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HYBE America will now be headed by Scooter Braun as the sole chief executive officer. He is the founder of the US-based Ithaca Holdings, which manages Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and more.
According to Korea Joongang Daily, Braun became the lone chief of HYBE America after co-CEO Yoon Sook Joon stepped down from the role. His departure was first reported on Wednesday, Jan. 25.
It is not clear if Yoon will remain in the company or not, and if he will stay, his new role was not revealed. Braun became a co-CEO of HYBE America after his Ithaca Holdings merged with the South Korean entertainment firm that is home to the world superstar boy group BTS. It also manages Tomorrow X Together and other popular idol groups.
When HYBE acquired Ithaca Holdings in April 2021, the former paid KRW1.7 trillion or about $1.4 billion for the deal. In any case, as the solo leader of HYBE’s American unit, Braun is expected to lead a new audition event to form a girl group. This has been scheduled to take place in the second half of this year in the U.S.
The audition is set to be carried out in cooperation with Universal Music Group (UMG) subsidiary Geffen Records. The girl group will be trained under the training system that has formed many K-pop groups.
“The success of NewJeans leads to higher expectations for the global girl group, which the company is set to announce plans for during the second quarter,” Hi Investment & Securities’ analyst, Park Da Gyeom, commented regarding the new girl group audition event by HYBE America.
Meanwhile, HYBE's BTS boy group is currently promoting individually as the eldest member, Jin, had to serve in the army. The six members are active in releasing their own songs and collaborating with big names in South Korea and the U.S.
