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Nikkei Asia
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Nikkei Asia
Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath front man, dies at 76
(AP) -- Ozzy Osbourne, the gloomy, demon-invoking lead singer of the pioneering band Black Sabbath who became the throaty, growling voice -- and drug-and-alcohol ravaged id -- of heavy metal, died Tuesday, just weeks after his farewell show. He was 76. "It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time," a family statement from Birmingham, England, said. In 2020, he revealed he had Parkinson's disease after suffering a fall. Either clad in black or bare-chested, the singer was often the target of parents' groups for his imagery and once caused an uproar for biting the head off a bat. Later, he would reveal himself to be a doddering and sweet father on the reality TV show "The Osbournes." The Big Bang of heavy metal Black Sabbath's 1969 self-titled debut LP has been likened to the Big Bang of heavy metal. It came during the height of the Vietnam War and crashed the hippie party, dripping menace and foreboding. The cover of the record was of a spooky figure against a stark landscape. The music was loud, dense and angry, and marked a shift in rock 'n' roll. The band's second album, "Paranoid," included such classic metal tunes as "War Pigs," "Iron Man" and "Fairies Wear Boots." The song "Paranoid" only reached No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100 but became in many ways the band's signature song. Both albums were voted among the top 10 greatest heavy metal albums of all time by readers of Rolling Stone magazine. "Black Sabbath are the Beatles of heavy metal. Anybody who's serious about metal will tell you it all comes down to Sabbath," Dave Navarro of the band Jane's Addiction wrote in a 2010 tribute in Rolling Stone. "There's a direct line you can draw back from today's metal, through Eighties bands like Iron Maiden, back to Sabbath." Sabbath fired Osbourne in 1979 for his legendary excesses, like showing up late for rehearsals and missing gigs. "We knew we didn't really have a choice but to sack him because he was just so out of control. But we were all very down about the situation," wrote bassist Terry "Geezer" Butler in his memoir, "Into the Void." Osbourne reemerged the next year as a solo artist with "Blizzard of Ozz" and the following year's "Diary of a Madman," both hard rock classics that went multiplatinum and spawned enduring favorites such as "Crazy Train," "Goodbye to Romance," "Flying High Again" and "You Can't Kill Rock and Roll." Osbourne was twice inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame - once with Sabbath in 2006 and again in 2024 as a solo artist. The original Sabbath lineup reunited for the first time in 20 years in July for what Osbourne said would be his final concert. "Let the madness begin!" he told 42,000 fans in Birmingham. Metallica, Guns N Roses, Slayer, Tool, Pantera, Gojira, Alice in Chains, Lamb of God, Halestorm, Anthrax, Rival Sons and Mastodon all did sets. Tom Morello, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, Billy Corgan, Ronnie Wood, Travis Barker, Sammy Hagar and more made appearances. Actor Jason Momoa was the host for the festivities. "Black Sabbath: we'd all be different people without them, that's the truth," said Pantera singer Phil Anselmo. "I know I wouldn't be up here with a microphone in my hand without Black Sabbath." Outlandish exploits and a classic look Osbourne embodied the excesses of metal. His outlandish exploits included relieving himself on the Alamo, snorting a line of ants off a sidewalk and, most memorably, biting the head off the live bat that a fan threw onstage during a 1981 concert. (He said he thought it was rubber.) Osbourne was sued in 1987 by parents of a 19-year-old teen who died by suicide while listening to his song "Suicide Solution." The lawsuit was dismissed. Osbourne said the song was really about the dangers of alcohol, which caused the death of his friend Bon Scott, lead singer of AC/DC. Then-Cardinal John J. O'Connor of New York claimed in 1990 that Osbourne's songs led to demonic possession and even suicide. "You are ignorant about the true meaning of my songs," the singer wrote back. "You have also insulted the intelligence of rock fans all over the world." Audiences at Osbourne shows could be mooned or spit on by the singer. They would often be hectored to scream along with