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| ▲ This photo, provided by ADOR, shows NewJeans. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This photo, provided by Kakao Entertainment, shows GSO Joseph Chang. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean rookie girl group NewJeans and Kakao Entertainment’s Global Strategy Officer (GSO) Joseph Chang have been named as one of the Most Influential Asians in the United States in 2023, announced by the U.S. non-profit organization Gold House.
NewJeans and Chang were listed on the highly prestigious A100 List released on the official website of this non-governmental and non-profit organization on Monday (local time).
This annual list honors 100 Asian Pacific leaders from five arenas -- activism, advocacy, and politics; business, technology, and innovation; entertainment; lifestyle; and sports -- who made the greatest impact on American culture and society over the past year. Gold House is widely proclaimed as a non-profit organization that supports cultural artists in the Asia-Pacific region.
“NewJeans aspires to push the limits of K-pop with honest and authentic music that exudes youth,” Gold House wrote. It then pointed out that the quintet has been continuing to amaze the world with groundbreaking records, such as by entering the Billboard Hot 100 with smash hits “Ditto” and “OMG,” while “staying true to their musical flair and intrinsic charm.”
In regards to Joseph Chang, the organization assessed that he, who currently sits as the CEO of Kakao Entertainment America Corp. and GSO of Kakao Entertainment, has been overseeing “the global expansion strategy and business of Kakao Entertainment,” which is “Korea’s largest integrated entertainment company and the No.1 market share leader in the Korean music industry.” The organization also pinpointed his pivotal role in showcasing a slew of well-established K-pop acts, including IVE, The Boyz, Jay Park, and many more, to "a wider global audience."
Chang has also been named as one of the Billboard International Power Players,” announced by the U.S. music media Billboard last month.
Alongside these two Korean figures, baseball player Shohei Otani and designer Anna Sui were also listed on this year’s A100 List.
Oscar-winner Youn Yuh-jung, director Hwang Dong-hyuk, and Lee Jung-jae who took the helm and starred in the Netflix sensation “Squid Game,” respectively, as well as writer Lee Min-jin were previously included in last year's A100 List.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Ha eun Lee)
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