Min Hee-jin’s Stance Against HYBE Sparks Criticism Over Mention of NewJeans & ILLIT

HYBE exercised its right to audit after discovering that Min Hee-jin, an executive at ADOR and NewJeans’s agency, was attempting to take control of the management of ADOR. Currently, HYBE holds 80% of shares in ADOR while the remaining 20% is owned by ADOR executives, including Min Hee-jin.

On April 22nd, Min Hee-jin stated, “I am expressing my concerns regarding the ‘ILLIT copying NewJeans issue’ in order to safeguard our artist NewJeans and support the growth of Korea’s music industry and culture.”She directed her criticism towards the girl group of another HYBE label, BELIFT Lab.

Min Hee-jin stated that the introduction of ILLIT had negatively impacted the reputation of NewJeans and had led to the group being embroiled in unnecessary controversies, causing concern and disappointment among fans and the general public.

Despite Min Hee-jin’s stance, numerous K-pop fans have condemned the female CEO for her unilaterally rude claims. Specifically, she labeled a newly debuted girl group as a “copy”. However, what has sparked more controversy is the belief among netizens that ILLIT’s music and performance are distinctly different from NewJeans’s style.

After Min Hee-jin brought up the issue of “copying,”several others countered by saying that NewJeans’s stylings and concepts, created by her, were reminiscent of those used by other groups and overseas artists in the past. One netizen even pointed out, “Hasn’t she also formed a new group by borrowing an existing concept?”

Furthermore, critics have also highlighted the adverse impact of Min Hee-jin’s statement on NewJeans. The CEO stated, “We have thoroughly discussed the matter with our legal representatives and NewJeans members before releasing our official position.”Consequently, NewJeans members have been dragged into the conflict between ADOR and HYBE, as they were mentioned to have a similar idea. This has caused the public to label it as the “second FIFTY FIFTY incident”.

On April 23rd, reports from Chosun Ilbo and Segye Ilbo revealed that HYBE had come across an internal document from ADOR, which seemed to outline strategies for gaining control of management rights. There is speculation about whether ADOR deliberately created these documents due to Min Hee-jin’s issues with ILLIT. The focus is now on the outcome of HYBE’s investigation and Min Hee-jin’s response.