Lee Soo-man

Lee Soo-man (born June 18, 1952 in Jeonju, South Korea) is a South Korean business executive and record producer. His musical career began in a coffee house in 1971, and he soon became known for hit songs like "한송이 꿈 (A Piece of Dream)" (1976) and "행복 (Happiness)" (1978), as well as two eponymous albums in 1977 and 애창곡집 in 1978. During this period, he balanced his music career with roles as a radio DJ and TV host. In the early 1980s, Soo-man shifted his focus to computer engineering, leaving the entertainment industry to pursue a master's degree at California State University, Northridge. There, he was inspired by the rise of MTV superstars like Michael Jackson, fuelling his vision to revolutionise the Korean pop music industry. He released two more self-titled albums in 1985 and returned to Korea with a renewed purpose, re-entering the entertainment scene as a DJ and presenter, releasing the album 끝이 없는 순간 in 1986 as well as New Age and New Age 2 in 1989. Turning his attention to artist management in 1989, he founded SM Studio, signing singer and rapper Hyun Jin-young as his first client. Throughout the 1990s, SM Studio developed an in-house system to manage all aspects of its artists' careers. Renamed SM Entertainment in 1995, the company quickly became one of South Korea's largest entertainment firms, operating as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and concert production company, and music publishing house. In 2008, Soo-man was honoured as Record Producer of the Year at the Golden Disc Awards with Billboard recognising him as one of the world's influential music industry leaders in January, 2020. Soo-man parted ways with SM in 2023 to focus on broader entrepreneurial ventures.

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