Korean media has received an email, revealing the letter of the parents of NewJeans' members. Keep reading to know more details.
On May 13, Korean news outlet Ilgan Sports reported that an email had been sent by Min Hee Jin to HYBE and BELIFT LAB earlier on April 3. According to the email, the content contained a letter forwarded from the parents of the NewJeans members.
It was also reported that Min Hee Jin received the letter on March 31. The email contained the parents' thoughts regarding the similarities between ILLIT and NewJeans, Bang Si Hyuk's treatment of NewJeans, and many more.
Read the full email below:
"As the parents and legal representatives of Minji Kim, Hanni Pham, Haerin Kang, Marsh Danielle, and Lee Hyein (hereinafter referred to as NewJeans), we submit the following statement to CEO Min Hee Jin of ADOR on March 31, 2024.
We are concerned about the controversy that has risen regarding many similarities in concept (photos, music video, etc.), styling, choreography, etc., between NewJeans and a group who made their debut under HYBE's label (referred to as '000')
The similarities appear to be the result of a plan of intentional copying by HYBE / BELIFT LAB.
Concept photography, styling, music performance, and choreography, these are series of content that indicate NewJeans' staff during their debut era was also employed, and this only makes it difficult to deny the intentionality.
The contents that contain similarities to NewJeans have already been mass-produced and suspicions of copying and plagiarizing NewJeans have been widely spread by consumers.
Just one year and eight months after NewJeans' debut, we feel sorry since another label under the same parent company could deliberately create a reminiscent of NewJeans' debut days.
Above all, it's common sense for teams with different characteristics to target different markets, when the debut dates are not too different, especially when their debut dates aren't far apart. We understand that there is no involvement or cooperation on ADOR's part in this process.
We would like to ask HYBE and BELIFT LAB to clarify or confirm their intentions behind these plans that were formulated arbitrarily.
Furthermore, marketing a new act in a way that draws comparisons to NewJeans is a bigger issue. Did ADOR allow you to choreograph the same movements? If this situation keeps up, it's clear that the reputation and brand value of NewJeans will be damaged.
In a situation where the public mentions and refutes the similarities between the two teams, unnecessary comparisons and controversies are created continuously, and this can lead the members to suffer serious psychological damage along the way.
Not only the members, but their families are also tired of being mentioned with 000 in almost every article related to NewJeans, and they feel helpless since it can't be stopped. It's upsetting and hurtful to see NewJeans being used for unnecessary comparisons.
The TikTok video that sparked controversy because 000 didn't credit a foreign choreographer, was accompanied by a comment with a lot of hearts, which read, 'I thought it was NewJeans.' The video also received a high number of views. Someone would see the clip and mistake it for NewJeans.
The video has many views, and someone might watch the video and misunderstand it to be the fault of NewJeans. Even in 000's videos, there was content that could be used as gossip and was found in one of the communities mocking NewJeans.
The most regrettable thing was that the content was produced and edited by HYBE's internal production team, but it was not filtered. Does BELIFT LAB and HYBE have no intention of protecting NewJeans and the members' brand value?
The reason why it wasn't considered a mistake was because the situation was often ridiculous. Whenever the members of NewJeans confronted Chairman Bang Si Hyuk in the company, we wondered why he ignored the members and their greetings.
At first, we had doubts about this when we heard from the children. "He didn't just recognize it," and we checked it several times.
However, this happened many times and there were times when they ran into him alone on different dates and locations, he must have noticed the members to be NewJeans.
Even if he didn't know it was the members themselves, it should still be basic manners to return their greetings. But we're wondering if it was that difficult to reply to a greeting inside the building?
After hearing more than once or twice about the members standing in the elevator in a daze since it was embarrassing to be ignored, to notice they were deliberately being avoided. As a parent, I was surprised by this childish and unbelievable situation.
We were at a loss since there was nothing we could impart to our children and the members are just junior high school and high school age.
This is not the only treatment that we cannot comprehend. Before, NewJeans members were signed as trainees under SOURCE MUSIC after hearing the offer, and were promised to be HYBE'S first-ever girl group.
They had to wait vaguely without receiving any explanation from SOURCE MUSIC during the delay in the project. Then came the news of 000 and 000 signing contracts. In the end, contrary to the promise they made, another team debuted as HYBE's first girl group.
The promise HYBE broke in the past about the first girl group and the endless waiting and neglect of the NewJeans members when they were SOURCE MUSIC trainees are unforgettable nightmares.
There was also a member who considered giving up on debuting due to SOURCE MUSIC's difficult process.
We believe that the plagiarism issue that is taking over online communities and social media is just one of the few results of HYBE's unfair treatment and non-transparent communication.
We object to the use of NewJeans as a strategy to intentionally draw attention to HYBE only when necessary because it's a label under the same HYBE umbrella.
We regret HYBE and BELIFT LAB's arbitrary promotion without request or consultation, even though there was no involvement with ADOR, this needs to be corrected.
From the past to the present and the details that cannot be contained in this letter, we feel it will be difficult to repair the trust that has been broken by HYBE.
It has become clear from various incidents that HYBE does not respect NewJeans. We are worried about how HYBE will use NewJeans in the future and what they will imitate from them.
With this in mind, we formally request ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin, who oversees NewJeans' contracts, to prevent HYBE and BELIFT LAB's infringement against them and protect their brand value.
According to the exclusive contract signed on April 21, 2022, ADOR will faithfully perform management services to maximize NewJeans;' talents and qualities, and will do its best to maximize profits to promote mutual benefits.
We strongly request you to take the best measures to eradicate the ongoing plagiarism controversy caused by HYBE and the marketing activities that exploit these disagreements.
Additionally, we would like to ask you to enlighten HYBE to protect NewJeans' values and realize their potential, rather than steal existing creations and use them as clout, so different labels can innovate the music industry through diverse releases and fresh ideas.
At their debut showcase, we read an article sharing what the members of 000 mentioned, "Producer Bang Si Hyuk carefully monitored our practice video and gave us feedback," and that Bang Si Hyuk was the executive producer.
If it was produced by the chairman himself and not anyone else, it's correct to use a differentiation strategy considering the existing teams inside the company. Even if there was an accidental overlap, it should be corrected immediately.
However, the interview articles suggest that he aided, abetted, and took the lead, and with these in mind, we cannot help but question HYBE's sense of ethics.
In a situation where the K-pop trend was changed by NewJeans, imitation has become so frequent that the keyword 'male NewJeans' has been created. We strongly condemn those who have gone along with this trend in the most severe form instead of preserving their uniqueness.
As a leader in the K-pop industry, HYBE should provide a practical and healthy environment for its artists. Please strongly protest to HYBE regarding the matters mentioned, as we would like to hear their response and restorative measures.
March 31, 2024
Legal Representatives of NewJeans"
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Written by Israel Monte
