What happened?

Lee Soo-man, the former executive producer of SM Entertainment, has returned to the domestic K-pop market after roughly three years. According to Sports Kyunghyang, he unveiled two new groups at A2O Entertainment's global debut show on the 12th at KINTEX Hall 2 in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province: the nine-member girl group A2O LITE and the 15-member boy group A2O SOUL.

Why are fans talking about A2O LITE?

After the girl group's debut stage, netizens focused heavily on the members' looks. Many said they reminded them of SM's earlier generations. One member, OA, born in 2013, was compared to Jessica Jung, while Ahchyeong, the same age BoA was as a child, was linked to BoA. A 2010-born member, Bora, was compared to the late Sulli.

How did netizens react to the performance?

The three-minute stage drew praise for recalling BoA, f(x), SHINee, and aespa. Commenters credited Lee Soo-man's signature production style. Others praised the music, citing songs longer than three minutes, a dance break, and high-note sections. One commenter said Lee was bringing back elements that had disappeared from K-pop.

Why was Lee Soo-man away?

In February 2023, Lee sold his SM Entertainment shares to HYBE and agreed to a three-year non-compete covering music production in Korea. He worked mainly in the United States and China during that period. The agreement expired in February this year, opening the way for his return.

For international fans

Lee Soo-man is the producer behind many of SM Entertainment's best-known acts, including Girls' Generation and SHINee. At the debut show, he said the new A2O group would connect song, dance, music video, and performance in a fresh way. A2O LITE will launch its activities with the debut digital single 'NEON'.