Big Bang earned more than Maroon 5 in 2015—report

Big Bang. SCREENGRAB FROM KOREA HERALD/YG Entertainment

SEOUL—South Korean boy group Big Bang made more money last year than the American popular rock band Maroon 5, according to a US media report.

Forbes magazine on Wednesday reported that Big Bang’s pretax earnings stood at US$ 44 million in 2015, more than the US$ 33.5 million racked up by Maroon 5, the American group that was selected as one of the highest-paid musicians in 2015 by Billboard.

“We made more than Maroon 5?” Big Bang’s frontman G-Dragon was quoted as saying in the report. “Did not know that. My mom is in charge of my earnings.”

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The report also emphasized the YG Entertainment’s role behind the success of the five-member boy group.

The publicly traded record label, helmed by CEO Yang Hyun-suk, houses major K-pop acts such as Psy and 2NE1. The label is not only responsible for the record sales but also acts as a manager, a concert promoter and actively participates in variety of businesses from fashion, food to film.

With the report, Big Bang made it into the coveted “Forbes Celebrity 100 List” for the first time as a Korean band. The ranking of the 100 stars will be unveiled on July 12.