In a statement by Bae Yong Joon‘s entertainment company Boundaries of Forest* on June 29th, it was announced that SS501 leader Kim Hyun Joong has signed an exclusive contract with them. The company said that they will work with Hyun Joong to develop his singing and acting skills. They also stated that they will spare no support to him so that he may take advantage of the various opportunities available to him as a Korean celebrity on the cusp of the next wave of Hallyu super stardom.
We reported back in April that Kim Hyun Joong and Bae Yong Joon were spotted having a midnight meeting and speculations were that Bae Yong Joon was scouting Hyun Joong for a part in a drama he was producing. After reports of the meeting circulated, both sides claimed that it was just a friendly meeting. Less than a week later, reports that Kim Hyun Joong as well as the rest of S501’s contracts with DSP Media were to expire on June 7th became common knowledge through news reports. Nothing more was heard over the issue until last week when SS501 fans were unsettled over emotional appearances by SS501 at fan meets and were surprised by DSP Media’s sudden announcement on the 20th that all activities for “Love Ya” were done and that contract negotiations were still not settled. Ah, sometimes rumors and speculations are true, or at least half true.
There was no mention of what will become of SS501 in the reports. One would think that if this new company was interested in the whole group they would have signed them all at one time, but you never know. This doesn’t necessarily mean the end of SS501, other groups in the past like Shinhwa were able to operate with members under different management companies. It does however, make the coordination of activities harder and it always usually was the beginning of the end for the groups.
Many have said that while DSP Media seemed pretty lenient with their stars like SS501, they never really helped them to reach their full potential. I became a fan of Hyun Joong during his We Got Married days and after learning of his background, hard working ways, and discovering of SS501 became an even bigger fan. I’m just hoping that this decision will be what’s best for Hyun Joong and that this company will really help him to develop his skills. I also hope that there’s a chance for SS501 to stay around.
Stars other than Bae Yong Joon that are managed by Boundaries of Forest (BOF for short, I wonder if that was a sign?) are Park Ye Jin, Lee Na Young, Choi Kang Hee, Lee Bo Young, Bong Tae Gyu, Lee Ji Ah, So Yi Hyun, and Hong Soo Hyun.
*Boundaries of Forest is the talent management branch of Keyeast Co., Ltd. which was listed in some reports as the company that KHJ would be moving to.
cr: StarNews, DailyNews
