CJ ENM wants to build new K-pop stars with ‘Planet B’, KCON Germany

Some of K-pop’s biggest players are facing a business slowdown after a frothy few years fueled by the global success of BTS, Blackpink and other musical ambassadors of the K-content boom.

CJ ENM, one of South Korea’s largest entertainment conglomerates, has seen its share price break the downward trend. The company has no plans to limit its ambition for its K-content offering, which includes music, movies, TV shows, merchandise and K-beauty products.

The company wrapped up its annual three-day KCON LA 2024 fan convention and concert event in Los Angeles last weekend. The event at the Los Angeles Convention Center and Crypto.com Arena attracted a first-time broadcast partner in the CW network, which aired a live special featuring portions of the July 28 concert, including a surprise appearance by actor Awkwafina.

CJ ENM did not reveal attendance figures for the KCON event or ticket sales for the evening concerts, but said the event had a wide reach, largely through digital platforms. (Crypto.com Arena has a capacity of 20,000.) According to CJ ENM, some 5.9 million fans from more than 170 countries “enjoyed KCON LA 2024, both on the festival grounds and via digital platforms.” Held the same weekend as San Diego Comic-Con, the event attracted thousands of avid fans from across the US, Europe and other overseas locations. But overall foot traffic during the daytime event appeared to be down compared to recent years.

CJ ENM used the platform of the gathering that brought together avid K-pop fans from around the world to tout the launch of what the company hopes will be a high-profile addition to the marriage of K-pop and unscripted TV series. “Planet B” will debut in 2025 on CJ ENM’s Mnet channel in South Korea and through licensing deals in Japan and other markets. A “Planet B” teaser received a lot of attention during the KCON concerts and during the day conference at the convention center. CJ ENM officials won’t say much about the show other than it involves the launch of new K-pop artists.

“We have been holding auditions to discover new talent, including solo artists and group artists,” said Harry HK Shin, head of music entertainment at CJ ENM. Variety through an interpreter in an interview at Crypto.com Arena. “We are always looking for talent.”

CJ ENM will test the K-pop market in Western Europe when the KCON format comes to Frankfurt, Germany in September. Major companies that have invested deeply in K-pop have suffered double-digit stock losses recently, including Hybe and SM Entertainment. CJ ENM, a subsidiary of conglomerate CJ Group, a cornerstone of South Korea’s economy, has seen its share price rise 7% year to date on the country’s Kosdaq stock exchange.

After big years in 2020 and 2022, BTS has temporarily disappeared from the public eye as its youthful members serve their mandatory military service. Shin claims that as K-pop expands and matures, the fandom will “grow along with the artists” and a wider range of male and female artists will attract devoted followers outside of Korea, unlike much of the American fandom that revolves around one single. trading BTS. The groundbreaking boy band played the first KCON meeting in Los Angeles in 2014.

“Many K-pop artists create fandoms in their own regions,” Shin said. “We see the growth opportunities in K-pop, K-culture, K-drama and all other genres.”

Shin noted that the scale of KCON’s in-person meet-and-greet component – ​​trading on K-pop’s core principle of artists going out of their way to connect directly with fans – makes it a unique opportunity.

“It’s rare to meet many different artists in person in one setting,” Shin said. “KCON could be the one and only venue where fans can meet all the different artists in person at the same time.”

Furthermore, Shin claimed that CJ ENM is confident that there are enough K-pop fans in the region to support the two-day event.

“We already have a lot of fandoms in Europe – also Germany, England and France,” Shin said. “Germany is one of the largest markets in the music industry. There are already many fandoms [CJ ENM concluded] this could be a really good opportunity to expand our market.”

Among the main characters of the KCON LA 2024 concerts were Enhyphen, Jeon Somi, ZeroBaseOne, Bibi, NCT 127, StayC, Hyolyn, Ini, ME:I, TWS and Zico. Shin emphasized that KCON uses music as a means to achieve a greater goal that involves growth by working more closely with entertainment giants outside Asia.

“Our mission is to promote our culture and let the world know it, through the K-pop fanbase,” Shin said. “We really enjoy working with other media. We are very interested in building strong partnerships with other media.”

(Pictured at top: K-pop star Bibi performing at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on July 26)