In late April, HYBE sparked an internal dispute with Min Hee Jin, the mind behind NewJeans. The up-and-coming entertainment powerhouse publicly conducted an investigation into Min Hee Jin and her colleagues, alleging that they had unlawfully taken control of the company’s management rights. This ignited a highly publicized K-pop conflict, which has continued to escalate over the course of the last two months.
In response, Min Hee Jin held a public press conference on April 25 that lasted almost two hours, where she accused the conglomerate of wrongdoing. She openly criticized HYBE and BELIFT LAB, making grave accusations that “ILLIT copied NewJeans.” ILLIT, a new girl group under BELIFT LAB and consisting of five members chosen from the survival show “R U Next,”is affiliated with HYBE.
During that period, ILLIT emerged as the most promising rookie group. Their debut on March 25 with the title track “Magnetic”and EP “Super Real Me”garnered widespread attention. ILLIT’s debut song shattered all records for rookies, achieving Perfect All-Kill and gaining worldwide recognition with its infectious, contemporary melody. They even surpassed their seniors, NewJeans, by entering the Billboard Hot 100 in just 25 days after their debut.
Despite their impressive accomplishments, ILLIT was perceived by the public as a mediocre and unoriginal group. They were embroiled in controversy due to their lackluster live performances and uninteresting stage presence. The direct accusation from Min Hee Jin about their copied concept greatly tarnished ILLIT’s image. This led to a rift between the two sister groups, both belonging to the same conglomerate, and all focus was drawn to the strained ILLIT-NewJeans relationship.
On June 10, BELIFT LAB, the label under HYBE that manages ENHYPEN and ILLIT, took significant actions in response to recent controversies. The most notable one was the release of a 27-minute video entitled “Perspective on Plagiarism Accusations,”which addressed the allegations made by Min Hee Jin. In the video, BELIFT LAB presented evidence and visuals to refute any claims of plagiarism between ILLIT and NewJeans.
While watching BELIFT LAB’s 27-minute clarification video, one cannot help but notice the constant presence of other artists and their arguments that shift the blame of plagiarism towards NewJeans. Rather than presenting evidence of the creative process behind ILLIT’s concept, BELIFT LAB chose to repeatedly target the girl group under ADOR.
BELIFT LAB questioned the similarities between NewJeans’ visual and dance elements and those of other artists, suggesting that if plagiarism is claimed, it also implies that NewJeans may have been influenced or learned from groups such as BLACKPINK, BTS, ENHYPEN, LE SSERAFIM, GFRIEND, IZ*ONE, Sunmi, IVE, NMIXX, Oh My Girl, Triple S, VIVIZ, LABOUM, DIA, and PRISTIN. The company had edited NewJeans’ details in comparison to these groups.
BELIFT LAB’s attempts at clarifying the situation only served to exacerbate it, as their evidence against NewJeans for plagiarism was unconvincing. One of their main accusations was that NewJeans copied NMIXX’s choreography for their song “Ditto,”but it was later revealed that “Ditto”was released three months before NMIXX’s “Love Me Like This.”Additionally, BELIFT LAB’s comparison of NewJeans to BLACKPINK’s debut photos was deemed invalid by a former YG creative director who stated that there was no resemblance between the two.
It was clear that NewJeans’ aesthetic reflected the unique creativity of Min Hee Jin, who had honed her skills as a visual director for almost twenty years. One of BELIFT LAB’s accusations was actually inspired by Min Hee Jin’s previous work, such as the popularization of the tennis skirt trend by SM girl groups like SNSD and f(x) during her time as a creative director. BELIFT LAB produced an accusation video without sufficient expertise.
Concerns were raised by industry officials about the crisis management tactics employed by BELIFT LAB. According to a music industry source who spoke to Sports Kyunghyang, the company’s actions were deemed overly emotional and the use of the argument “if we are plagiarists, so are you”only exacerbated the situation unnecessarily.
After the 27-minute video was released, BELIFT LAB declared intentions to take legal action against Min Hee Jin for defamation and business interference. However, their decision to redirect the attention towards allegations of plagiarism against “NewJeans”amounts to the same type of misconduct.
An official stated that in order to refute the accusations of a ‘Witch Hunt,’ concrete evidence needed to be provided. It appeared that their main focus was on disproving the notion of ‘copying’ and demonstrating their hard work. However, the inclusion of opinions from producers to boost their credibility ultimately had the opposite effect, as their repeated references to other groups diminished their credibility.
It can be difficult to identify instances of plagiarism or concept copying. The allegation that “ILLIT copied NewJeans”elicited contrasting views. These types of accusations are considered to be within the realm of “intellectual overlap.”BELIFT LAB should focus on safeguarding its artists from malicious remarks and enhancing their talent, rather than creating controversies.
However, rather than taking the appropriate course of action, BELIFT LAB chose to engage in a heated dispute with Min Hee Jin and criticize NewJeans. As a result of this emotionally-driven tactic, the management of ILLIT almost jeopardized the trust of the public.
During the discussion, artist manager D acknowledged that in today’s pop culture landscape, it is becoming increasingly challenging to achieve pure creativity. It is common for new projects to be influenced by references, and this is understood not only by industry officials but also by fans and the general public. Similarities between artists can arise even without intentionally copying or borrowing ideas from other groups. This is a phenomenon that applies to all artists, not just these two groups.
Despite the company’s efforts, they failed to accurately gauge the public’s perception. Their emotional response, questioning whether they were plagiarists, and some of the rebuttals in the video caused viewers to question the professionalism of the company. As a result, the video lost credibility and it would be wise for the company to refrain from creating any further controversies at this time.
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