the song, but the Satan-invoking Osbourne would usually send the crowds home with their ears ringing and a hearty "God bless!" He started an annual tour - Ozzfest - in 1996 after he was rejected from the lineup of what was then the top touring music festival, Lollapalooza. Ozzfest has gone on to host such bands as Slipknot, Tool, Megadeth, Rob Zombie, System of a Down, Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. Osbourne's look changed little over his life. He wore his long hair flat, heavy black eye makeup and round glasses, often wearing a cross around his neck. In 2013, he reunited with Black Sabbath for the dour, raw "13," which reached No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart and peaked at No. 86 on the U.S. Billboard 200. In 2019, he had a Top 10 hit when featured on Post Malone's "Take What You Want," Osbourne's first song in the Top 10 since 1989. In 2020, he released the album "Ordinary Man," which had as its title song a duet with Elton John. "I've been a bad guy, been higher than the blue sky/And the truth is I don't wanna die an ordinary man," he sang. In 2022, he landed his first career back-to-back No. 1 rock radio singles from his album "Patient Number 9," which featured collaborations with Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Mike McCready, Chad Smith, Robert Trujillo and Duff McKagan. It earned four Grammy nominations, winning two. (Osbourne won five Grammys over his lifetime.) At the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2024, Jack Black called him "greatest frontman in the history of rock 'n' roll" and "the Jack Nicholson of rock." Osbourne thanked his fans, his guitarist Randy Rhoads and his longtime wife, Sharon Osbourne. The beginnings of Black Sabbath John Michael Osbourne was raised in the gritty city of Birmingham. Kids in school nicknamed him Ozzy, short for his surname. As a boy, he loved the Four Seasons, Chuck Berry and Little Richard. The Beatles made a huge impression. "They came from Liverpool, which was approximately 60 miles north of where I come from," he told Billboard. "So all of a sudden it was in my grasp, but I never thought it would be as successful as it became." In the late 1960s, Osbourne had teamed up with Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward as the Polka Tulk Blues Band. They decided to rename the band Earth, but found to their dismay there was another band with that name. So they changed the name to the American title of the classic Italian horror movie "I Tre Volti Della Paura," starring Boris Karloff: Black Sabbath. Once they found their sludgy, ominous groove, the band was productive, putting out their self-titled debut and "Paranoid" in 1970, "Master of Reality" in 1971, "Vol. 4" in 1972 and "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" in 1973. The music was all about industrial guitar riffs and disorienting changes in time signatures, along with lyrics that spoke of alienation and doom. "People think I'm insane because I am frowning all the time," Osbourne sang in one song. "All day long I think of things but nothing seems to satisfy/Think I'll lose my mind if I don't find something to pacify." The Guardian newspaper in 2009 said the band "introduced working-class anger, stoner sludge grooves and witchy horror-rock to flower power. Black Sabbath confronted the empty platitudes of the 1960s and, along with Altamont and Charles Manson, almost certainly helped kill off the hippy counterculture." After Sabbath, Osbourne had an uncanny knack for calling some of the most creative young guitarists to his side. When he went solo, he hired the brilliant innovator Rhoads, who played on two of Osbourne's finest solo albums, "Blizzard of Ozz" and "Diary of a Madman." Rhoads was killed in a freak plane accident in 1982; Osbourne released the live album "Tribute" in 1987 in his memory. Osbourne then signed Jake E. Lee, who lent his talents to the platinum albums "Bark at the Moon" and "The Ultimate Sin." Hotshot Zakk Wylde joined Osbourne's band for "No Rest for the Wicked" and the multiplatinum "No More Tears." "They come along, they sprout wings, they blossom, and they fly off," Osbourne said of his players in 1995 to The Associated Press. "But I have to move on. To get a new player now and again boosts me on." Courting controversy -- and wholesomeness Whomever he was playing with, Osbourne wasn't likely to back down from controversy. He had the last laugh when the TV evangelist the Rev. Jimmy