Lee Soo Man, executive producer and visionary leader of A20 Entertainment, was personally invited by French President Emmanuel Macron to collaborate on future K-pop initiatives between South Korea and France. The unprecedented proposal came during a meeting held at the Élysée Palace in Paris on June 20, 2025 (local time), following Lee’s keynote speech at the ‘France Music Week Summit’.
Introduced to President Macron as “the founder of K-pop,” Lee Soo Man was warmly welcomed by the French leader, who praised him as an outstanding entrepreneur, creative pioneer, and producer. According to A20 Entertainment, Macron directly proposed the establishment of a local office in France to strengthen collaboration between French and Korean creators. He also instructed Minister of Culture Rachida Dati to explore specific next steps.
The meeting was more than ceremonial—it reflected a deep awareness at France’s highest levels of government regarding the global influence of the K-pop industry and Lee Soo Man’s cultural vision. This could mark a symbolic turning point for cross-border models of cultural cooperation and copyright protection.
The ‘France Music Week Summit’, held at Place de l’Opéra in Paris, brought together more than 100 global music industry leaders. Key participants included Robert Kyncl (CEO of Warner Music Group), Lyor Cohen (Global Head of Music at YouTube), and Olivier Nusse (CEO of Universal Music France). The event focused on major challenges facing the music industry today, with sessions ranging from creator rights to AI-generated content.
Lee Soo Man was the only Asian speaker invited to deliver a keynote at the summit. In his speech, he presented the concept of ‘Culture Technology (CT)’, a system he pioneered as the foundation for K-pop’s global success. He also highlighted his longstanding connection with Paris, emphasizing how cultural innovation has helped position Korean music as a worldwide phenomenon.
He spent significant time addressing the impact of artificial intelligence on creative industries, stating:
“I envision a world where fans are no longer just consumers, but become prosumers who reinterpret and recreate content—and are rewarded for doing so,” he said. “In the future, anyone can become a producer. We must protect the rights of both prosumers and original creators alike.”
Lee Soo Man, the founder of SM Entertainment, is known for launching some of K-pop’s most iconic groups, including H.O.T., S.E.S., Shinhwa, Girls’ Generation, EXO, and Red Velvet. He stepped away from SM in 2023 following a high-profile management dispute.
Since then, he founded A20 Entertainment, under which he debuted the global girl group A20 MAY in December 2024. As a pioneer of the K-pop genre and one of its most influential architects, Lee continues to shape the future of global music through bold ideas and global partnerships.
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