THEAN Entertainment ✦ Est. 2025 ✦ Bay Area, CA

THEAN

A MUSIC LABEL
BUILT DIFFERENT.

"Every generation has a sound that defines it. This one belongs to Asian America. Nobody built the home for it. We are building it now."

Explore Artist51 Join the Team
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The Leadership Gap
1 IN 70
Music industry executives who are Asian. Documented. Nobody is building the infrastructure to change it.
The Market
$26B
Global recorded music market. Growing every year. No US label has Asian American identity as its founding mission.
The Proof
$5B
Annual economic impact of BTS alone. From Korea. The ceiling is proven. The American version does not exist yet.
CULTURALLY SPECIFIC✦ GLOBALLY RESONANT✦ BUILT FROM THE GROUND UP✦ THEAN ENTERTAINMENT✦ BAY AREA 2025✦ PROJECT ARTIST51✦ CULTURALLY SPECIFIC✦ GLOBALLY RESONANT✦ BUILT FROM THE GROUND UP✦ THEAN ENTERTAINMENT✦ BAY AREA 2025✦ PROJECT ARTIST51✦

Who We Are

THE LABEL
THAT HAD TO
EXIST.

THEAN is an independent music label and entertainment company built around one founding mission: to create the first real home for Asian and Asian American artists in the United States music industry.

Not a collective. Not a diversity initiative. A full infrastructure label with cultural identity as the architecture of every decision, built from the ground up at UC Berkeley in 2025.

Asian Americans are the fastest growing demographic in this country. Their culture shapes fashion, food, film, and language. In music, there is almost no one at the table. THEAN exists to change that.

$5B
The Ceiling
Annual economic impact of BTS alone. One act. From Korea. The market is proven. The American version has not been built.
Hyundai Research Institute
2024
The Signal
Katseye debuts globally under HYBE. Massive reception. Still a Korean company. The US infrastructure does not exist.
HYBE Entertainment
72%
The Audience
Of Gen Z actively seek out diverse media. The audience is there. The content built for them is not.
Nielsen Music Report

Project Artist51

THE SEARCH
IS LIVE.

Project Artist51 is THEAN's inaugural talent search. We are looking for singers, dancers, and performers ready to be part of the first Asian American music group built in the US with cultural identity at its core.

Five spots. One concept. A mythology, a sound, a visual world, and a franchise infrastructure planned before the first song drops. The group writes and produces their own music. Members hold real creative ownership. This is not a label deal. It is a founding invitation.

01
Virtual Submission
  • Singing video, any song, any setting
  • Performance or dance video
  • 30 second unscripted intro video
  • One written answer about music
  • Bay Area availability confirmation
02
In Person Tryout
  • Learn choreography on the spot
  • Perform a prepared song
  • One on one interview with the team
  • Group chemistry observation
  • Bay Area, small group sessions
03
Selection Round
  • 12 to 15 finalists in the room
  • Concept material revealed
  • Group creative exercises
  • Final five members selected
  • Full process filmed as a documentary
For Performers
Apply as an Artist
Singer, dancer, performer. Asian or Asian American. Bay Area. Ready to build something that has never existed before.
Apply Now
For Creators
Apply as a Mentor
Producer, songwriter, filmmaker, coach, creative director. You make things. We are building the infrastructure around people who do.
Get in Touch

Join the Founding Team

BUILD THIS
WITH US.

THEAN is assembling its founding board of directors before Artist51 goes public. These are not internship positions. They are founding roles with real creative ownership and real stake in what gets built.

Commitment is real. The opportunity is historic. Every founding director is credited in THEAN's story.

Apply for a Director Role
01Executive DirectorExecutive
02A&R DirectorArtist & Repertoire
03Finance DirectorFinance
04Strategy DirectorStrategy
05Production DirectorProduction
06Operations DirectorOperations
07Marketing DirectorMarketing

"We are not looking for someone to help execute a plan. We are looking for someone who wants to help build one."

Send a short introduction and tell us which role interests you. Include anything that shows us who you are. We read everything.

Get in Touch