Swaggart in 1986 lambasted various rock groups and rock magazines as "the new pornography," prompting some retailers to pull Osbourne's album. When Swaggart later was caught with a sex worker in 1988, Osbourne put out the song "Miracle Man" about his foe: "Miracle man got busted/miracle man got busted," he sang. "Today I saw a Miracle Man, on TV cryin'/Such a hypocritical man, born again, dying." Much later, a whole new Osbourne would be revealed when "The Osbournes," which ran on MTV from 2002-2005, showed this one-time self-proclaimed madman drinking Diet Cokes as he struggled to find the History Channel on his new satellite television or warning his kids not to smoke or drink before they embarked on a night on the town. Later, he and his son Jack toured America on the travel show "Ozzy & Jack's World Detour," where the pair visited such places as Mount Rushmore and the Space Center Houston. Osbourne was honored in 2014 with the naming of a bat frog found in the Amazon that makes high-pitched, batlike calls. It was dubbed Dendropsophus ozzyi. He also met Queen Elizabeth II during her Golden Jubilee weekend. He was standing next to singer-actor Cliff Richard. "She took one look at the two of us, said 'Oh, so this is what they call variety, is it?' then cracked up laughing. I honestly thought that Sharon had slipped some acid into my cornflakes that morning," he wrote in "I Am Ozzy." Thelma Riley and Osbourne married in 1971; Osbourne adopted her son Elliot Kingsley, and they had two more children, Jessica and Louis. Osbourne later met his wife, then Sharon Levy, who became her own celebrity persona, when she was running her father's Los Angeles office. Her father was Don Arden, a top concert promoter and artist manager. She went to Osbourne's hotel in Los Angeles to collect money, which Osbourne had spent on drugs. "She says she'll come back in three days and I'd better have it. I'd always fancied her and I thought, 'Ah, she's coming back! Maybe I have a chance.' I had pizza hanging from my hair, cigarette ashes on my shirt," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2000. They married in 1982, had three children - Kelly, Aimee and Jack - and endured periodic separations and reconciliations. He is survived by Sharon Osbourne and his children.
The Mainichi
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Mainichi
Ozzy Osbourne, who led Black Sabbath and became the godfather of heavy metal, dies at 76
(AP) -- Ozzy Osbourne, the gloomy, demon-invoking lead singer of the pioneering band Black Sabbath who became the throaty, growling voice -- and drug-and-alcohol ravaged id -- of heavy metal, died Tuesday, just weeks after his farewell show. He was 76. "It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time," a family statement from Birmingham, England, said. In 2020, he revealed he had Parkinson's disease after suffering a fall. Either clad in black or bare-chested, the singer was often the target of parents' groups for his imagery and once caused an uproar for biting the head off a bat. Later, he would reveal himself to be a doddering and sweet father on the reality TV show "The Osbournes." The Big Bang of heavy metal Black Sabbath's 1969 self-titled debut LP has been likened to the Big Bang of heavy metal. It came during the height of the Vietnam War and crashed the hippie party, dripping menace and foreboding. The cover of the record was of a spooky figure against a stark landscape. The music was loud, dense and angry, and marked a shift in rock 'n' roll. The band's second album, "Paranoid," included such classic metal tunes as "War Pigs," "Iron Man" and "Fairies Wear Boots." The song "Paranoid" only reached No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100 but became in many ways the band's signature song. Both albums were voted among the top 10 greatest heavy metal albums of all time by readers of Rolling Stone magazine. "Black Sabbath are the Beatles of heavy metal. Anybody who's serious about metal will tell you it all comes down to Sabbath," Dave Navarro of the band Jane's Addiction wrote in a 2010 tribute in Rolling Stone. "There's a direct line you can draw back from today's metal, through Eighties bands like Iron Maiden, back to Sabbath." Sabbath fired Osbourne in 1979 for his legendary excesses, like showing up late for rehearsals and missing gigs. "We knew we didn't really have a choice but to sack him because he was just so out of control. But we were all very down about the situation," wrote