Career
Bang debuted as a composer while in college.[7] In 1994, he won the Yoo Jae-ha Music Contest and began his career in earnest writing and producing songs.[8] He met Park Jin-young in 1997, and the pair often partnered together as a songwriting duo. Bang co-founded JYP Entertainment with Park,[9] becoming a composer, arranger and producer at the company.[5][10][11] One of their early successes was the first-generation group g.o.d.[10] Some of g.o.d's most famous songs arranged by Bang include "One Candle" and "Road". Bang's stage name "Hitman" originated from this period, when g.o.d enjoyed success as one of the country's best-selling and most popular boy bands of the early 2000s, earning himself and Park a reputation as "hit makers".[10][12] Besides g.o.d, Bang has produced or composed for many other artists, including veterans Im Chang-jung and Park Ji-yoon, singer-actor Rain, groups Wonder Girls, 2AM, and Teen Top, and R&B singer Baek Ji-young.[10][12][13]
Nearly four years after co-founding JYP Entertainment, Bang left JYP and founded his own company, Big Hit Entertainment, where he continued to write, compose and produce for its artists.[12][14] Under the Big Hit label, he signed up RM, at age 15, who would go on to lead the boy band BTS.[15] He co-wrote six songs for BTS in their 2016 album Wings. Its success garnered Bang the Best Producer Award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards and the Songwriter Award at the Melon Music Awards that year. In June 2018, he was named one of Variety's International Music Leaders due to BTS' achievements.[16]
In April 2019, Bloomberg estimated Bang's worth to be about $770 million.[17] The BigHit initial public offering (IPO) filed in October 2020 was the largest seen in South Korea in three years and skyrocketed Bang's net worth to $2.8 billion,[18][19] making him the only billionaire in South Korea's entertainment industry and the sixth-richest person in the country.[20][21][22] The success of the IPO, together with the commercial success of BTS that year, Bang's steps into diversification with apps like Weverse, and acquisitions of companies like Source Music and Pledis Entertainment
In June 2021, Forbes Asia published its annual list of Korea's 50 Richest People. One of only two newcomers to the ranking, Bang was listed as the 16th richest person in South Korea.[25][26] On July 1, following an organizational restructuring, Hybe announced Bang's resignation as CEO of the company to return his focus to music production. He was replaced by Park Ji-won, but retained his position as Chairman of the Board of Directors.[27][28] According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Bang is worth an estimated $3.2 billion as of July 2021.[29]
Bang was featured on the cover of the April 2022 issue of Time magazine, together with BTS, following the release of the outlet's annual list of the 100 Most Influential Companies in March.[30][31] Later that month, he received an honorary doctorate in Business from Seoul National University—he is the first figure in the entertainment industry to be awarded such—in recognition of his "contribution to the development and innovation of the nation's cultural and entertainment industry" and for his "role in turning K-pop into a global pop music culture".[32]
