KSAT: ‘King of K-pop’ Lee Soo Man on his career, a global industry and what’s next
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Lee Soo-man
Lee Soo-man is a South Korean business executive and record producer who is best known for being the founder of SM Entertainment, a multinational entertainment company based in Seoul. He has also been referred to as the "president of culture", as one of the pioneers of the Korean Wave. Lee debuted as a singer in 1971 while he was a student at Seoul National University. In 1989, he founded SM Enter…
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business · South Korean business executive and record producer (born 1952) · singer · record producer · entrepreneur · composer · also Lee Soo-man, Lee Suman, Soo-Man Lee, Lee Soo Man, S.M. Lee, Soo-man
Born 18 June 1952 · Q484165
25 published statements · 0 followers
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2025· 3 entries
Yahoo: ‘Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop’ Director and Subject Talk New Prime Video Documentary
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Moviefone: Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop (2025) - Full Cast and Crew
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2023· 1 entry
Soompi: Lee Soo Man Shares Letter Explaining His Decision To Work With HYBE Following Court's Decision To Ban SM From Issuing New Shares
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2021· 1 entry
Was included in the names of figures in the Pandora Papers
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2019· 2 entries
To evade taxes, through which he was taking 6% of earnings from artists' overseas activities
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KB Asset Management, SM's third-largest shareholder, sent an open letter to the company complaining that Like Planning was taking 46% of SM's operating profit each year
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2015· 1 entry
Lee Soo-man was alleged to have violated foreign exchange rules, having failed to report real estate purchased in Los Angeles, as mandated by the Foreign Exchange Law
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2014· 1 entry
Lee donated ₩500 million to the Korean Red Cross to help the victims of the Sewol ferry disaster
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2011· 1 entry
Awarded Order of Cultural Merit, 2nd class (2011).
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2010· 1 entry
South Korea's Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) created a rule that limited entertainment contracts to seven years
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2009· 1 entry
Three members of the boy band TVXQ took their management agency SM Entertainment owned by Lee to court, claiming that the agency's 13-year-contract (often nicknamed a slave contract) was too long, too restrictive, and ga
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2007· 1 entry
Commemorating the fourth year of Roh Moo-hyun's presidency
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2002· 1 entry
The Supreme Prosecutors' Office of the Republic of Korea found evidence of Lee earning tens of billions of won worth of illegal market profits in August 1999 by acquiring 1
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1997· 1 entry
Founded the music production company Like Planning
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1989· 2 entries
After four years of saving money and gaining experience in the industry, he established an entertainment company called SM Studio (named after his initials) in the Apgujeong neighborhood of Seoul, and signed singer Hyun
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Founded SM Entertainment, which has since become one of the largest entertainment companies in the country
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1985· 1 entry
Returned to Korea "with a vision of what the Korean music industry could be
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1980· 1 entry
Formed the band 이수만과 365일 (Lee Soo-man and The 365 Days)
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1978· 1 entry
And "한송이 꿈 (A Piece of Dream)" released in 1976
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1977· 1 entry
Was a member of the Korean indie band Sand Pebbles
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1975· 1 entry
And his high academic credentials in Seoul National University
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1972· 1 entry
(he had joined the band in 1971), but he later departed from it for health reasons
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1971· 1 entry
While he was a student at Seoul National University
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1952· 1 entry
Born 1952-06-18.
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