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Entertainment
HYBE Shares Fall on YG Plus Sale, SM Entertainment Stock Slips After Failed EXO Mediation
The share prices of two K-pop giants, HYBE and SM Entertainment, suffered steep losses in a week in which few music stocks mustered even small gains.
In the week ended Friday (Sept. 26), HYBE’s stock fell 7.5% to 268,500 KRW ($190.53) amid a broader monthly downturn of approximately 9%. The company’s founder and chairman, Bang Si-hyuk, is currently facing a securities litigation probe. Additionally, on Tuesday (Sept. 23), HYBE sold its stake in YG Entertainment’s YG Plus.
While HYBE maintains exposure to YG Plus through the 10.2% stake owned by HYBE subsidiary Weverse, the disposal of its 4.8 million shares worth a total of 38.22 billion KRW ($27 million) will help shore up the company’s finances. HYBE’s operating profit rebounded in the second quarter, but in 2024, the company reported that cash flow from operating activities was at its lowest since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020. HYBE held 412 billion KRW ($292 billion) in cash and cash equivalents at the end of 2024, an improvement from 2023 but lower than in both 2021 and 2022.
SM Entertainment fared even worse than HYBE, falling 13.9% to 131,700 KRW ($93.46) after the company’s first court-led mediation with three members of the group EXO failed to resolve a $430,000 contract dispute. The artists claimed last year that they were being overcharged by SM for the distribution of music.
Despite their recent struggles, the two K-pop companies are among the best-performing music stocks in 2025. Year to date, SM Entertainment is up 81.4% — third-best behind Netease Cloud Music (134.2%) and Tencent Music Entertainment (111.9%) — and HYBE has gained 33.6%.
The Billboard Global Music Index (BGMI) fell 2.1% to 3,034.75 this week, lowering its year-to-date gain to 40.8%. That marked the first decline in four weeks and just the sixth losing week in the second half of the year. Only two stocks posted gains for the week, while 16 lost value and one was unchanged.
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Global markets were mixed this week as investors weighed the damage that could arise from a possible federal government shutdown in the U.S. The Nasdaq composite index fell 0.7% to 22,484.07 after closing the previous week at an all-time high. The S&P 500 ended a three-week winning streak, closing down 0.3% to 6,643.70. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 rose 0.7%. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index slid 1.7% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2%.
Universal Music Group had the week’s largest gain, rising 2% to 24.00 euros ($28.09). Madison Square Garden Entertainment, which improved 0.3% to $45.29, was the week’s only other music stock in positive territory.
Live Nation fell 1.2% to $161.79, bringing its two-week decline to 6.9%. Live Nation and Ticketmaster were sued by the U.S. Department of Justice on Sept. 18 over allegedly violating the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act and engaging in “systemic unfair and deceptive practices,” according to the lawsuit. The stock received good news earlier in the week, however, when Seaport Global increased its price target to $190 from $170 and maintained its “buy” rating.
Music streaming companies were among the week’s biggest losers. Tencent Music Entertainment fell 5.9%, Anghami slipped 4.8%, Netease Cloud Music dropped 4.4% and Spotify, the BGMI’s most valuable company, dipped 2.5%.
Another streaming company, LiveOne, executed a 10-to-1 reverse stock split on Friday (Sept. 26) that allowed it to meet the Nasdaq exchange’s minimum bid requirement of $1 per share. After accounting for the split, LiveOne’s share price fell 5.5% to $4.82, deepening its year-to-date loss to 65.1%.
iHeartMedia had the second-largest decline of the week, falling 10.6% to $2.71. Despite the stock suffering its first decline in three weeks, iHeartMedia shares have risen 69.4% over the past seven weeks and have gained 27.2% year-to-date. The stock has been on a roll since its Q2 earnings on Aug. 11 showed that the company beat guidance by posting a small revenue gain.
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It’s the final new music Friday (April 24) of the month, and everyone from Noah Kahan to Kehlani and Suki Waterhouse have put forth some of their best work as May waits just around the corner.
This week, Vermont’s favorite folk-rock singer-songwriter finally returned with a new album after four years of Stick Season, his breakout album that reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The Great Divide is 17 tracks of Kahan reexamining his worldview after struggling with his mental health in the years since he found fame.
And, as if taking cues from the success of first-ever Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit “Folded” (which reached No. 6 on the chart in January), Kehlani leans fully into classic R&B flavors in an intentional push to recenter the genre’s traditions. “All the R&B artists, we want R&B to be back,” the artist told Billboard ahead of being named Billboard Women in Music’s Impact honoree. “We want good, long songs. We want three verses and bridges and modulations and all the things – we want that too. We just didn’t think anybody else wanted it. I have an allegiance to the genre, and I’ll keep it there.”
On top of the bounty of new albums, several artists have released fresh singles — including Suki Waterhouse, who returns with “Tiny Raisin” shortly after announcing her next album, Loveland, as well as Hayley Kiyoko and Gigi Perez, who teamed up for heartfelt duet “Collide.” Plus, Dylan Gossett adds “My Boy” to the mix, written as a letter to his son.
