Teddy
Chances are that if you’re a fan of any of the artists of YG
Entertainment then at some point you’ve heard a song that was either
written or produced by YG’s main producer, Teddy. His work with
Big Bang, Se7en, 2NE1, and
more recently Lee Hi have been hugely popular and his music has
been instrumental in K-pop’s growth internationally. While Teddy initially
gained eternal K-pop glory as the leader of legendary 1TYM,
his second career as a music creator has been very low key with little public
face time. I for one would love to see more of him but let’s just hope the hits
keep on coming.
Rain/Tony An/Andy Lee/Eric Mun
While each of the members of this group are still active in the music
industry, it’s their roles as producers and company heads that have them on this
distinguished list. Rain formed J.Tune
Entertainment in 2007 and helped create MBLAQ (J.Tunes
has now merged with JYP Entertainment). Tony
An created TN Entertainment and while his boy band
Smash weren’t so smashing, the company is home to some of
Korea’s most popular stars. Andy, under the roof of
T.O.P Entertainment produced the successful group Teen
Top, and Eric tried his hand at the world of girl
groups with Stellar under his Top Class
Entertainment and is also co-CEO of Shinhwa
Company with Lee Min Woo. There are so many small
labels in Korea fighting it out for a small piece of the pie but it’s good to
see past idols leveraging their experiences to help the current crop of K-pop
stars.
BoA
BoA might not run her own company but she has just as
much, if not more influence on today’s K-pop scene than any other former teen
idol talent. Ask any current K-pop girl group member (and probably some boy band
members as well) and I’ll bet that at least 4 out of 5 will tell you that BoA
was a huge inspiration and one of the reasons they wanted to become a singer.
She’s only 26 years old but her career has already spanned thirteen years and
she’s now the 3rd longest tenured member at SM Entertainment.
She broke new ground in Japan and Asia, she’s a fashion leader and trendsetter,
and these days she’s molding the next generation of idols on the popular show
‘K-pop Star 2′. She is still a major part of K-pop and I don’t
think she’s anywhere near done yet.
Kangta
Since we just mentioned the 3rd longest tenured member of SM
Entertainment, we might as well mention the 2nd and that would be
former H.O.T lead singer and current ‘The Voice Korea’ judge,
Kangta. Like Boa, I’m sure that his impact on today’s K-pop
industry probably started about seventeen years ago as the lead singer of the
ever popular H.O.T. Who knows how many singers began their dream while watching
Kangta on TV, hoping one day to be on that stage. Kangta also holds a director
position at SM Entertainment and while that may or may not be a formality,
there’s no question that his influence is still being felt and that his role as
a mentor to the younger generation can only be a good thing.
Hyori
The princess Lee Hyori. While she has started her own
company, Hyori is on this list as a pure entertainer. She is still pushing the
boundaries and is always on the leading edge of what’s hot in K-pop. Ever since
she dropped her solo album back in 2003 she helped set the bar for all
performers, both male and female alike. Her time as a member of Fin.K.L.
made her supremely popular but it was her foray as a solo artist that made her a
true icon. She became one of the most sought after TV hosts and celebrity
spokesperson (sorry HyunA, Hyorin, and
Hara… you guys just don’t cut it) and her private life became
more interesting than the actual news. While times are changing and there’s a
new crop of stars in K-pop, there is no question that Lee Hyori isn’t just in
the game, she still is the game.
source:allkpop
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