Pledis Entertainment () is a South Korean entertainment company founded by Han Sung-Soo in 2007. The label is home to
Bumzu,
Hwang Min-hyun, and groups
Seventeen and
TWS. Its name originates from the
Pleiades
The Pleiades (), also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an Asterism (astronomy), asterism of an open cluster, open star cluster containing young Stellar classification#Class B, B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Tau ...
, a star cluster in the constellation
Taurus.
On May 25, 2020,
Hybe Corporation
Hybe Co., Ltd. (; stylized as Hybe Corporation; commonly known as simply Hybe) is a South Korean multinational entertainment company established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk as Big Hit Entertainment Co., Ltd.
The company operates as a record l ...
became its majority shareholder, but Pledis remains an independent label.
History
2007–2012: Founding and early artists
Pledis Entertainment was founded in 2007.
Son Dam-bi was the first artist to debut under Pledis, and was dubbed the 'female
Rain
Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
' by media outlets.
In its beginning stages, the agency did not have management premises, only a practice room. In January 2009, Pledis debuted its first girl group,
After School. A sub-unit of After School called
Orange Caramel was formed in 2010, consisting of members
Nana,
Lizzy and
Raina.
In December 2010, Pledis released ''
Happy Pledis 1st Album'', featuring After School, which included the tracks "Love Love Love" and "Someone Is You". ''Happy Pledis'' was a series of albums to be released annually, featuring Pledis artists, with proceeds going to charity. Proceeds from the first album were donated to
Save the Children
The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide.
The organization raises money to imp ...
.
In July 2011, two further sub-units of After School were created,
A.S. Red and
A.S. Blue. ''
Happy Pledis 2nd Album'', featuring Son Dam-bi, After School, Pledis Boys, and
Yoo Ara, was released in December, with proceeds going to
UNICEF
UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...
.
2012–2020: Joint ventures and development
In March 2012, Pledis debuted their first boy band
NU'EST
NU'EST (; short for New Establish Style Tempo) was a South Korean boy band formed and managed by Pledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members: Kim Jong-hyeon, JR, Aron (singer), Aron, Baekho (singer), Baekho, Hwang Min-hyun, Minhyu ...
. In May 2012, the agency joint ventures with
Fantagio and debuted a six-member girl group,
Hello Venus. In June 2012,
Kahi "graduated" from After School and continued with her solo career under Pledis.
On November 11, 2013, Pledis Entertainment and Chinese agency
Yuehua Entertainment held a press conference titled "Yuehua Entertainment X Pledis" at the Beijing Banquet Hall, marking the start of a collaboration under which the sub-unit NU'EST-M was formed with the addition of Chinese member Jason Fulong Fei, known as JA. The six-member team performed for the first time at the press event.
On July 21, 2014, the partnership between Pledis and Fantagio was dissolved. The two members under Pledis, Yoo Ara and Yoonjo, left Hello Venus while the four members under Fantagio continued as a group under the same name. In December 2014, Jooyeon graduated from After School after her contract expired. That month, Kahi announced to parted ways with the agency.
Thirteen-member boy group
Seventeen debuted in May 2015, after training under the company for several years. In June 2015, Son Dam-bi parted ways with the agency after ten years.
In March 2016, Pledis formed a pre-debut team called "Pledis Girlz". Some of the pre-debut team members
Nayoung, Roa, Yuha, Eunwoo, Rena,
Kyulkyung and
Xiyeon had competed in the survival show ''
Produce 101'' and concluded the show with two members, Nayoung and Kyulkyung, debuting in the survival project girl group
I.O.I. Before their debut, Pledis Girlz held concerts which the members performed weekly from May 2016 until January 2017 and also released their pre-debut single titled "WE", with the exception of Nayoung and Kyulkyung, who were still promoting with I.O.I at the time. In January 2017, Pledis Girlz concluded their weekly concerts with the announcement of the official group name
Pristin, following Nayoung and Kyulkyung wrapping up their activities with
I.O.I in the same months. Pristin officially debuted as a ten-member girl group in March 2017.
On May 31, 2017, UEE graduated from After School after her contract expired.
