In the mid-1980s, Lee Soo-man, a folk singer studying computer engineering in California, decided to return to his native South Korea. Inspired by what he had seen on MTV — the 24-hour-a-day television network playing music videos — he formed SM Entertainment and set about replicating the success of the highly-trained all-singing, all-dancing groups like The Jackson 5 and, later, New Kids on the Block.
20世纪80年代中期,在美国加州攻读计算机工程专业的民谣歌手李秀满(Lee Soo-man)决定回到自己的祖国韩国。受美国24小时音乐视频电视频道MTV的启发,他创办了SM娱乐公司(SM Entertainment),开始复制受过专业训练的唱跳组合——比如“杰克逊五兄弟”(Jackson 5)和后来的“新街边男孩”(New Kids on the Block)——的成功。