YG’s CEO Yang Hyun-suk says, “I am the one honored to work with G-Dragon”
BigBang’s leader G-Dragon appeared on SBS’s Thank You on March 22, and on the show said that his role model is producer Yang Hyun-suk, the CEO of his entertainment agency. He added that the CEO is “someone who has the greatest influence on me.” G-Dragon’s revelation of his honest feelings attracted attention after the show was aired. Then how would his boss, after what G-Dragon said, feel? So the next day, early in the morning, I was on the telephone with Yang Hyun-suk, who was preparing for Lee Hi’s (dubbed “Monster Rookie”) new solo album.
Before moving on to the actual contents, a brief explanation of the triangle relationship among the CEO, BigBang and G-Dragon is necessary. BigBang, a boy band, is the face of YG Entertainment, and is the biggest contributor to the world-class success of the Entertainment. For six long years, Yang Hyun-suk, was in charge of everything beginning from selecting each and every one of the BigBang members, training them and debuting them. Producing BigBang was the CEO’s pet project and an enormous success. G-Dragon, who also writes his own songs, stood out as an indie artist in the artsy Hongdae area when he was just a teenager, and Yang Hyun-suk knew from the beginning that he was a hidden jewel. The CEO opened the path for G-Dragon to freely use his talents, and the artist is now Yang’s beloved ‘student.’
When asked whether he watched G-Dragon on Thank You, Yang Hyun-suk answered, “I was in the middle of producing so I did get not a chance to watch it. But I am very grateful and I can proudly say that he is one of my favorite people out of all the YG family members.”
I could tell Yang Hyun-suk’s deep affection for G-Dragon. So what is their relationship like? “Why is G-Dragon my favorite? Because G-Dragon was the youngest, just 13, when he joined YG and he has been working with me for more than ten years. G-Dragon and I get to see a lot of each other because G-Dragon comes to the YG office and studio most frequently. That gives me a chance to talk to him more.”
As a member of Seo Taeji and Boys, the most successful boy band in Korean music history, Yang Hyun-suk is now in his 40s and the CEO of the YG Entertainment. It seems that he has reached the top, but on SBS’s Healing Camp, he said that he does “not have many friends.” Yang Hyun-suk has one hectic life in the entertainment industry where the fittest survives. But in this interview he told me, “G-Dragon and 1Tym’s Teddy who is now YG’s main producer, are my closest friends because we see each other most often and talk about a lot of things.” From his answer, it was obvious that the two are the most trusted people in the YG.
But Yang does not always treat G-Dragon like his best friend. G-Dragon, on the show, commented, “our boss tells us the harshest thing a person could say. But in the end, we realize that those words are what make us stronger. What I remember my boss say is that I am “what makes the company deteriorate”. Our CEO is always worried that because we rose to stardom at such young ages, he will hurt our feelings and make us go the wrong way if he says rude things. But he is a role model for all of us because when he has to punish us, he does it harshly and that helps us.”
Despite all the harsh words, BigBang’s contract with YG was extended, without any conflicts. This proves how much Yang Hyun-suk and BigBang trust each other. G-Dragon said, “I found out later that after saying all those harsh things to us, Yang goes out and brags about us to everyone. We heard it from other people, and hearing that really helped us be more confident.” People who know the CEO will know how much he cares about his YG family members. He shows this more explicitly away from the office.
Interview with Yang Hyun-suk continues, late at night.
“Another reason G-Dragon is my favorite is that he is a completely different person on stage. On stage he looks very tough and charismatic, but off stage he is the most modest person. He knows how to act on and off stage. Before shooting Thank You, we saw on SNS G-Dragon carrying chairs with the staff members. He does not act like he is a top star. When he is at the office, he stays behind and clean the place after producers and other artists leave.”
As the interview goes on, I hear more about G-Dragon from him. “The best thing about G-Dragon as an artist is that he is really creative. He participated in the producing process of all of BigBang’s songs, and he has this monstrous talent of listening to something and immediately coming up with the melody and the words for it.”
He also added, “G-Dragon is known for his amazing fashion sense. But that is not only on stage. For the last ten years, he has never worn the same outfit to the office. And I give credit to his effort and his creativity, not just to his fashion sense. I myself wear the same outfit two or three days in a row when I’m busy, but G-Dragon never comes to the office wearing the same outfit as the previous day.”
The CEO also said, “too often when people rise to stardom, they want to be in charge of everything. They become way too confident. But G-Dragon always steps aside when it comes to something he is not familiar with. And I am so grateful that he trusts me.”
As if to prove how much he trusts G-Dragon, the last comment of the interview ended with talking about G-Dragon. “I feel like G-Dragon is my brother or even my son. I am so honored to work with someone who is so talented, and watch him grow. I wonder if there ever will be another artist who is as talented as G-Dragon.”
And I wonder, if there is any artist in Korea who deserves such compliment from Yang Hyun-suk more than G-Dragon does.
