Former SM Entertainment CEO’s Career Under Scrutiny Following Harsh Remarks About His Relationship With Uncle Lee Soo Man

Lee Sung Soo, the former CEO of SM Entertainment, has recently found his career under intense scrutiny from netizens. The sudden attention on his work at SM came following harsh comments from MC Mong about his capabilities.

In a scathing statement related to SM Entertainment allegedly blocking EXO’s Xiumin from appearing on KBS’s Music Bank, MC Mong commented on Lee Sung Soo’s relationship with uncle and SM founder Lee Soo Man. He also questioned Lee Sung Soo’s abilities as head of A&R (artists and repertoire).

MC Mong essentially insinuated that Lee Sung Soo knew nothing about music, among other remarks about Lee and his uncle Lee Soo Man.

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As such, netizens did a deep dive on his time spent as an A&R employee at SM, and found that MC Mong’ claims may be way too harsh and that Lee Sung Soo’s career trajectory paints a different picture.

He began his journey at SM Entertainment in 2005, starting from humble beginnings. Initially working part-time to monitor fan reactions, he worked his way up to become an official member of the A&R (Artists and Repertoire) team. His most significant role came when he was given responsibility for SHINee, a group he helped launch. He contributed to the success of SHINee’s debut album by bringing in many of the tracks, including some fan favorites.

Lee’s rise continued, and by 2009, he was promoted to A&R team leader. During his time in this role, he played a part in some of SM’s biggest hits, such as TVXQ!’s “Mirotic,” Girls’ Generation’s “Gee” and Super Junior’s “Sorry, Sorry.”

In 2015, Lee was promoted again, this time becoming the head of SM’s A&R division and the head of the Producing Department. He oversaw major hits during this period, including SHINee’s “View,” Red Velvet’s “Ice Cream Cake” and “Dumb Dumb,” f(x)’s “4 Walls,” and EXO’s “Call Me Baby.”

Another notable contribution would be the start up of fan-favorite concert series The AGIT , which allowed idols with exceptional singing skills – including Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon and SHINee’s Jonghyun – to interact with fans on another level.

Despite the recent criticism, many Korean netizens still acknowledge Lee Sung Soo’s contributions to SM Entertainment’s success.

• “His achievements are truly impressive…”
• “The AGIT concerts were really great.”
• “I don’t like Sung Soo but saying he doesn’t know music is just wrong.”
• “Who’s talking nonsense like that?”
• “SM’s A&R is really doing a good job.”