Hybe founder makes Billboard’s annual ranking of music industry executives

January 28, 2025

Bang Si-hyuk, founder and chairman of the powerhouse K-pop entertainment company Hybe, has made Billboard’s annual ranking of the music industry’s top executives for the fifth time.

Billboard released its “Billboard Power 100 List” for 2025 on Monday (U.S. local time). In the “Leaderboard” category of the top 40 industry figures, Bang and Scooter Braun, CEO of Hybe America, ranked No. 17.

Bang had previously been in the rankings in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024.

In its accompanying blurb, Billlboard noted Hybe’s joint venture with Geffen Records last year, resulting in an appearance by the girl group KATSEYE in front of over 7,000 fans at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.

“The group’s promising start is vital to Hybe’s plans to export its South Korean approach to artist development,” Billboard said.

Bang told Billboard that there had been concerns about whether there would be room in the U.S. market for boy and girl groups, and added, “The success of the group’s first EP, SIS (Soft Is Strong), has proven that the market exists, and that is our biggest achievement.”

The five-track debut accounted for 115,000 U.S. equivalent album units in 2024, with roughly half coming from CD sales and the other half from 97 million on-demand streams, according to Billboard.

Braun told Billboard that Hybe’s Weverse social media/e-commerce business held over 100 online concerts, sold 18 million pieces of merchandise and released 18 Weverse albums that sold a cumulative 5.7 million units.

“With artists like Kid LAROI, Ariana Grande, Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa joining this year, it’s only growing and will continue to do so in 2025,” Braun said.

Bang and Braun checked in at No. 2 in the “Multisector” category. Joseph Chang, co-CEO of the Seoul-based Kakao Entertainment and CEO of Kakao Entertainment America, ranked 15th in the same category.

Billboard said Kakao Entertainment America worked with the British production firm Moon&Back to create “Made in Korea: The K-pop Experience,” a six-part series that aired on BBC in August and September.

The show followed five boys from Britain undergoing K-pop training in South Korea, and they became dearALICE, releasing a soundtrack to the TV series in September.