👩‍🎓ALL THE WORLD’S A (K)STAGE

Forget ballet classes and piano lessons. Singapore is about to get a new after-school activity. SM Entertainment will launch the first overseas outpost of its K-pop training academy, SM Universe, in June. The program includes a 21-week training schedule centered around improving students’ singing, dancing and music production abilities, and will conclude with a one-week trip to the SM Universe campus in Seoul. While there, top students will be invited to auditions with local entertainment agencies. Early reports suggest there’s no fixed age limit for participants, but it’s expected that most students will be aged 13 to 18. These after-school classes aren’t cheap – US$10,000 (S$13,510) – although scholarships may be available.

💡 OUR TAKE

SM Entertainment’s Singapore academy isn’t just about discovering new talent. The company had already taken K-pop training global by partnering with Moon&Back Media and SM & Kakao Entertainment America to create a UK-based boyband, Dear Alice. The group’s formation process was documented in the BBC One series Made in Korea: The K-pop Experience. Not to be outdone, HYBE just teamed up with Ryan Tedder to form another boy group. Following a global search, members will undergo a training program in LA. 

Some digging reveals one reason for these initiatives. In 2024, physical album sales declined in the country after nine consecutive years of growth. Global exports of physical K-pop albums also slowed (partly due to BTS and BLACKPINK not releasing new albums). That’s not to say fans aren’t buying. According to Luminate, seven of the top 10 biggest-selling CDs in the US last year were K-pop albums 👀. In short, the expansion of SM Universe is a strategic move to maintain momentum outside of South Korea and diversify revenue streams beyond album sales.

Why choose Singapore over Thailand 🇹🇭, the Philippines 🇵🇭 or Indonesia 🇮🇩, which have larger and passionate K-pop fanbases? Not just SM’s SEA HQ, Singapore has established business infrastructure with policies favorable to creative industries. Its multicultural composition makes it an ideal testing ground for evolving K-pop beyond Korean boundaries. And with both Thailand and the Philippines exploring their own soft power –  in the forms of P-pop, the T-wave and more – Singapore offers SM a relatively neutral cultural canvas where K-pop can be adapted without competing directly with emerging local entertainment movements.

Wondering what lessons this expansion holds for marketers? Firstly, the academy model could allow local brands to embed themselves into the talent pipeline earlier. And we don’t just mean sports or sponsoring dance and performance gear. Singapore attractions could create associated ‘K-pop trainee experiences’; financial services providers might want to develop products for young performers. Brands that act early will have a first-mover advantage. And of course, this is a case where local brands could have the edge.

Second, if the model proves successful, it could open the door to additional training hubs across the region… although SM Entertainment and others would need to tread carefully. These endeavors could create tension between cultural authenticity and regional identity. Giving young talents the chance to embed their cultural identities into K-pop without diluting either tradition could pose a challenge. Considering that, within the K-pop scene, generational shifts traditionally occur in seven-year cycles, SM Entertainment and others are probably already considering these possibilities. 

For those of you born before 1997, ‘fax, no printer‘ is Gen Z speak for ‘undeniable facts I agree with’

Singapore’s newest dating event, Fishbowl, is loosely inspired by which reality show?

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