King Of K-Pop’ Documentary Premiere In Hollywood: Recap

On May 12th hundreds of attendees gathered at NeueHouse Hollywood in Los Angeles for the red carpet premiere of Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop, a new Amazon Prime Video documentary exploring the life and legacy of Lee Soo-man, one of K-pop’s leading pioneers. Hosted by A2O Entertainment, a new record label and entertainment agency founded by Lee, the star-studded event drew a crowd of notable artists, actors, influencers and other professionals across media and entertainment, including Lee himself and K-pop idols Choi Siwon of Super Junior, Taemin of SHINee and Sunny, Hyoyeon and Tiffany of Girls’ Generation.

The film’s director Ting Poo as well as its producers Teddy Zee, Jenny Turner, R.J. Cutler, Jane Cha Cutler, Elise Pearlstein and Trevor Smith were also in attendance.

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The evening kicked off with red carpet arrivals, followed by an advance screening of the feature documentary.

A2O MAY, a new five-member girl group launched by A2O Entertainment, then took to the stage to perform their debut hit “Under My Skin” (a remake of TVXQ!’s “Mirotic” and Sarah Connor’s “Under My Skin”) and their high-octane new single “BOSS.”

Despite debuting only five months ago, A2O MAY has already set new records, becoming the first girl group from China to perform at a major American music festival (they recently played iHeartRadio’s Wango Tango) and the first Chinese idol girl group to break into the U.S. Top 40 Radio chart with “Under My Skin.”

Other young rookie acts from A2O Entertainment also showcased their talent on stage, stunning the audience with their explosive dance moves and an easy swagger well beyond their years.

The night wrapped up with a lively rooftop afterparty, complete with an open bar, photo opps and a DJ set by Hyoyeon.

Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop delves into Lee’s remarkable career and profound impact on the Korean entertainment industry, from his beginnings as a popular singer-songwriter in Korea to his rise as the visionary founder and chief producer of SM Entertainment, one of the largest K-pop agencies in the world. The documentary also addresses the controversies that led to his ouster from SM Entertainment and traces his subsequent remarkable comeback as the founder and lead producer of A2O Entertainment.

During his time at SM Entertainment, Lee created and refined the K-pop idol system that is responsible for shaping K-pop as we know it today. Under Lee’s guidance, many of SM Entertainment’s earlier artists like H.O.T. (widely considered to be the first K-pop idol group), TVXQ!, BoA and Super Junior popularized K-pop in overseas markets and laid the foundations for K-pop to grow into a global phenomenon. As the documentary notes, beginning with its boy band EXO, SM Entertainment also introduced “concepts” (an overarching theme for an artist or one of their albums) and “universes” (fictional worlds built around a particular K-pop group that often involve elaborate storylines) into K-pop storytelling that became widely adopted across the K-pop industry over the years.

Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

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