bassist Terry "Geezer" Butler in his memoir, "Into the Void." Osbourne reemerged the next year as a solo artist with "Blizzard of Ozz" and the following year's "Diary of a Madman," both hard rock classics that went multiplatinum and spawned enduring favorites such as "Crazy Train," "Goodbye to Romance," "Flying High Again" and "You Can't Kill Rock and Roll." Osbourne was twice inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame -- once with Sabbath in 2006 and again in 2024 as a solo artist. The original Sabbath lineup reunited for the first time in 20 years in July for what Osbourne said would be his final concert. "Let the madness begin!" he told 42,000 fans in Birmingham. Metallica, Guns N Roses, Slayer, Tool, Pantera, Gojira, Alice in Chains, Lamb of God, Halestorm, Anthrax, Rival Sons and Mastodon all did sets. Tom Morello, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, Billy Corgan, Ronnie Wood, Travis Barker, Sammy Hagar and more made appearances. Actor Jason Momoa was the host for the festivities. "Black Sabbath: we'd all be different people without them, that's the truth," said Pantera singer Phil Anselmo. "I know I wouldn't be up here with a microphone in my hand without Black Sabbath." Outlandish exploits and a classic look Osbourne embodied the excesses of metal. His outlandish exploits included relieving himself on the Alamo, snorting a line of ants off a sidewalk and, most memorably, biting the head off the live bat that a fan threw onstage during a 1981 concert. (He said he thought it was rubber.) Osbourne was sued in 1987 by parents of a 19-year-old teen who died by suicide while listening to his song "Suicide Solution." The lawsuit was dismissed. Osbourne said the song was really about the dangers of alcohol, which caused the death of his friend Bon Scott, lead singer of AC/DC. Then-Cardinal John J. O'Connor of New York claimed in 1990 that Osbourne's songs led to demonic possession and even suicide. "You are ignorant about the true meaning of my songs," the singer wrote back. "You have also insulted the intelligence of rock fans all over the world." Audiences at Osbourne shows could be mooned or spit on by the singer. They would often be hectored to scream along with the song, but the Satan-invoking Osbourne would usually send the crowds home with their ears ringing and a hearty "God bless!" He started an annual tour -- Ozzfest -- in 1996 after he was rejected from the lineup of what was then the top touring music festival, Lollapalooza. Ozzfest has gone on to host such bands as Slipknot, Tool, Megadeth, Rob Zombie, System of a Down, Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. Osbourne's look changed little over his life. He wore his long hair flat, heavy black eye makeup and round glasses, often wearing a cross around his neck. In 2013, he reunited with Black Sabbath for the dour, raw "13," which reached No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart and peaked at No. 86 on the U.S. Billboard 200. In 2019, he had a Top 10 hit when featured on Post Malone's "Take What You Want," Osbourne's first song in the Top 10 since 1989. In 2020, he released the album "Ordinary Man," which had as its title song a duet with Elton John. "I've been a bad guy, been higher than the blue sky/And the truth is I don't wanna die an ordinary man," he sang. In 2022, he landed his first career back-to-back No. 1 rock radio singles from his album "Patient Number 9," which featured collaborations with Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Mike McCready, Chad Smith, Robert Trujillo and Duff McKagan. It earned four Grammy nominations, winning two. (Osbourne won five Grammys over his lifetime.) At the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2024, Jack Black called him "greatest frontman in the history of rock 'n' roll" and "the Jack Nicholson of rock." Osbourne thanked his fans, his guitarist Randy Rhoads and his longtime wife, Sharon. The beginnings of Black Sabbath John Michael Osbourne was raised in the gritty city of Birmingham. Kids in school nicknamed him Ozzy, short for his surname. As a boy, he loved the Four Seasons, Chuck Berry and Little Richard. The Beatles made a huge impression. "They came from Liverpool, which was approximately 60 miles north of where I come from," he told Billboard. "So all of a sudden it was in my grasp, but I never thought it would be as successful as it became." In the late 1960s, Osbourne had teamed up with Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward as the Polka Tulk Blues Band. They decided to rename the band Earth, but found to their dismay there was another band with that name. So they changed the name to the American title of the classic Italian horror movie "I Tre Volti Della Paura," starring Boris Karloff: Black Sabbath. Once they found their sludgy, ominous groove, the band was productive, putting out their self-titled debut and "Paranoid" in 1970, "Master of Reality" in 1971, "Vol. 4" in 1972 and "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" in 1973. The music was all about industrial guitar riffs and disorienting changes in time signatures, along with lyrics that spoke of alienation and doom. "People think I'm insane because I am frowning all the time," Osbourne sang in one song. "All day long I think of things but nothing seems to satisfy/Think I'll lose my mind if I don't find something to pacify." The Guardian newspaper in 2009 said the band "introduced working-class anger, stoner sludge grooves and witchy horror-rock to flower power. Black Sabbath confronted the empty platitudes of the 1960s and, along with Altamont and Charles Manson, almost certainly helped kill off the hippy counterculture." After Sabbath, Osbourne had an uncanny knack for calling some of the most creative young guitarists to his side. When he went solo, he hired the brilliant innovator Rhoads, who played on two of Osbourne's finest solo albums, "Blizzard of Ozz" and "Diary of a Madman." Rhoads was killed in a freak plane accident in 1982; Osbourne released the live album "Tribute" in 1987 in his memory. Osbourne then signed Jake E. Lee, who lent his talents to the platinum albums "Bark at the Moon" and "The Ultimate Sin." Hotshot Zakk Wylde joined Osbourne's band for "No Rest for the Wicked" and the multiplatinum "No More Tears." "They come along, they sprout wings, they blossom, and they fly off," Osbourne said of his players in 1995 to The Associated Press. "But I have to move on. To get a new player now and again boosts me on." Courting controversy -- and wholesomeness Whomever he was playing with, Osbourne wasn't likely to back down from controversy. He had the last laugh when the TV evangelist the Rev. Jimmy Swaggart in 1986 lambasted various rock groups and rock magazines as "the new pornography," prompting some retailers to pull Osbourne's album. When Swaggart later was caught with a sex worker in 1988, Osbourne put out the song "Miracle Man" about his foe: "Miracle man got busted/miracle man got busted," he sang. "Today I saw a Miracle Man, on TV cryin'/Such a hypocritical man, born again, dying." Much later, a whole new Osbourne would be revealed when "The Osbournes," which ran on MTV from 2002-2005, showed this one-time self-proclaimed madman drinking Diet Cokes as he struggled to find the History Channel on his new satellite television or warning his kids not to smoke or drink before they embarked on a night on the town. Later, he and his son Jack toured America on the travel show "Ozzy & Jack's World Detour," where the pair visited such places as Mount Rushmore and the Space Center Houston. Osbourne was honored in 2014 with the naming of a bat frog found in the Amazon that makes high-pitched, batlike calls. It was dubbed Dendropsophus ozzyi. He also met Queen Elizabeth II during her Golden Jubilee weekend. He was standing next to singer-actor Cliff Richard. "She took one look at the two of us, said 'Oh, so this is what they call variety, is it?' then cracked up laughing. I honestly thought that Sharon had slipped some acid into my cornflakes that morning," he wrote in "I Am Ozzy." Thelma Riley and Osbourne married in 1971; Osbourne adopted her son Elliot Kingsley, and they had two more children, Jessica and Louis. Osbourne later met Sharon, who became her own celebrity persona, when she was running her father's Los Angeles office. Her father was Don Arden, a top concert promoter and artist manager. She went to Osbourne's hotel in Los Angeles to collect money, which Osbourne had spent on drugs. "She says she'll come back in three days and I'd better have it. I'd always fancied her and I thought, 'Ah, she's coming back! Maybe I have a chance.' I had pizza hanging from my hair, cigarette ashes on my shirt," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2000. They married in 1982, had three children -- Kelly, Aimee and Jack -- and endured periodic separations and reconciliations. He is survived by Sharon, and his children.
