The conflict between K-pop group NewJeans and their label ADOR (and by extension HYBE) has hit critical mass. On November 28 Hanni, Minji, Haerin, Danielle, and Hyein convened a press conference to announce that they were officially leaving ADOR due to “mistreatment” and “manipulation” by the agency. According to the BBC, Hanni claimed the group has been shunned within the company.
This is the latest salvo in an ongoing battle between former NewJeans producer (and former ADOR CEO) Min Hee-Jin and HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk. From HYBE’s perspective, Min tried to do a hostile takeover of ADOR. According to Min, NewJeans was plagiarized and slighted in favor of other HYBE girl groups, and she was retaliated against for protecting her band’s interests. Hanni said NewJeans and their team experienced “mistreatment, not just towards us but also including our staff,” and “deliberate miscommunications and manipulation in multiple areas.”
“This is not the type of work ethic we respect and not one we want to be a part of, and to continue working under a company with no intention of protecting NewJeans would only do us harm,” Hanni said. The band wishes to fulfil their contractual obligations, then go independent with Min. This means they may not be allowed to call themselves NewJeans anymore.
ADOR has responded to the press conference. Per Soompi, the label does not feel NewJeans has grounds to terminate their association with the label. “The exclusive contracts between ADOR and the NewJeans members remain valid. Therefore, we expect them to continue their scheduled activities ahead together with ADOR as they have until now,” their statement read. “We have requested several meetings with the artists, but they were not carried out. We hope that even now, we can open our hearts and have sincere conversations together.”
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