SM Entertainment has denied EXO’s Baekhyun’s recent claim that they were aware he was launching his own agency.
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On August 8, Baekhyun held a live broadcast on Instagram during which he responded to various rumors that have been spreading online. After discussing his recently resolved dispute with SM Entertainment regarding his exclusive contract, Baekhyun shared that he was starting his own company with his friend Kasper.
Explaining that the company, which is currently being called One Signature, will eventually be launched under a different name, Baekhyun claimed that SM Entertainment was also positively supporting his new venture.
“SM also agreed and showed a positive attitude to my starting my own company,” said Baekhyun during the broadcast. “It’s not something I said on my own, without consulting with others.”
However, on August 9, SM Entertainment released an official statement claiming that they were not, in fact, aware of Baekhyun’s new company—and that they had found out about it through the news the previous day.
“Our company had never heard anything about this before, and we learned about it through the news,” stated the agency. “Although we are flustered [by the sudden news], we trust that [Baekhyun] will keep the promises he made during our mutual agreement.”
Additionally, while Baekhyun said he was not working on a new album at present, SM Entertainment alleged that they had been preparing for Baekhyun to release a new solo album before the end of the year.
The agency’s full statement is as follows:
1. Is [SM’s] contract with Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin ending?
- Their existing contract [with SM] has not expired. In Baekhyun’s case, his contract runs until January of next year.
- We have also been preparing a solo album for Baekhyun, with the goal of a release within the year.
- Their new contract is also valid. As was previously reported, part of the contract was amended through mutual agreement.
2. Why did SM come to an agreement with Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin?
- As we previously announced, we came to an agreement in order to preserve the group EXO and all of its members, and above all else, for the sake of the fans.
- As you are well aware, at the time, EXO was releasing a new album as a full group. If the dispute had continued, it would have been difficult to normally promote the album that all of the EXO members had worked hard on, and the future of EXO’s group activities would have become unclear, so we came to an agreement for the sake of the members’ activities as a full group.
3. Following the end of their exclusive contracts, will Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin only be pursuing individual activities through their own corporation?
- As we previously stated, our new exclusive contract [with the members] is valid, and EXO will continue their group activities.
- We cannot reveal the concrete details of their payment structure, but according to the agreement they made with our company, we made it possible for Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin to also pursue individual activities.
4. Was the company aware of Baekhyun’s new corporation called One Signature?
- Our company had never heard anything about this before, and we learned about it through the news.
- Although we are flustered [by the sudden news], we trust that [Baekhyun] will keep the promises he made during our mutual agreement.
Earlier this year, Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin resolved their legal dispute with SM Entertainment and came to an agreement about their contracts shortly before EXO’s long-awaited group comeback.
