Kakao Entertainment‘s Jang Yoon-jung Named in Billboard’s 2026 Power Players

[Sports Today reporter Song O-jung] Kakao Entertainment (co-CEOs Kwon Ki-soo and Jang Yoon-joong; hereafter Kakao Entertainment) said that co-CEO Jang Yoon-joong has been named to Billboard's 2026 Global Power Players list.

U.S. music trade publication Billboard included Jang on the list on March 9 (U.S. time). The annual roster highlights influential leaders outside the U.S. who are shaping the global music market. This marks Jang’s fifth selection since 2021, recognizing his role in expanding K-pop’s global footprint.

Billboard highlighted Jang’s work diversifying artists’ international activities, expanding music IP, and collaborating with global partners to drive industry exchange. Under his leadership, Kakao Entertainment has sharpened its music capabilities across planning, production, distribution and streaming, boosting the company’s competitiveness on the world stage.

Leveraging one of the world’s largest K-pop music libraries and an extensive distribution network, Kakao Entertainment has introduced a wider range of K-pop genres to fans worldwide, broadened artists’ opportunities, and helped grow the global K-pop fandom. The company has built infrastructure that supports not only its own label artists but also talented performers across genres seeking international careers, expanding the industry’s overall reach.

Artists from Kakao Entertainment’s labels and artists from SM Entertainment have accelerated overseas activities — performing at major global festivals, launching world tours, and issuing localized releases — and have continued to post strong results. Acts such as MONSTA X (Starship Entertainment), IVE (Starship Entertainment) and WOODZ (IDAM Entertainment) are drawing global attention with large-scale world tours this year. In particular, IVE has reinforced its standing in key international markets and expanded its influence as a trend-setting act with its second world tour, SHOW WHAT I AM.

Kakao Entertainment recently announced a nominee for a new co-CEO and said it will double down on IP-centered global and platform initiatives. Jang plans to prioritize securing mega IP and accelerating global expansion. He will lay out a concrete global roadmap across Kakao Entertainment’s music, story and media divisions, while actively pursuing new business opportunities to drive future growth. The company intends to combine Jang’s broad global entertainment network and IP expertise with incoming co-CEO nominee Ko Jeong-hee’s deep experience in AI, platforms and the IT sector to create powerful synergies.

[Sports Today reporter Song O-jung ent@stoo.com]
「Up close and always fun — © Sports Today」