Billboard President Mike Van in Seoul, April 15 (Yonhap News)

Mike Van, President of Billboard, who is currently visiting South Korea, held a press conference in Seoul on the 15th to share his positive outlook on the future of K-Pop and provide details regarding the launch of Billboard Korea, scheduled for June.

Van stated, "Billboard headquarters believes the future of K-Pop is very bright. Looking at the volume and quality of the content being produced, I believe it will lead to a positive future." He added, "(Billboard) will cover not just K-Pop, but K-Music in general, and we will do our best to contribute to the development of the music industry."

Billboard will officially enter the Korean market in June with the publication of the inaugural issue of Billboard Korea.

Kim Yu-na, Publisher and CEO of Billboard Korea, explained, "Billboard Korea will serve as a platform to introduce K-Pop stars not only to Korea but to the world. Instead of a launch party, we plan to host one of the many events that the headquarters is holding this year."

Van emphasized, "We want to accurately convey the rapidly growing Korean music market. Billboard believes that K-Pop and K-Music have the power to bring about a tectonic shift in the global entertainment industry as a cultural movement that transcends borders." He added, "We are ready to spread the beauty of K-Music through platforms and content that lead the industry together with music fans."

When asked if the recent changes to the calculation method for Billboard's main singles chart, the 'Hot 100', were intended to keep K-Pop, with its strong fandoms, in check, he denied it, stating, "(Keeping K-Pop in check) is absolutely not true."

Regarding the growth of K-Pop, he said, "During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was inevitable that music consumption would increase. The rise of K-Pop was not just a coincidence. We celebrate that growth," and added that Billboard would support the further growth of K-Pop artists.

Source: ©yonhapnews

These are English translations of articles from our GTTOUR Japanese website.