MLD Entertainment (formerly known as Duble Kick Entertainment; ) is a South Korean entertainment agency and record label founded in 2015 by

Duble Sidekick Duble Sidekick () is a South Korean music producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job i ...

. The agency currently manages several artists, including Hori7on, and Lapillus and previously managed

Momoland Momoland (, stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by MLD Entertainment (formerly known as Duble Sidekick, Duble Kick Company) through the 2016 reality show ''Finding Momoland''. The show's winners Hyebin, Yeonwoo, Jane, Nayu ...

, TFN and

Cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

History

2015–2018: Formation and Momoland

Duble Kick Entertainment was founded in 2015 by the music-producing duo,

. In 2016, the company aired a survival program on Mnet titled ''Finding Momoland'', in which seven trainees were selected to form the lineup of

. The group attracted attention internationally with their crowd-funded project to fund their debut release. Their debut extended play, ''Welcome To Momoland'', was released on November 10, 2016.

2018–2021: Joint ventures and rebranding

The company rebranded itself as MLD Entertainment on January 16, 2018. On May 31, 2018, MLD Entertainment announced that they acquired BM Entertainment, R&D Company, and Double HTNE, as subsidiaries. T14190522

On October 13, 2020, MLD Entertainment announced that they had signed a deal with NHN Entertainment Corporation and Sony Music to simultaneously debut a boy band in the United States, Japan, and South Korea. The group, T1419, later renamed to TFN, debuted on January 11, 2021, with the release of their EP, ''Before Sunrise Part.1''. On October 14, 2021, R&B duo JT&Marcus released their debut album, ''Dear You'', under the agency.

2022–2024: Departure of Momoland and disbandment of TFN

The company partnered with

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...

and Kamp Global on September 7, 2022, to form and manage a Filipino boy band in South Korea. The members of the band was determined through the survival program ''Dream Maker'', in which seven contestants were selected to form the lineup of Hori7on. The group debuted July 24, 2023, with the release of their album '' Friend-Ship''. On January 6, 2022, CocaNButter, a quartet known for their appearances on ''

Street Woman Fighter ''Street Woman Fighter'' (), often abbreviated as ''SWF'', is the debut season of a South Korean dance competition franchise of the same name. It aired on Mnet (TV channel), Mnet from August 24 to October 26, 2021, every Tuesday at 22:20 (Korean ...

'' and ''

Street Dance Girls Fighter ''Street Dance Girls Fighter'' () is a spin-off of South Korean dance survival program ''Street Woman Fighter'' that premiered on Mnet on November 30, 2021 and aired every Tuesday at 22:20 KST. Female dance crews composed of high school-aged ...

'', signed an exclusive contract with the agency. On April 14, 2022,

Lee Seung-chul Lee Seung-chul (; born December 5, 1966) is a South Korean singer best known for the hit songs, "My Love", "Never Ending Story", and "Girls' Generation". Currently an artist of Kakao Entertainment's label Flex M, he debuted in 1985 as the voc ...

signed an exclusive contract with the agency. On May 16, 2022, the agency announced that it formed a new girl group, Lapillus, for the first time since the debut of Momoland six years prior. Lapillus debuted on with the release of the extended play ''Girl's Round Part.1'', supported by its lead singles "Gratata" and "Burn with Love", on September 22, 2022. On January 27, 2023, MLD Entertainment issued a press release announcing that the remaining six members of Momoland did not renew their contracts with the company. Rapper

signed an exclusive contract with the company on April 6, 2023. On February 29, 2024, media outlets reported that TFN had disbanded.

2024–present: Financial crisis and multiple departures

On June 18, 2024, it was revealed that MLD Entertainment had abandoned Lapillus' trademark, allegedly due to unpaid registration fees. On July 17, 2024, it was reported that MLD Entertainment is currently in a financial crisis. MLD Entertainment had been unable to pay their employees’ wages and as a result, most of the employees resigned, leaving only five people remaining with the company. It was also reported that CEO Lee Hyung-Jin is currently staying in the Philippines to focus on Hori7on’s activities. On November 10, 2024, Jaejun from JT&Marcus announced on an Instagram livestream that the duo had left MLD Entertainment. On May 26, 2025, CocaNButter announced via Instagram story that their exclusive contract with MLD Entertainment had ended.

Artists

Groups

* Narin (2022–present) * Lapillus (2022–present) * Hori7on (2023–present) * New:ID (2023–present)

Former artists

(2016–23) **

Yeonwoo Lee Da-bin (; born August 1, 1996), better known by her stage name Yeonwoo (), is a South Korean actress and singer managed by 9ato Entertainment. She is a former member of the South Korean girl group Momoland. She is currently active as an ac ...

(2016–19) ** Taeha (2017–19) ** Daisy (2017–19) ** Hyebin (2016–23) ** Jane (2016–23) ** Nayun (2016–23) **

JooE Lee Joo-won (; born August 18, 1999) better known by her stage name JooE (), is a South Korean singer. She is a member of the girl group Momoland under former MLD Entertainment and current Inyeon Entertainment. Personal life JooE was born in S ...

(2016–23) ** Ahin (2016–23) ** Nancy (2016–23) * TFN (2021–24) *

(2023–24) * JT&Marcus (2021–24) * CocaNButter (2022–25)

References

External links

Official website
{{Hori7on South Korean companies established in 2015 South Korean record labels Talent agencies of South Korea