In May 2018, Lizzy graduated from After School following the expiration of her contract but remains a member of Orange Caramel. In June 2018, it was confirmed that After School member Kaeun and
Huh Yunjin, a Korean-American trainee, would participate in the survival show series ''
Produce 48''. At the end of the show, it was revealed that Kaeun placed 14th overall and Yunjin placed 26th. Both failed to make it into the final lineup of the winning group,
Iz*One
Iz*One ( ; ; ; stylized in all caps) was a South Korean–Japanese girl group formed through the Mnet (TV channel), Mnet reality competition show ''Produce 48''. The group was composed of twelve members: Jang Won-young, Sakura Miyawaki, Jo Yu-r ...
. Yunjin was later signed to
Source Music and debuted as a member of
Le Sserafim
Le Sserafim ( ; ; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by Source Music, a sub-label of Hybe Corporation, Hybe. The group consists of five members: Sakura Miyawaki, Sakura, Kim Chaewon, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha, and Hong Eunchae. ...
in May 2022.
On May 24, 2019, Pristin was officially disbanded. Pledis announced that while Kyulkyung, Yehana, and Sungyeon would stay with the company, the remaining seven (Xiyeon, Rena, Roa, Kyla, Nayoung, Yuha, and Eunwoo) would be departing. After reuniting for the first time in almost two years, NU'EST announced their contract renewal with Pledis Entertainment. On July 6, 2019, Kaeun graduated from After School following the expiration of her contract. On December 20, 2019,
Han Dong-geun parted ways with Pledis Entertainment. On December 27, 2019,
Raina graduated from After School following the expiration of her contract.
On January 16, 2020, After School's E-Young announced that she has left Pledis Entertainment with the expiration of her contract.
2020–present: Hybe Labels, new headquarters and evolution
On May 25, 2020,
Hybe Corporation
Hybe Co., Ltd. (; stylized as Hybe Corporation; commonly known as simply Hybe) is a South Korean multinational entertainment company established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk as Big Hit Entertainment Co., Ltd.
The company operates as a record l ...
, formerly Big Hit Entertainment, officially announced the acquisition of a majority shareholder of Pledis Entertainment. It was also announced that Pledis Entertainment will receive financial and expertise support from Hybe Labels while still operating as an independent label. On October 18, 2020, Fair Trade Commission officially approved Hybe Corp.’s acquisition of Pledis Entertainment.
On March 22, 2021, Pledis Entertainment, as well as the other labels part of Hybe Labels, moved to its new headquarters in the Yongsan Trade Center, the new headquarters of Hybe Corporation. On March 31, 2021, the official website of Pledis Entertainment in its ''Company'' section changed its physical address to the new building in
Yongsan, Seoul.
On July 19, 2021, all 13 members of
Seventeen renewed their contracts with Pledis Entertainment. On August 16, 2021, it was announced that the girl group
fromis 9 would be managed by Pledis Entertainment and they would be leaving
Off The Record after the release of their single album ''
9 Way Ticket'' in May 2021 as the agency would be taking over all management of the group following their transfer to the agency. In December 2021,
Nana has re-signed her contract with Pledis Entertainment. This is her third contract renewal with the agency within 12 years since her debut in 2009.
On February 28, 2022, it was announced that
NU'EST
NU'EST (; short for New Establish Style Tempo) was a South Korean boy band formed and managed by Pledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members: Kim Jong-hyeon, JR, Aron (singer), Aron, Baekho (singer), Baekho, Hwang Min-hyun, Minhyu ...
's exclusive contract with Pledis Entertainment will end on March 14, 2022. It was also announced that members Aron, JR and Ren will leave the agency at the conclusion of their contract, while Baekho and Minhyun opted to renew. With the news of their contract expiring, the NU'EST members confirmed the group's disbandment through handwritten letters to their fans, announcing their decision to go their own separate ways. On July 28, 2022, Pledis Entertainment announced that fromis 9 member
Jang Gyu-ri would be leaving the group on July 31. The company explained in their statement that when the group transferred to Pledis, every member of fromis 9 signed a new exclusive artist contract with the company, however, Gyuri chose not to. After lengthy discussion about what is the best direction for each other, Gyuri chose not to sign a contract and embark on a new journey.
