SM Denies Rumors Of Banning A2O LITE Challenge Among Its Artists

SM Entertainment has denied rumors of the agency preventing its artists from partaking in A2O LITE × About group A2O LITE A2O LITE is a nine-member multinational girl group under A2O Entertainment. The group consists of YOUNG, OA, AYUNE, AIJING, HIMEKI, RADA, XILI, VORA, and MERCI. A2O LITE released their debut single NEON on October 13, 2026. The members come from several countries, including Korea, China, Japan, Thailand, and the United States. Tap again to view profile → Close ’s “NEON” challenge.

According to a recent report by Maekyung Economy, a representative of SM Entertainment dismissed the rumor that its artists have been forbidden to film challenge videos set to A2O LITE’s “NEON.”

Pointing out that members of Super Junior have danced to “NEON,” the representative stated, “We understand that members of Super Junior, an artist under our agency, have performed the dance in question.”

The SM representative added, “We have not received any requests [from A2O’s agency] to do a challenge.”

Back in 2023, SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo Man left the agency at the end of a bitter public feud with the company’s executives, led by then-CEO Lee Sung Su (who is also his nephew). When he sold his stake in SM Entertainment to HYBE, he signed a non-compete agreement barring him from producing albums or participating in the entertainment industry within Korea for the next three years.

At the end of this three-year period, Lee Soo Man returned to the K-pop scene by establishing the new agency A2O Entertainment. Earlier this month, the agency debuted the nine-member girl group A2O LITE and the 15-member boy group A2O SOUL × About group A2O SOUL A2O SOUL is a 15-member multinational boy group under A2O Entertainment. The group consists of MOON, TAI, GAKU, SEE-ONE, SEOHA, SONO, LUCIEN, ZAI, AYDEN, ALURE, ZET, SORA, TEO, JUNE, and HANSUNG. On October 13, 2026, A2O SOUL released the pre-release single SUPERSTAR. The group includes members from Korea, China, Japan, Thailand, and the United States. Tap again to view profile → Close on the same day, and A2O LITE’s debut single “NEON” has gone on to become a hit, achieving a perfect all-kill on the Korean charts in less than two weeks.

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