Media outlet JoyNews24 recently celebrated their 19th anniversary, as well as held their annual study to determine who the most influential people in the Korean entertainment industry are. This year, the survey ran from September 18 to 25, and involved 200 participants including those in the entertainment and broadcasting industry, journalists, and content creators.
These participants voted for who they believe to be the top “Power People” not only in K-Pop, but also in acting, producing, hosting, and other fields in the Korean entertainment business. Those at the top of the list are considered to have contributed the most to the industry in the past year.
Despite three of their members currently completing their military enlistment and the rest of the group promoting as soloists, BTS took the #1 spot on the “2023 Entertainment Power People” list with 35 votes total. Last year, they were surpassed only by Lee Jung Jae and his success in Squid Game, and it just goes to show how influential the K-Pop group continues to be even when they’re not actively promoting together.
Second place went to soloist Lim Young Woong, who received 30 votes in the poll. Though not a huge name internationally, he’s immensely popular among middle-aged and older music listeners in South Korea, which is why he made it so high on the list.
With 19 votes, NewJeans took the third-place position. This is particularly impressive since they debuted only a little over a year ago, and it’s evident that they’ve already made a huge impact in the K-Pop industry!
The fourth-place position was a tie between three people — ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin, BLACKPINK‘s Jennie, and TV personality Dex — all who earned 10 votes each. BLACKPINK as a group received nine votes, putting them in fifth place.
In sixth place, five different individuals earned six votes each — BIGHIT MUSIC and HYBE Labels founder Bang Si Hyuk, comedian and host Yoo Jae Suk, Lee Hyori, actress Lim Ji Yeon, and screenwriter Kim Eun Seok (the latter two who earned recognition for their respective work on K-Drama The Glory).
Others were also included in the list with fewer votes, but these are the entertainers who earned the top spots on the poll.
Congratulations to all of the artists who were recognized for what they’ve contributed to the Korean entertainment industry!
