K-pop is my cup of tea: U.K. envoy tours SM Entertainment HQ

U.K. Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden visited SM Entertainment’s headquarters and met with the company’s executives on Tuesday, the K-pop agency said in a press release Wednesday.

SM Entertainment executives and British envoys pose for a photo at SM Entertainment's headquarters in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul on Tuesday. From left are SM Entertainment CGO Mina Choi, Director of the British Council in Korea Paul Clementson, U.K. Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, British Ambassador to Korea Colin Crooks and Jang Cheol-hyuk. [SM ENTERTAINMENT]

U.K. Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden visited SM Entertainment’s headquarters and met with the company’s executives on Tuesday, the K-pop agency said in a press release Wednesday.

Dowden is visiting Korea to attend the third Summit for Democracy conference, which kicked off in Seoul on Monday.

Dowden asked to visit SM Entertainment through the British Council, the U.K. government’s international culture and education arm. One of the reasons for his visit was because his “two children are K-pop fans,” SM Entertainment said.

A team of around 10 British envoys including Dowden; Colin Crooks, the British Ambassador to Korea; and Paul Clementson, the director of the British Council in Korea, visited the SM Entertainment headquarters in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul. The team toured the company’s facilities such as the content production studios, the songwriting collective where lyricists and composers work together, recording studios and mixing booths.

The team also met with SM Entertainment CEO Jang Cheol-hyuk and Chief Global Officer (CGO) Mina Choi. Dowden expressed a high level of interest and expectations in SM Entertainment’s collaboration with British entertainment enterprises, according to the company.

“SM and British entertainment company Moon&Back are working together to launch a British boy band onto the global stage,” Jang said. “We hope the boy group, who is currently receiving rigorous training under SM, will find huge success in the global market.”

Dowden previously served as the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in Boris Johnson’s government from 2020 to 2021. He assumed his position as deputy to current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in April 2023.

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]