But which release is your favorite this week? Let Billboard know by voting in the poll below.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
It’s been almost three decades since the LA-based casual wear brand Juicy Couture first hit store shelves, and the Hollywood-loved label has made its way back into the spotlight in recent years thanks to the Y2K trend resurgence and newfound love from influencers online.
Best known for its T-shirts, handbags and yes, those velour tracksuits (reportedly designed exclusively for Madonna at first), Juicy Couture pieces were seen on practically every major celebrity in the 2000s, from Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, to Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian. Musicians like Miley Cyrus, Nicole Scherzinger and even Beyoncé have also been spotted wearing Juicy Couture, and now, a new Amazon deal makes it easy for you to get into some JC as well.
LIMITED TIME DEAL
Juicy Couture Cap Sleeve T-Shirt (Five-Pack)
$38.24 $44.99 15% off
Amazon is selling a five-pack of Juicy Couture T-shirts right now for just $39. Part of the “Juicy Sport” line, the cropped T-shirts are made from a super soft and breathable “performance” fabric that features a touch of spandex for easy movement and stretch.
That makes the T-shirts as ideal for a workout or yoga session as they are for pairing with your everyday ‘fits. The crop top look leans into the Y2K aesthetic and Amazon’s website shows the shirts styled with shorts, leggings and mini skirts alike.
This Amazon deal gets you five Juicy Couture T-shirts for under $40. That brings the price of each tee down to less than $8 — a virtually unheard of deal for generic T-shirts, let alone a brand name pick.
We like the five-pack above, which gets you a T-shirt in two shades of pink (including a light pink with the signature Juicy Couture cherries), plus navy blue, gray and black. You can choose from other color combinations online. The tees are available in sizes small to XXL.
ALSO AVAILABLE
Juicy Couture T-Shirts (Three-Pack)
$29.74
Don’t need five T-shirts? Amazon also sells a three-pack of Juicy Couture tees for just $30, bringing the price of each individual shirt to under $10.
ALSO CONSIDER
Juicy Couture Queen of Everything Mini Duffle Bag
$45.09 $79.00 43% off
And if you need a bag to take to the gym (or for an overnight stay), we like this mini barrel-style duffle bag, on sale for 43% off. The two-tone bag measures approximate 8.2 x 4.9 inches in size, which is enough room for your wallet, keys, change of clothes and toiletries. Choose to carry the bag via the top handle or with the detachable shoulder straps.
All of the above picks are officially-licensed products sold through Amazon’s Juicy Couture storefront. As with all Amazon deals, the sale prices could end at anytime, so we recommend adding the deals to cart while they are still live.
Netflix is bringing us back to the ’80s, and it’s making sure we have the right music for the occasion.
On Wednesday (April 22), Billboard can exclusively reveal that an original soundtrack is coming this week for the brand-new animated spin-off series Stranger Things: Tales From ’85. The score album, composed by Brad Breeck (Gravity Falls, We Bare Bears), will be released globally Thursday (April 23) at midnight ET.
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 also arrives Thursday on Netflix, bringing viewers back to the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, in the ’80s and reuniting us with some of the original show’s main characters. And much like Stranger Things, music plays a large role in the new show.
“This collection bridges the gap between the eerie depths of the Upside Down and the vibrant, neon energy of the mid-’80s,” Netflix said in a statement.
Tales From ’85 will feature not only a brand-new version of the original Stranger Things theme song, but the first episodes also include a selection of ’80s hits from artists like Black Sabbath, Billy Idol, Cyndi Lauper and more. Needle drops throughout the series include “We Got the Beat” by The Go-Go’s, “A Forest” by The Cure and “We’ll Meet Again” by Vera Lynn, “Rebel Yell” by Idol, and Lauper’s Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper “Time After Time.”
If it’s anything like the original show, artists with songs played in the new series could see a bump in streams and chart placements in the aftermath of the show’s premiere. After featuring the songs in pivotal moments, Stranger Things brought Kate Bush‘s “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” to a new peak of No. 3 on the Hot 100 in 2022, 37 years after its initial release, while Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” made its debut on the chart the same year, 36 years after it came out.
Fans can pre-save Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series) by Brad Breeck here, and find the full score track list below.
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series) by Brad Breeck track list
Flamethrower (artists: Brad Breeck feat. Brian Parkhurst)
Kids Riding Bikes
Big Snowstorm Coming
Someone In There
HIC Theme
I Just Saved Your Life
Strange Stones
Gotta Go Dark
How Long Is Detention
Sewer Chase (artists: Brad Breeck feat. Brian Parkhurst)
Towns
Clean Up
Investigating Pumpkins
Heaven Eleven
Nice Time Tonight
Storm the Gates
What Were These Things
Ground Rules
seluR dnuorG
Her Royal Nastiness
We Have To Try
Tales from ’85 End Titles (artists: Brad Breeck feat. Cooper Babbes)
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