Source Music

Source Music Co., Ltd.
Native name
주식회사 쏘스뮤직
TypePrivate subsidiary
Industry
FoundedNovember 17, 2009; 16 years ago (2009-11-17)
FounderSo Sung-jin
Headquarters
16F 42 Hangang-daero, Yongsan-gu, Seoul (Hangangno 3-ga, Yongsan Trade Center), South Korea
Area served
Worldwide
Key peopleShin Sun-jung (CEO and president)
Services
  • Music production
  • Artists management
RevenueIncrease ₩77.9 billion (US$58.12 million) (2025)
Increase ₩10.72 billion (US$8 million) (2025)
Total assetsIncrease ₩47.63 billion (US$35.54 million) (2025)
Total equityIncrease ₩22.65 billion (US$16.9 million) (2025)
Number of employees
64 (2025)
ParentHybe Corporation
Websitewww.sourcemusic.com Edit this at Wikidata

Source Music Co., Ltd. (Korean: 주식회사 쏘스뮤직) is a South Korean record label established in 2009 by So Sung-jin. In July 2019, the company was acquired by Hybe Corporation, making the company part of the collective term "Hybe Labels". The company manages girl group Le Sserafim, and previously managed soloist Kan Mi-youn and girl groups Glam and GFriend.

History

2009–2014: Foundation and first generation artists

Glam in January 2014

Source Music was founded on November 17, 2009, by So Sung-jin, who worked at SM Entertainment as a talent manager for various artists between 2000 and 2002. He later moved to JYP Entertainment.

In 2010, the label's first-ever artist, female soloist Kan Mi-youn (formerly of Baby Vox) released her first digital single titled "Going Crazy". The music video featured Lee Joon and Mir from MBLAQ. The song peaked at #11 on South Korea's national chart Gaon.

In 2012, Glam was formed as a joint collaboration between Source Music and Big Hit Entertainment and was composed of Dahee, Trinity, Zinni, Miso and Jiyeon. Following Trinity's departure, they continued as a four-member group. The group was active until 2014 and was officially disbanded in January 2015, after Dahee was sentenced to one year imprisonment for a case of extortion against actor Lee Byung-hun.

2015–2019

GFriend at the Asia Model Awards in May 2018

In 2015, GFriend was formed. The group consisted of members Sowon, Yerin, Eunha, Yuju, SinB, and Umji. They made their debut with the extended play Season of Glass on January 15, 2015.

2019–present: Acquisition by Hybe Corporation

Le Sserafim in June 2022

In July 2019, Hybe Corporation (formerly Big Hit Entertainment) acquired Source Music, making the company a subsidiary under Hybe Labels, Hybe Corp.'s subdivision of labels, and keeping its existing management and style. On March 22, 2021, Source Music, as well as the other labels under Hybe Labels, moved to its new headquarters in the Yongsan Trade Center in the Yongsan District, the new headquarters of its parent company, Hybe Corporation. On March 31, 2021, the official website of Source Music changed its physical address to the new building in Yongsan, Seoul.

Following the completion of their six-year contract, all GFriend members left the company on May 22, 2021, marking the disbandment of the group. On March 14, 2022, former Iz*One members Sakura Miyawaki and Kim Chaewon signed exclusive contracts with Source Music and confirmed their debut in a new group. Le Sserafim, consisting of Sakura, Kim Chaewon, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha Nakamura, Kim Garam and Hong Eunchae, debuted on May 2 with the extended play Fearless.

In April 2022, Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) sanctioned six businesses for violations of the country's personal information protection regulations. The PIPC imposed a combined ₩45 million (US$33,575.17) in administrative fines and issued corrective orders. The violations were classified by the commission as minor, and no administrative surcharges were imposed. Source Music used Google's questionnaire to reimburse membership fees related to the disbandment of GFriend, and the personal information of 22 survey participants was compromised due to improper disclosure of survey results.

On September 24, 2024, Source Music announced that the members of GFriend would reunite in 2025 for a tenth anniversary project.

Artists

Former artists

Lawsuit against former trainee

In 2016, Source Music won a lawsuit against a former trainee who had been due to debut in GFriend. The trainee, referred to as "A" in reports, joined the agency in October 2013 and was initially part of the group's planned seven-member lineup. However, she stopped attending training in April 2014 after expressing her wish to return home. Later on, she claimed that the agency had pressured her to lose weight within a short period and excluded her from training when she failed to meet its expectations. The label filed a lawsuit in August 2014, seeking approximately ₩55.7 million (US$41,558.6) in compensation for the trainee's departure, including training expenses and costs it claimed were caused by a five-month delay to the group's debut.

On 2 May 2016, the Seoul Central District Court upheld a ruling ordering the former trainee to pay the label approximately ₩12.47 million (US$9,304.05), twice the amount the agency had invested in her training, in accordance with their contract. However, the court dismissed the agency's request for a further ₩43.22 million (US$32,247.09), finding that the delay could not be blamed solely on her departure for the group not debuting as planned, as another trainee had also left the planned lineup.

