are your thoughts?
