SM Entertainment joins forces with Tencent Music Entertainment Group to create a new Beijing-based company, named SMTME Entertainment (STE), that will develop and manage Chinese artists.
Zhoumi, a member of Super Junior-M, Super Junior’s China-based unit, has been appointed chief executive (CEO) of the venture.
SM said the partnership followed a memorandum of understanding signed with Tencent Music Entertainment in May in a move aimed at stepping up the expansion of its influence in the Chinese-speaking entertainment markets.
STE plans launch a new Chinese idol group within two to three years, according to SM. For this, the venture will run auditions to recruit members and oversee the group’s management in China after its debut.
The company will also support the activities of SM artists from Chinese-speaking regions, including NCT Dream’s Renjun and WayV members Yangyang and Xiaojun.
Zhoumi, the newly appointed head of the joint venture, has built expertise and a deep understanding of the K-pop production system through his nearly 20-year career as a member of Super Junior-M and a solo artist. Additionally, he has gained practical management experience and insight into local trends while serving as a director at SM’s Chinese subsidiary.
“We will present differentiated content and create meaningful results as a bridge between the two companies by combining SM’s strengths in intellectual property and content production with an understanding of the Chinese-speaking entertainment markets,”
Zhoumi said.
Leveraging his experience as both an artist and a manager, Zhoumi will serve as a bridge between SM and TME. He is expected to lead STE by combining the two companies’ content production capabilities with their understanding of the Chinese market