HYBE And MBC Have Finally Patched Up — But Where Did The Feud Began?

On October 31, the official truce between HYBE, the Seoul-based music corporation, and MBC, a leading South Korean broadcasting corporation, made headlines in Korean media.

| MBC | HYBE

HYBE, the umbrella corporation under which BTS’s agency, BIGHIT MUSIC, operates, reportedly had bad blood with MBC for the past four years. But now, the broadcasting company has issued an official apology, marking a new start of collaboration between the two organizations.

But many fans are unaware of what actually prompted this feud in the first place. It goes back to 2019, when BTS did not appear at MBC’s year-end festival that airs every December 31. The reason behind BTS’s absence was scheduling conflicts. The boy group was slated to perform at Times Square in New York City on New Year’s Eve that year.

MBC’s year-end festival “Gayo Daejejeon” | MBC BTS at the 2019 New Year’s Eve Ball in New York city | Metro UK

BIGHIT MUSIC had requested for BTS’s appearance at the festival to be pre-recorded, but they couldn’t reach an agreement with MBC. As a result, all BIGHIT MUSIC artists, and later all HYBE artists, by extension, didn’t appear in any MBC program for four years. This is the reason why groups like SEVENTEEN, LE SSERAFIM, and NewJeans have not performed on MBC’s music shows despite their hectic promotional activities.

But this dispute came to an official end on October 30, when MBC’s President Ahn Hyung Jun met with HYBE’s chairman, Bang Si Hyuk, at the MBC office building for a discussion regarding the issue. The meeting was initiated by MBC, but by the end, Bang was also on board to continue the content exchange between them after four years of suspension.

President Ahn Hyung Jun (left) with Chairman Bang Si Hyuk (right) | MBC

In a media statement, President Ahn expressed his regret at the hurt MBC’s “outdated production practices” may have caused to artists. Reportedly, during the meeting, President Ahn expressed his willingness to Bang Si Hyuk to improve the deep-seated and longstanding flawed production culture between broadcasters and labels in South Korea. The President hoped for “mutual request and consideration.”

Ahn also stated that he wanted MBC to take the lead in this case by establishing a fair partnership with labels and also creating a safe environment where artists’ rights are respected and protected. Chairman Bang received Ahn’s suggestions with positive enthusiasm and hoped that this new opportunity would open bigger doors for all K-Pop artists.