Notes

  1. ↑ since 2019
  2. ↑ Entertainment companies, music production companies or labels owned by Hybe Corporation partially or largely still operate independently.

References

  1. ↑ "2026 Large-scale Business Disclosure - DART - Repository of Korea's Corporate Filings". English DART. Retrieved 2026-05-28.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "DART - Repository of Korea's Corporate Filings". English DART. Retrieved April 3, 2026.
  3. ↑ "2026 Audit filing - DART - Repository of Korea's Corporate Filings". englishdart.fss.or.kr. Retrieved April 3, 2026.
  4. ↑ 조선일보 (2020-07-17). "[종합] BTS 빅히트, 여자친구 소속사 인수...가요계 빅3 서열 바뀔까". 조선일보 (in Korean). Retrieved 2022-08-11.
  5. ↑ "이 간미연이 그 간미연? 환골탈태 '미쳐가'". Archived from the original on 2021-06-17. Retrieved 2019-06-16.
  6. ↑ "'컴백' 간미연, 엠블렉 미르와 섹시 퍼포먼스". 네이트뉴스. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
  7. ↑ "[news] Kan Mi Yeon's crazy music video hits 200,000 views in 1 day". Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Lee Byung-hun repeats apology upon returning home". kpopherald.koreaherald.com. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  9. ↑ "New Rookie Group GFriend Makes Debut with 'Glass Bead' MV". Mwave. January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  10. ↑ "실검보고서, 여자친구, 상큼한 걸그룹 데뷔". Hankyung. January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  11. ↑ "빅히트 측 "쏘스뮤직 인수 계약→자회사 편입, 독립성 유지"(공식)". Newsen. July 28, 2019. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  12. ↑ "빅히트엔터테인먼트, 쏘스뮤직 인수..멀티 레이블 구조 강화 [공식입장]". Naver. July 28, 2019. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  13. ↑ Jeong, Hee-yeon (March 22, 2021). 빅히트 사옥 이전, 용산으로 [공식] [Big Hit office relocated to Yongsan [Official]]. Sports Donga (in Korean). Retrieved March 28, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  14. ↑ "Source Music: footer information section". Pledis Entertainment. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  15. ↑ Jeong, Hee-yeon (May 18, 2021). "여자친구 계약종료...각자 길 간다 [공식입장]". Sports Donga (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  16. ↑ "K-pop act GFriend bids farewell to fans after 6 years". The Korea Herald. May 20, 2021. Archived from the original on May 21, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  17. ↑ Yoon Sang-geun (March 14, 2022). "미야와키 사쿠라·김채원 하이브 합류 "쏘스뮤직 걸그룹 데뷔"[전문]" [Miyawaki Sakura and Kim Chaewon join Hybe "Source Music girl group debut" [Full text]] (in Korean). Star News. Retrieved March 14, 2022 – via Naver.
  18. ↑ Lee Jae-eun (March 21, 2022). "쏘스뮤직 측 "김채원·사쿠라 그룹, 5월 데뷔 목표로 준비중"[공식]" [Source Music side "Kim Chaewon and Sakura group are preparing to debut in May" [Official]] (in Korean). Sports Khan. Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Naver.
  19. ↑ Baek Yoon-gi (April 13, 2022). "'하이브 첫 걸그룹' 르세라핌, 5월 2일 데뷔 [공식]" ['Hybe's first girl group' Le Sserafim to debut on May 2nd [Official]] (in Korean). Edaily. Retrieved April 13, 2022 – via Naver.
  20. ↑ "개인정보보호위원회". pipc.go.kr. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  21. ↑ "쏘스뮤직과 번개장터 등 개인정보보호 법규 위반 6개 사업자 제재". 보안뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  22. ↑ "쏘스뮤직, 번개장터 등 개인정보 보호 위반 사업자에 과태료 4500만 원 부과". CCTV뉴스 (in Korean). 2022-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  23. ↑ Lee, Seung-gil (September 24, 2024). "[공식] 여자친구, 4년만에 재결합 한다...쏘스뮤직 "데뷔 10주년 기념 프로젝트" (전문)" [[Official] GFriend reunites after 4 years... Source Music "10th Anniversary Debut Project" (Full Text)] (in Korean). MyDaily. Archived from the original on September 24, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024 – via Naver.
  24. ↑ Kang, Seo-jung (January 1, 2015). "빅히트 측 "글램 해체맞다..멤버들이 계약해지 요청"". OSEN (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  25. ↑ Seon, Mikyung (May 22, 2021). "여자친구, 오늘(22일) 공식 해체..6년 활동 아름다운 마무리[종합]". OSEN (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 22, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  26. ↑ ""데뷔전 탈퇴 걸그룹 멤버, 소속사 투자비용 물어내야"". m.entertain.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2026-11-08.