Pentagon's Hui Signs with WithUS Entertainment: A New Chapter for K-Pop's Most Prolific Producer

Pentagon's Hui signed with WithUS Entertainment this week, joining a label home that includes Apink and MAMAMOO's Wheein. The signing closes his nine-year chapter at Cube and marks the start of a new solo and production career phase.

For fans who have watched Pentagon's gradual dispersal from Cube across 2023 to 2025, Hui's new home is the clearest signal yet that the group's members are not winding down — they're reconfiguring. Here is what the signing means and why Hui's track record as a songwriter makes it significant beyond the headline.

Who Hui Is: Pentagon's Creative Engine

Lee Hoe-taek, known professionally as Hui, was born on August 27, 1993 and debuted as Pentagon's leader and main vocalist on April 10, 2016 under Cube Entertainment. From the beginning, he functioned as something less common in K-pop's idol structure: a primary songwriter embedded within the group he fronted.

The most externally visible demonstration of that role came during Produce 101 Season 2 (2017), when Hui co-composed "Energetic" — the debut single for Wanna One, the series' eleven-member project group. "Energetic" was not a minor release. It became one of the most-streamed K-pop songs of 2017 and established Hui as a name that entertainment companies outside Pentagon's own orbit were willing to attach to flagship releases.

That same year, he co-composed "Never" for Nation's Son, debuting at number one on the Gaon Digital Chart. Subsequent credits include songs for JO1, the Produce 101 Japan group, and the bulk of Pentagon's own discography — "Shine", "Naughty Boy", "Daisy", and "Do or Not" are all substantially his work. The breadth of those credits — across multiple agencies, formats, and markets — is what distinguishes Hui's producer identity from the in-house songwriters most idol groups quietly employ.

Pentagon and Cube: What Changed and When

Pentagon's relationship with Cube Entertainment entered a period of structural change beginning in October 2023, when five members — Yeo One, Yan An, Yuto, Kino, and Wooseok — did not renew their contracts at expiry. The departures were staggered over the following two years: Jinho's contract ended in April 2025, followed by Hui's in July 2025. Only Hongseok remained signed to Cube by the end of that process.

Critically, the departures have been framed by members themselves as individual career pivots rather than group dissolution. Pentagon has not announced a disbandment, and members have signaled ongoing intent to continue activities as a group when scheduling allows. Jinho, who signed with S27M Entertainment in 2025, opened a Japan official fan club in November 2025 — a move consistent with building individual infrastructure for sustained solo activity rather than preparing for retirement.

Hui's extended gap between leaving Cube in July 2025 and signing with WithUS in November 2025 — roughly four months — suggests a considered search rather than a quick transition. The choice of WithUS is notable precisely because it is not a high-profile K-pop major, but a mid-tier agency with a focused roster and a clear creative identity.

WithUS Entertainment: What the Label Offers

WithUS Entertainment manages a deliberately selective roster: Apink (specifically members Chorong, Bomi, Namjoo, and Hayoung following the group's contract dispersal at other labels), Wheein of MAMAMOO, and rising boy group The Wind. The lineup shares a common characteristic: artists with established fanbases who are navigating the transition from peak idol-era fame toward sustained long-term careers.

For a producer with Hui's profile, this environment offers something specific. WithUS stated in their announcement that Hui would "participate in producing music for other WithUS artists" alongside his solo work — a dual-track arrangement that acknowledges his identity as both a performer and a behind-the-scenes architect. Working with Apink's members, who are at a stage of their careers where measured, considered releases carry more weight than high-output idol schedules, gives Hui material that matches his production strengths: melodic range, emotional resonance, and the kind of compositional patience that tends to read as artistry rather than commercial product.

The arrangement also opens a practical door: Apink's fanbase, which skews toward long-term, emotionally invested listeners, has significant overlap with the audience most likely to engage seriously with Hui's solo work. Label rosters function as implicit marketing ecosystems, and WithUS's roster is better suited to Hui's post-idol positioning than a larger company's K-pop machine would be.

What Solo and Production Activity Looks Like Next

Hui's solo output since leaving Cube has been limited — the gap has functioned primarily as a transition period rather than an active release cycle. WithUS's announcement framing him as both a solo artist and an in-house producer suggests the label's immediate priority is establishing his production profile within the label's ecosystem before building a solo release campaign.

That sequencing makes sense. Hui's reputation as a songwriter is, at this point, more commercially established than his solo performer identity. Building toward a solo release through visible production credits — work that appears on Apink songs or Wheein singles that reach existing audiences — is a lower-risk way to re-establish presence than a cold solo debut into an industry landscape that has changed considerably since Pentagon's peak years.

Pentagon's future as a unit remains an open question, but Hui's signing with WithUS gives the group's creative core a sustainable professional home. The songwriter who produced "Energetic" and "Shine" now has institutional support for what comes next — whatever form that takes.