K-pop visionary J.Y. Park is making the leap into politics.
South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung has appointed Park (Park Jin-young), CEO of JYP Entertainment, as co-chair of the Presidential Committee on Popular Culture Exchange.
Announced Tuesday, Sept. 9, the new presidential committee has a mission to promote South Korean culture abroad while expanding exposure to international pop culture domestically.
Park shared his thoughts with his 2 million Instagram followers. “I thought long and hard about taking on a government role, as it felt burdensome and worrisome in many ways for someone from the entertainment industry. But with K-pop facing such a special opportunity right now,” he added, “I decided to embrace it and make the most of it.”
Widely loved by the public, Park debuted as a solo artist in 1994, and last year presented a solo concert in Seoul to celebrate 30 years in showbiz.
After founding JYP Entertainment in 1996, he launched artists including Rain, Wonder Girls, 2PM, TWICE, Day6 and Stray Kids, elevating the company to one of Korea’s top entertainment agencies.
In 2009, at the height of the Wonder Girls’ domestic popularity, he moved to the United States and essentially started from scratch. He secured the group a spot as the opening act for the Jonas Brothers’ North American tour, and in that year guided the English-language release of the Wonder Girls’ “Nobody,” which became the first Korean song to impact the Billboard Hot 100, debuting and peaking at No. 76, for what turned out to be a week-long stay on the chart.
Park also posted a photo of the Wonder Girls from 2009 on his Instagram, remarking: “My dream remains the same as it was in 2003 when I went to the U.S. to promote Korean artists to American record labels, in 2009 when the Wonder Girls became the first Korean act to enter the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and now: for K-pop to be loved worldwide.”
He promises to “work hard so that junior artists can get a lot of better opportunities. And K-pop will take a step further and promote our culture. We will do our best to make it a platform for people around the world to understand and communicate with each other.”
Park isn’t the first entertainer to enter politics in Korea. Yoo In-chon — a widely beloved actor from the 1980s through the 1990s — served twice as Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. It is unprecedented, however, for someone who remains an active artist to be appointed to a minister-level position.
Meanwhile, shares of JYP Entertainment — for which Park is the largest shareholder — were up 4.93% from the previous day as of 9 a.m. KST, and are currently trading 2.8% higher.
The company’s outlook itself also appears solid, thanks to the ongoing success of its frontline acts. Among them, TWICE, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and is currently on the road for their fourth worldwide concert tour.
Stray Kids recently set a new K-pop record as Karma became their seventh consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200, beginning with ODDINARY in 2022 (all debuted at the top spot). Also, Park has introduced localized idol groups through the affiliates of JYP Japan, JYP China, and JYP America.