News18
5 days ago
- Business
- News18
The Man Behind BTS To Be Jailed? Hybe Founder Faces Fraud Allegations
Last Updated: If found guilty and the gains exceed 5 billion KRW (approximately $3.64 million), Hybe founder could face life imprisonment or a minimum of five years in prison. The man behind the globally popular K-pop group, BTS, has landed in big trouble. Bang Si-hyuk, founder and chairman of Hybe – the South Korean entertainment company which handles BTS, has been accused of indulging in fraudulent activities. As reported by allkpop, Bang has been accused of engaging in fraudulent and unfair trading under the Capital Markets Act. Reportedly, the South Korean Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) recently held a meeting of its Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to discuss the level of disciplinary action against Bang Si-Hyuk. What Are The Allegations Against Hybe Founder? The financial watchdog is investigating Bang over allegations that he misled investors by denying any plans for an IPO. With this, he encouraged them to sell their HYBE shares to a private equity fund (PEF) linked to him. This was around the time when HYBE was secretly preparing to go public. Therefore, when the company eventually did file for an IPO, Bang reportedly benefited through a 30% return-sharing deal with the PEF, a transaction not disclosed during the IPO process. This means that if found guilty and the gains exceed 5 billion KRW (approximately $3.64 million), Bang could face life imprisonment or a minimum of five years in prison. What Does HYBE Say About The Alleged Fraud? Previously, HYBE reacted to the controversy and claimed that 'all transactions were carried out legally by undergoing thorough legal reviews." 'We apologise for causing concern due to news related to our IPO process. We are actively cooperating with financial authorities and the police by providing detailed explanations and submitting relevant documents regarding the matters currently under investigation," its statement read. Reportedly, the company is also running a parallel investigation, but there is no official confirmation of this as of now. For the unversed, HYBE manages some of the biggest names in K-pop, including BTS, Tomorrow X Together, LE SSERAFIM, NewJeans, BOYNEXTDOOR, and KATSEYE. Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Korea Herald
6 days ago
- Business
- Korea Herald
BTS producer becomes first tycoon referred to prosecution under new president's toughened financial oversight
Hybe says it will actively clarify Bang Si-hyuk's suspicions to regain trust South Korea's financial regulators have referred Hybe Chairman Bang Si-hyuk to the prosecution on charges of fraudulent trading, accusing him of misleading shareholders during the company's initial public offering and profiting nearly 400 billion won ($287.6 million) in the process. This marks the first time under the Lee Jae Myung administration that authorities have taken such strong disciplinary action against the head of a major conglomerate. Regulators reportedly gave Bang an unusual opportunity to appear in person and explain himself, but he declined to attend. The Financial Services Commission's Securities and Futures Commission held a regular meeting Wedneday and announced that it had referred Bang and former Hybe executives to prosecutors on suspicion of violating the Capital Markets Act, particularly its ban on unfair trading practices. A referral to the prosecution is the most severe action financial regulators can take against an individual accused of violating the law, in addition to administrative penalties. Under the Capital Markets Act, a person who gains or avoids losses of over 5 billion won through unfair trading may face a prison term of five years to life. 'The suspects circumvented the lock-up period meant to prevent major shareholders from offloading shares immediately after listing, and dumped their shares on the market for profit. The nature of this violation is particularly serious,' a financial authority official said via local media outlet. 'The stock price plunged afterward, causing significant harm to ordinary retail investors.' Hybe said it would actively work to clarify the suspicions and restore market trust. 'It is unfortunate that the financial regulators did not accept the major shareholder's explanation during the Financial Supervisory Service's investigation, in which he made clear he did not pursue personal gains based on the company's IPO,' Hybe said in a statement sent to The Korea Herald on Thursday. 'Nevertheless, we respect the decision and will do our utmost in the upcoming investigation to actively address the allegations and recover the trust of the market and our stakeholders,' the company added. According to authorities, Bang allegedly deceived early investors into selling their shares by falsely claiming that Hybe's IPO prospects in 2019 were bleak. He is also believed to have signed a private agreement with a private equity fund that had acquired a large stake in the company, pledging to share 30 percent of any future gains from selling his shares — eventually profiting nearly 400 billion won. In response to this type of misconduct, the Korea Exchange revised its IPO due diligence checklist late last year, adding requirements for underwriters to inspect contracts between shareholders and assess risks to investor protection.
