SM Entertainment Co-CEO Lee Sung Soo went viral for his claims against Lee Soo Man, which involves tax evasion and sustainability projects, leading Pink Bloods to express their shock.
Here's what people are saying.
SM Co-CEO Lee Sung Soo's Uploads Video Containing Shocking Claims on Lee Soo Man
On February 16, SM Entertainment's Co-CEO Lee Sung Soo uploaded a video, which attracted thousands of viewers across the internet.
The video titled "SM Entertainment CEO Lee Sung Soo's 1st Announcement," detailed Lee Soo Man's alleged actions in public, causing hysteria on the K-pop community.
In the video, co-CEO Lee Sung Soo addressed the public's knowledge of SM Entertainment's shares being acquired by HYBE. The co-CEO also enumerated the alleged actions Lee Soo Man took to maintain his hold on the company.
These actions involved:
- Making board executives highlight Lee Soo Man's relevance towards SM.
- Signing a deal to enable legitimacy for Lee Soo Man's acts.
- Making artists sign contracts for the founders separate business unit for overseas ventures.
- Signing a second production with Lee Soo Man in Korea.
- Lower revenue in SM Entertainment's first quarter to emphasize Lee Soo Man's importance.
- Delay albums scheduled for February and March, pushing its releases in April.
Lee Sung Soo also claimed that the founder had requested a shareholder's response team for him to return on SM Entertainment. The Co-CEO also added that Lee Soo Man will still receive his pay for the next 70 years, which will be sourced from artists' albums.
The percentage for this matter is 6 percent from revenue sales (70 years), and 3 percent in management revenue (3 years). The calculation concluded to an overall ₩80.0 billion Korean Won, which is equivalent to $62.3 million USD.
Afterwards, Lee Sung Soo calls out the deal between HYBE and Lee Soo Man. Lee Sung Soo explained that in HYBE's contract, Lee Soo Man's part as a domestic producer comprises of a three-year limit.
However, he alleged that there were no limits at all for Lee Soo Man as producer internationally. He questioned why Lee Soo Man made a clause for overseas production in a stock acquisition contract.
READ ALSO: Will SM Entertainment 'Disappear' Once HYBE Becomes Largest Shareholder?- Here's What We Know
Lee Sung Soo also wondered if HYBE knew about the suspected illegality of Lee Soo Man's foreign business (CT Planning) before signing the contract or not. This pondering came from his appeals regarding tax evasion. He brought up Lee Soo Man's personal project plan, which involved building a "music city" for sustainability promotions.
Lee Sung Soo declared the project was associated to a casino. From there, he stated that Lee Soo Man wanted to market "Lee Soo Man's world" globally through SM artists.
Aside from stock matters, Lee Sung Soo said that Lee Soo Man was the cause of aespa's delayed comebacks. In the video, the co-CEO explained that Lee Soo Man had instructed to instill sustainability on SM groups' songs, despite conflicting with their concepts.
Watch the full video here:
How Did Pink Bloods Take This? Here's What We Know
The news spread like wildfire, leading SM Entertainment's fans Pink Bloods to express their thoughts online.
Most of them conveyed how distressing the allegations were, while others felt sorry about aespa experiencing delayed releases.
See their comments below:
"Looks like he's really getting senile, why is he acting like that?"
"This gives me goosebumps and Bang Si Hyuk is just the same. Birds of the same feather."
"The content of it is so shocking, this looks like some pseudo-religion... Seriously the employees are freaking suffering."
"aespa babies, seriously what crime did they commit? This is so upsetting."
"I was wondering what was wrong with his plans of planting trees, but it turns out to be marijuana."
"The more you peel Lee Soo Man the more you realize how impressive he is."
"Bang Si Hyuk and Lee Soo Man need to flop."
"Summary: aespa is suffering a blow from those whales' fight."
"They pushed aespa's full album not because of GOT the Beat but Lee Soo Man."
What's your reaction on the allegations against Lee Soo Man?
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