Introducing the new K-Pop group VVS, who intend to “Evolve” the genre

“I had my own vision about what I wanted to hear in K-pop,” says Paul Thompson, an Italian-American who moved to South Korea from California 11 years ago to teach English but has since become best known as K-pop producer MCMZ and founder. of MCMZ Inc., a Seoul-based entertainment group. “I knew no other company would let me 100% do the vision I had. It was time to try to evolve K-pop.”

Enter VVS, Thompson's fledgling band that is eyeing October for its official debut and with four albums already planned. Incorporating his love for the Neptunes, Timbaland co-producer Danja and singer-songwriter-producer Ryan Leslie, Thompson created a refined sound for the new act, which takes its name from the diamond category of the same name. “I would say we're mashing Ariana [Grande’s] 'POV' and Nicki Minaj,” says Thompson, who calls the members of VVS “the right five to push K-pop forward.”

With one Japanese and four Korean members, VVS consists of Brittney (20, the group's leader and English speaker), Ilee (19, a rapper inspired by Blackpink's Jennie), Rana (18, the lead dancer who is influenced music by Lauryn Hill), Jiu (15, the lead singer who looks up to the power of K-pop Taeyeon) and Liwon (15, a singer who admires fellow teenage singer Kiana).

Currently, the quintet has daily rehearsals, vocal and rap lessons, and group practices. As their debut approaches, the members will move into a shared living space and add media training and language classes as part of K-pop's famous trainee system. But unlike other trainees, the VVS members would have what Brittney and the girls call “culture lessons” to dig into the roots of R&B and hip-hop.

“From the cultural beginnings to today, where female rappers can come on stage with so much confidence, the fact that we can learn about the history of the OGs is really meaningful,” Ilee says through a translator. “We learned about female rappers at the beginning of the hip-hop industry, like Lil' Kim, who influences me because she's very confident.”

Meanwhile, Brittney – who nearly gave up on her K-pop dreams after training at two different agencies before joining MCMZ – draws inspiration from an act closer to home. “BTS came from a small company,” he says. “We also come from a small company, so I think we can learn a lot from them. They are very hard workers, they put all their effort into their work and when they perform on stage, they are 100%. I think their teamwork is amazing, so I tell my girls about them as well.”

After initially moving to South Korea to teach English, Thompson spent the next decade becoming the top K-pop producer MCMZ for arena-filling acts such as EXO, NCT and Kang Daniel. Similar to NewJeans mastermind Min Hee Jin and other K-pop creatives who have gone from the liner notes to the C-suite, Thompson turned his producer name into a corporate entity, founding MCMZ Inc. in early 2019 and incorporating as a Korean entity in January 2020 with an all-Korean staff and songwriting team that includes K-pop idol Yuju and lyricists in Los Angeles and Nashville.

Thompson's body of work—along with key management hires, casting and veteran artist development in Korea—quickly earned his new label the industry's trust. Blackpink's agency, YG Entertainment, has already invested in the company through a deal with its distribution arm, YG Plus, to help with merchandising and marketing, as well as worldwide distribution.

And despite working as an Italian-American in a predominantly Asian industry, Thompson says, “All the parents know what I've done, all the trainees know, and a lot of them audition because of the music. They realize, “Okay, the company is still Korean, all the contracts are done in Korean, it's just that the CEO isn't.” “

Despite its American influences, MCMZ Inc. plans to target the international K-pop fan as well as the scene's core markets such as Korea, Japan and English-speaking regions. “It's going to be harder for us to break through because all the big companies have a lot more money to spend on marketing than we do,” says Thompson. “The best way we can market ourselves is through other channels where we don't have to put a huge budget behind it.”

That's why he made yet another unconventional move: he brought in Anderson Cooper to shoot a CNN documentary about MCMZ Inc. which will be shown later. Thompson believes that taking such an unfiltered approach during a period of creative experimentation shows the type of ambition needed to transcend industry hierarchies.

“They're already going to wonder if we're authentically Korean,” says Thompson. “Many of the first demographic targets of Korean companies will be Korea. For us, it's still Korea, but we know we have a barrier to entry anyway, so let's see how we can market ourselves more accurately [beyond that].”

This story will appear in the April 27, 2024 issue Advertising sign.