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
BTS creator faces probe for allegedly misleading investors over K-pop agency Hybe's IPO
SEOUL – Bang Si-hyuk, the billionaire founder of K-pop agency Hybe faces investigation by South Korean prosecutors for allegedly misleading investors ahead of its 2020 initial public offering (IPO). Mr Bang, also known as 'Hitman' Bang, is widely recognized as the creator of the globally successful K-pop group, BTS. He established Big Hit Entertainment in 2005, whose name was later changed to Hybe. BTS earlier in July announced a new album and a world tour after recently completing military service. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) referred the largest shareholder of an unidentified company and its former executives on allegations of deceiving investors and violating trading practices. While the FSC did not name the probe's targets in its statement, a person familiar with the investigation told Bloomberg News the company in question was Hybe. The parties 'deceived existing shareholders by making it seem as if the listing would be delayed' even though the company was preparing for the IPO, the FSC said in the statement. That prompted the existing investors to sell their holdings to a special purpose vehicle that was established by a private equity fund in which the company executives were involved, the statement added. Hybe shares fell as much as 1.3 per cent on July 17, before recovering to trade up 0.8 per cent by 10.50am Seoul time. The stock is up about 39 per cent so far this year. 'The recent movement in Hybe's stock price is driven more by expectations for next year's earnings than by external factors related to chairman Bang,' said Kim Jihyun, analyst at Heungkuk Securities. 'Under Hybe's current multi-label structure, Bang's legal risks are not directly affecting the share price yet.' Hybe said it respects the FSC's decision and will do its best to proactively take efforts to restore the trust of the market as well as stakeholders. It also expressed regret that the FSC rejected Mr Bang's explanation that he did not pursue the IPO for personal gain. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore HSA launches anti-vaping checks near 5 institutes of higher learning Singapore Kpod vapes, zombie kids: Why it's time to raise the alarm Opinion The workplace needs to step up on mental health to match Singapore's efforts at the national level Singapore Singapore Zoo celebrates reptile baby boom, including hatchings of endangered species Life First look at the new Singapore Oceanarium at Resorts World Sentosa Business Market versus mission: What will Income Insurance choose? Business Singapore key exports surprise with 13% rebound in June amid tariff uncertainty Opinion AI and education: We need to know where this sudden marriage is heading The Hybe IPO raised about US$820 million (S$1.05 billion), pricing shares at the top of the marketed range. The FSC allege that Mr Bang, whose net worth is estimated at US$2.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, had signed a profit-sharing agreement with the private equity fund, but concealed that information during the IPO process. That agreement allowed Mr Bang to collect about 30 per cent of the profits from the share sales after the IPO, the statement added. Mr Bang, 52, is said to have made approximately 190 billion won (S$176 million) through the side transaction, according to Yonhap News. FSC did not reveal the amount Mr Bang made from the side deal. The investigation is the latest controversy to hit Hybe. In 2024, the firm was shaken by a rare public feud involving chart-topping girl group NewJeans, which sought to unilaterally terminate a lucrative exclusive contract with Hybe affiliate Ador. BLOOMBERG
