{"id":76855,"date":"2025-11-01T23:18:46","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T06:18:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=76855"},"modified":"2025-11-02T00:47:24","modified_gmt":"2025-11-02T07:47:24","slug":"culture-before-economy-lee-soo-man-inducted-into-asian-hall-of-fame-reflects-on-the-future-of-k-pop-and-the-cultural-technology-revolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=76855","title":{"rendered":"\u201cCulture Before Economy\u201d: Lee Soo-man Inducted into Asian Hall of Fame, Reflects on the Future of K-pop and the Cultural Technology Revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"
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LAPost | Los Angeles, Nov. 1, 2025<\/strong>\u2014 The 21st Annual Asian Hall of Fame<\/em> ceremony took place in grand style at the century-old Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on November 1. Twelve individuals and organizations were selected from 613 nominees to receive this year\u2019s honors. Inductees include \u201cKing of K-pop\u201d Lee Soo-man, Japanese rock legend Yoshiki, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, Olympic figure skating champion and former U.S. Ambassador to Belize Michelle Kwan, basketball Hall of Famer Yao Ming, Korea\u2019s first astronaut Soyeon Yi, William Wang, founder of American TV brand Vizio, Il Yeon Kwon, CEO of HMART, and Singapore\u2019s Kwek family of Hong Leong Group.<\/span><\/p>\n

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CJ Group Vice Chairwoman Miky Lee (left)<\/strong> presents the award to Lee Soo-man<\/strong>.
(Photo by: Richard Ren \/ LAPost)<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

CJ Group Vice Chairwoman Miky Lee, who presented the award to Lee Soo-man, delivered an emotional speech: \u201cLee Soo-man is my idol. He didn\u2019t just create K-pop \u2014 he made it a global language.\u201d<\/em> Her words were met with thunderous applause.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Lee arrived on the red carpet with his signature poise, smiling for cameras and striking confident poses \u2014 a scene befitting the \u201cKing of K-pop.\u201d (Photo by: Richard Ren\/LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

For Lee, the Asian Hall of Fame<\/em> honor represents more than personal recognition. \u201cThis award is not only for me,\u201d<\/em> he told LAPost. \u201cIt\u2019s for all Asians who use creativity to bring the world closer together. It symbolizes how Asian culture has truly entered the global mainstream.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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From left: HMART CEO Il Yeon Kwon<\/strong>, South Korea\u2019s first astronaut Soyeon Yi<\/strong>, and internationally renowned producer Lee Soo-man<\/strong>. (Photo by: Richard Ren\/LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

Coincidentally, that same day The Washington Post ran a feature titled \u201c\u2018King of K-pop\u2019 Lee Soo Man on his career, a global industry and what\u2019s next,\u201d<\/em> tracing his three-decade journey from founding SM Entertainment to driving the global rise of K-pop. The piece described him as \u201ca visionary who bends but never breaks \u2014 a dreamer grounded in reality.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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\u674e\u79c0\u6ee1\u63a5\u53d7LAPost\u4e13\u8bbf (Photo by: Richard Ren\/LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

Speaking with LAPost, Lee reflected on his earliest inspiration \u2014 attending American pop star Leif Garrett\u2019s concert in Korea in the 1980s. Watching the crowd\u2019s passion, he asked himself: \u201cWhy aren\u2019t Korean artists celebrated like this? Why isn\u2019t our music heard around the world?\u201d<\/em> Those questions became the foundation of his life\u2019s mission. During his studies in the U.S., another realization struck him: \u201cKorea always said \u2018Economy first, culture later.\u2019 But what if we reversed that \u2014 \u2018Culture first, economy next\u2019?\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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Lee Soo-man, Girls\u2019 Generation\u2019s SUNNY, and A2O MAY pose together on the red carpet.
(Photo by: Richard Ren \/ LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

That idea became his lifelong philosophy. \u201cI decided that culture must become the core of national competitiveness,\u201d<\/em> he said. Three decades later, K-pop has evolved into a cultural ecosystem. Lee believes Korea\u2019s next step is to become \u201ca nation of producers,\u201d<\/em> fostering a creative environment where young talents from around the world come to Korea to learn and collaborate. He emphasized the need for more open visa systems and education programs to make Korea a true global cultural hub.<\/span><\/p>\n

No longer confined to the entertainment industry, Lee is now pioneering what he calls Culture Technology (CT) \u2014 the fusion of creativity and innovation. Partnering with tech firm 4DV Intelligence, he is developing \u201cInfinite Studio,\u201d a 4D Gaussian Splatting system that generates multi-angle video from a single shoot. The technology, recognized at the world-renowned SIGGRAPH conference, could significantly cut production time and cost.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Lee Soo-man interviewed by mainstream media, The Associated Press, on the red carpet.
(Photo by: Richard Ren \/ LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI never see AI as a threat \u2014 it\u2019s a collaborator,\u201d<\/em> Lee said. \u201cAI will push Culture Technology to the next stage. It won\u2019t replace human creativity \u2014 it will amplify it.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

As applause filled the golden ballroom of the Biltmore, Lee\u2019s message resonated: in an age of globalized capital and technology, the future belongs not to those with the most resources, but to those with vision. \u201cWe must become the blueprint of cultural leadership,\u201d<\/em> he concluded.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Lee Soo-man delivering his acceptance speech after receiving the award.
(Photo by: Richard Ren \/ LAPost)<\/p><\/div>\n

From Seoul to Los Angeles, from music producer to cultural philosopher, Lee Soo-man\u2019s journey has proven one belief true \u2014 culture is not just entertainment; it is the force that can reshape a nation\u2019s destiny.<\/span><\/p>\n

(By Richard Ren \/ LAPost)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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