In a phone call with Daily Sports on September 20, YG Entertainment’s Yang Hyun Suk made a big promise to fans: “I’ll make sure iKON and WINNER become groups that stay loved for at least 10 years.”

“BIGBANG has been going for nine years now; before that, it was tough for a group to stick it out for even five years,” says Yang Hyun Suk. “BIGBANG grew throughout the nine years, and I’m so proud of the fact that they are a group now representative of Asia.”

He mentions the long training process for WINNER and iKON. “Before [their] debut, they spent at least four to five years as trainees. For a team that went through that to just disappear after four to five years is something that cannot happen.”

Yang Hyun Suk continues, saying that the success of just WINNER or iKON, of just YG Entertainment, is not what’s important, but the growth of the music market. “In order to make that happen, YG will continue to invest in the music and promotions of WINNER and iKON.”

Regarding BIGBANG’s huge move this year with their framework of releases for “MADE,” Yang Hyun Suk says that it was a huge challenge for YG, and that they — and BIGBANG — were rewarded with first place on the Gaon chart for four months. While iKON and WINNER still can’t really be compared to BIGBANG, he says, he has big plans for the two groups. “BIGBANG has paved the way, and as a result, I have a degree of expectation for WINNER’s and iKON’s growth to be a bit quicker. With the talent of the two teams and the infrastructure of YG, we’ll make great things happen.”

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