On December 1, 2023, Nana has re-signed her contract with Pledis Entertainment. This is the fourth time she has renewed her exclusive contract with the agency since her debut in 2009.
On November 7, 2023, Pledis announced their plans to launch a new boy band in the first quarter of 2024. The members of the then-unnamed boy band, with their faces covered, were first introduced by
Seventeen member
Hoshi, during the SVT Caratland event in 2023. On December 21, 2023, the group's name, TWS, was revealed, with the agency explaining that the name is derived from the group's tagline "twenty-four-seven with us", which reflects the group's commitment to maintaining an enduring connection with their fans.
Pledis Entertainment CEO and Producer Han Sung-soo spearheaded the production for TWS' debut
extended play
An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...
''Sparkling Blue'', which was released on January 22, 2024.
The release of the EP was preceded by the release of the single "Oh MyMy:7s" on January 2, 2024.
Aiming to establish "boyhood pop" with ''Sparkling Blue'', the EP was led by the
single "Plot Twist", which discussed the "thrill of a first encounter".
On November 29, 2024, Pledis announced that Fromis 9 would be parting ways with the agency following the expiration of the members' contracts on December 31, 2024.
Artists
Recording artists
;Groups
*
Seventeen
*
TWS
;Soloists
*
Hwang Min-hyun
;Producers
*
Bumzu
;Actors
*
Hwang Min-hyun
Former artists
*
After School (2009–2015)
**
Soyoung (2009)
** Bekah (2009–2011)
**
Jooyeon (2009–2014)
**
Kahi (2009–2015)
**
Jungah (2009–2016)
**
Uee (2009–2017)
**
Lizzy (2010–2018)
** Kaeun (2012–2019)
**
Raina (2009–2019)
**E-Young (2011–2020)
**
Nana (2009–2024)
*
Hello Venus (2012–2014, joint ventures with
Fantagio 'Tricell Media')
**
Ara (2011–2014)
** Yoonjo (2012–2014)
*
Son Dam-bi (2007–2015)
*
NU'EST
NU'EST (; short for New Establish Style Tempo) was a South Korean boy band formed and managed by Pledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members: Kim Jong-hyeon, JR, Aron (singer), Aron, Baekho (singer), Baekho, Hwang Min-hyun, Minhyu ...
(2012–2022)
** NU'EST-M (2013–2014)
***Jason (2013–2014)
**
NU'EST W (2017–2018)
***
JR (2012–2022)
***
Aron (2012–2022)
***
Ren (2012–2022)
***
Baekho (2012–2025)
*
Pristin (2016–2019)
**
Pristin V (2018–2019)
***
Nayoung (2016–2019)
*** Roa (2016–2019)
*** Eunwoo (2016–2019)
*** Rena (2016–2019)
***
Kyulkyung (2016–2019)
** Yuha (2016–2019)
**
Xiyeon (2016–2019)
** Kyla (2016–2019)
** Yehana (2016–2024)
** Sungyeon (2016–2024)
*
Han Dong-geun (2013–2019)
*
Fromis 9
**
Jang Gyu-ri (2021–2022)
** Baek Ji-heon (2021–2024)
** Park Ji-won (2021–2024)
** Lee Chae-young (2021–2024)
** Lee Na-gyung (2021–2024)
** Lee Sae-rom (2021–2024)
** Lee Seo-yeon (2021–2024)
** Roh Ji-sun (2021–2024)
** Song Ha-young (2021–2024)
Discography
;Happy Pledis discography
* ''
Happy Pledis 1st Album'' – "Love Love Love" (2010)
* ''
Happy Pledis 2nd Album'' – "Love Letter" (2011)
* Happy Pledis Digital Single – "Dashing Through The Snow with High Heels" (2012)
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
South Korean record labels
Talent agencies of South Korea
Music companies of South Korea
Entertainment companies established in 2007
Publishing companies established in 2007
South Korean companies established in 2007
Companies based in Seoul
Gangnam District
Hybe Corporation