Inside the sprawling Italianate Neo-Renaissance architecture of Cipriani's 25 Broadway location in lower Manhattan, Asia Society honored cultural giants at the 11th annual Asia Game Changer Awards in New York.
Thursday night's event kicked off with a cocktail hour where the evening's honorees, including HYBE founder and chairman Bang Si-Hyuk, mingled in a VIP lounge, with a buzz of excitement following their colleagues such as SNL cast member and future Bad star Bowen Yang and journalist and reporter Christiane Amanpour, as well as presenters such as ABC News Nightline host Juju Chang and Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu.
Bang was one of five honorees at this year's Asia Game Changer Awards, where he was introduced through a video montage featuring him alongside photos and clips of HYBE artists such as BTS, SEVENTEEN, TOMORROW X TOGETHERfromis_9, ENHYPEN, LE SSERAFIM and KATSEYE, as well as a selection of his business and creative partners including JYP Entertainment founder JY Park, HYBE America CEO Scooter Braun and producer Andrew Watt.
After an introduction by Asia Society president Duncan Clark OBE and COO Raj Rao, Bang took the stage to accept his award as the Billboard Hot 100 No. his clearest verses began).
In his acceptance speech, Bang talked about the global nature of his past work, which has translated into HYBE's international expansion. “I was very fortunate to encounter an experience of cultures very early on,” he said through a translator. “From the beginning of my career to this day, I have and continue to work with musicians from very different backgrounds, and these experiences have taught me the importance of embracing and respecting diversity. And today as a music producer who constantly seeks to explore different genres, but also as the president of HYBE, which is a company that spans across Korea, the US, Japan, and Latin America. I believe that the blending of unique cultural elements can spark unparalleled creativity and fulfillment in music.”
Bang added that this mindset fuels what has made K-pop so widely relatable, as seen by the success of different HYBE acts. He said: “K-pop is loved around the world not only because it tells stories that have universal appeal to everyone, but also because it brings together the best aspects of popular genres in a single song.”
The executive producer shared examples such as Jung Kook's “Seven,” drawing inspiration from UK garage while featuring rapper Latto. LE SSERAFIM's “Unforgiven” sampled the late Italian composer Ennio Morricone's “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” while featuring Chic's Nile Rodgers contributing guitar. and also that when TOMORROW X TOGETHER collaborated with Brazilian diva Anitta on “Back for More,” Spotify reported an “extend to the group's first listeners.”
Along with a performance by Indian-American drummer and dhol composer Sunny Jain, the Asia Game Changer Awards also honored Academy Award-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, as well as the Asian American Foundation, the national organization that supports safety and well-being in AANHPI community. .
In the past, the Asian SocietyThe Asia Game Changer Awards honored other South Korean pop culture leaders such as SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo Man (who talked about SM acts such as BoA, TVXQ!, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, EXO and NCT's 2016 acceptance speech), as well as BTS and CJ Group's vice president Miky Lee (both honored in 2020 and accepted with pre-recorded videos).
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/culture/events/asia-society-game-changer-awards-2024-bang-si-hyuk-bowen-yang-1235811832/
