Kakao Entertainment is teaming up with Atlantic Music Group for K-pop acts, yet not one artist has been named. Warner Music Group runs AMG, and neither side has shared the deal's cash terms. Both firms want to help Korean talent reach fans far beyond their home market.
The plan starts while acts are still new. Kakao brings music production, artist care, distribution, and fan ties. Atlantic adds talent scouts, promo skills, and links abroad. Each act gets a plan based on its sound, career stage, and chances of finding fans in other countries.
Song camps and guest features are part of the deal. Streaming apps, social media, TV, radio, and fan events are in there as well. North America is a key target. But the aim goes past a short burst of fame, with both firms keen to help acts keep fans for years.
Kakao co-CEO Joseph Chang sees the pact as a chance to get Korean artists in front of more people. AMG chief Elliot Grainge backs the same goal. He points to Kakao's K-pop skills and Atlantic's global reach as the main strengths each firm brings.
AMG has Atlantic Records, 10K Projects, and 300 Entertainment under its care. Its roster spans Bruno Mars, Charli xcx, Coldplay, Charlie Puth, Cardi B, and Miley Cyrus. Grainge also chairs ADA in the US, where Warner provides services to indie acts and record labels.
Atlantic has a solid K-pop link already. BLACKPINK star ROSÉ teamed with Bruno Mars on APT., which led the streaming charts on Apple Music and Deezer. The track led the Global 200 for 12 weeks and earned three Grammy nods.
Those Grammy bids covered song, record, and pop duo or group honors. ROSÉ and Mars hold the copyright to the recording. Atlantic has an exclusive license to release it outside Korea.
BLACKPINK's solo deals also show how the major labels have split the group's talent. JISOO went with Warner Records, while LISA signed to RCA and JENNIE chose Columbia. That puts two members with Warner labels and the other two with Sony labels.
And Kakao has a direct stake in another key part of K-pop. Along with parent firm Kakao Corp., it holds about 40% of SM Entertainment. Warner Records had linked up with SM and aespa before that deal, with aespa serving as its first K-pop group.
Warner Music Korea has kept up its work with Korean acts as well. FeelGHood Music teamed with the firm to help BIBI reach fans abroad. Another deal brought in MAINSTREAM, the team behind Lee Young Ji.
Kakao had also worked with Columbia Records before this Atlantic pact. That Sony deal began with I've IVE, the first full album from girl group IVE. Columbia helped push the record in North America, while Starship Entertainment, a Kakao label, handled the act.
Chang led Kakao Entertainment America back then. Before his work at Kakao, he ran Sony Music's Korean business and later served as a co-chief of its Asia hub. He has since become Kakao Entertainment's co-CEO and taken charge of its Global Growth Center.
The rest of the major label scene has been busy in Korea as well. Sony Music has made deals with local indie labels. Universal Music Group has a 10-year pact with HYBE for music distribution and a small stake in Weverse. The two firms had worked on BTS releases in Japan before that.
Geffen Records and HYBE built KATSEYE through a joint venture, then added SAINT SATINE as another group. Republic Records handled the K-pop Demon Hunters soundtrack. HYBE chair Bang Si-hyuk and Universal boss Sir Lucian Grainge also met at a town hall in Seoul. Sir Lucian is Elliot Grainge's father.
South Korea ranks as the seventh-largest market for recorded music worldwide, with trade revenue of $736 million.
The plan starts while acts are still new. Kakao brings music production, artist care, distribution, and fan ties. Atlantic adds talent scouts, promo skills, and links abroad. Each act gets a plan based on its sound, career stage, and chances of finding fans in other countries.
Song camps and guest features are part of the deal. Streaming apps, social media, TV, radio, and fan events are in there as well. North America is a key target. But the aim goes past a short burst of fame, with both firms keen to help acts keep fans for years.
Kakao co-CEO Joseph Chang sees the pact as a chance to get Korean artists in front of more people. AMG chief Elliot Grainge backs the same goal. He points to Kakao's K-pop skills and Atlantic's global reach as the main strengths each firm brings.
AMG has Atlantic Records, 10K Projects, and 300 Entertainment under its care. Its roster spans Bruno Mars, Charli xcx, Coldplay, Charlie Puth, Cardi B, and Miley Cyrus. Grainge also chairs ADA in the US, where Warner provides services to indie acts and record labels.
Atlantic has a solid K-pop link already. BLACKPINK star ROSÉ teamed with Bruno Mars on APT., which led the streaming charts on Apple Music and Deezer. The track led the Global 200 for 12 weeks and earned three Grammy nods.
Those Grammy bids covered song, record, and pop duo or group honors. ROSÉ and Mars hold the copyright to the recording. Atlantic has an exclusive license to release it outside Korea.
BLACKPINK's solo deals also show how the major labels have split the group's talent. JISOO went with Warner Records, while LISA signed to RCA and JENNIE chose Columbia. That puts two members with Warner labels and the other two with Sony labels.
And Kakao has a direct stake in another key part of K-pop. Along with parent firm Kakao Corp., it holds about 40% of SM Entertainment. Warner Records had linked up with SM and aespa before that deal, with aespa serving as its first K-pop group.
Warner Music Korea has kept up its work with Korean acts as well. FeelGHood Music teamed with the firm to help BIBI reach fans abroad. Another deal brought in MAINSTREAM, the team behind Lee Young Ji.
Kakao had also worked with Columbia Records before this Atlantic pact. That Sony deal began with I've IVE, the first full album from girl group IVE. Columbia helped push the record in North America, while Starship Entertainment, a Kakao label, handled the act.
Chang led Kakao Entertainment America back then. Before his work at Kakao, he ran Sony Music's Korean business and later served as a co-chief of its Asia hub. He has since become Kakao Entertainment's co-CEO and taken charge of its Global Growth Center.
The rest of the major label scene has been busy in Korea as well. Sony Music has made deals with local indie labels. Universal Music Group has a 10-year pact with HYBE for music distribution and a small stake in Weverse. The two firms had worked on BTS releases in Japan before that.
Geffen Records and HYBE built KATSEYE through a joint venture, then added SAINT SATINE as another group. Republic Records handled the K-pop Demon Hunters soundtrack. HYBE chair Bang Si-hyuk and Universal boss Sir Lucian Grainge also met at a town hall in Seoul. Sir Lucian is Elliot Grainge's father.
South Korea ranks as the seventh-largest market for recorded music worldwide, with trade revenue of $736 million.
