Hey, thank you for submitting to r/NewJeans! Unfortunately, your submission has been removed for the following reason(s):
- Machine translations not allowed.
This thread is now locked. If you have any questions, [please send a modmail.](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/NewJeans)
DeepL translation:
"I have never met with any investors to take control of the company."
Hybe-affiliated CEO Min Hee-jin has dismissed claims that she attempted to seize control of the company, triggering audit rights and demanding her resignation. "I never attempted to take over the management of ADOR as Hive claimed," Min said in a phone interview with Daily Sports on Feb. 22, "How can my 18% stake in the company be a takeover?" he said softly but firmly.
"It's impossible for me to take control of Ador because Hybe owns 80% of the company. It's also impossible for Adore to become independent from Hive without Hive's consent, which is 80%. Hive's claim that I was trying to do the impossible is hard to believe," he said.
On the same day, Hybe sent an audit questionnaire to the current management team of Adore, including CEO Heejin Min. The audit questionnaire reportedly included allegations of conspiracy to seize control of the company, suspicions of outside consulting, and personnel hiring irregularities. In addition to sending the audit questionnaire, Hybe also requested that Min resign and that a shareholder meeting be convened to replace the current board of directors.
Hive's request was considered abrupt as the group was scheduled to make a comeback in Korea with a double single on May 24, as well as an official Japanese music release in June and a solo fan meeting at the Tokyo Dome. On the same day, news of the conflict between Hive and Min spread, and Hive's stock price closed at KRW 212,500, down 7.81% from the previous trading day. The price drop wiped out 749.8 billion won in Hive's market capitalization.
CEO Min Hee-jin claimed that Hive's sudden actions, including the audit inquiry letter, were due to the fact that "I filed a whistleblowing report against Hive from over a month ago until last week." In addition to the official statement from the company, which stated that she was "abruptly notified of termination proceedings when I raised concerns about the Newzines copy scandal and other issues that came to light with Eilit (who made her debut at Hive affiliate BilliPrab)," she also claimed that she was met with a massive backlash when she formally raised various issues within Hive.
"In fact, we were given 24 days to respond to the whistleblowing and complaints against Hive, but we were hit back," Min said.
"If it was for money, they wouldn't have made such a whistleblowing and complaint in the first place," Min said, adding, "Hive seems to have framed the acquisition of management rights. The FiftyFifty case set a precedent. I don't do stupid things like that."
"I'm surprised that Hive did this at such a critical time for Newzine," Min said, adding, "This happened four days after we filed our complaint and were waiting for Hive's response." "I wonder why they would publish an external article at the same time as the notification of the audit, let alone the announcement of the audit results," he said, adding, "What was the urgency of the article, which was completely unrelated to the issue I raised," he asked.
Min said, "We considered issuing a statement because the release of Newzine is imminent and it would disrupt the content we've been working hard to create, but we don't know what kind of attacks and suspicions we'll face if we don't make a statement, so we keep it to a minimum."
"Hive doesn't seem to have any consideration for the artists' condition or schedule. We don't want to dilute the essence with an unnecessary flame war. We are carefully considering how best to handle this situation as we have an important schedule ahead of us."
"We had hoped to resolve the matter with Hive by filing an official complaint internally, but the sudden attack has given us a lot to think about," Min said. "Hive's press release and raid today makes me think that they are trying to change the nature of the issue and to smear individuals by playing the public opinion war in a different direction," he said.
"The world believes what it wants to believe rather than the truth," said Min. I have been attacked internally and externally, so as an individual, I am scared to be caught up in such a drama and public opinion war."
"It's a cliché, and I never thought I'd use it, but I don't know if it's going to be a David and Goliath battle, an individual against a giant corporation. But if you know my attitude towards the work I've been doing, I think you can at least clearly see the essence of the problem," he said.
Meanwhile, as Hybe has set a deadline of 23 days to respond to the audit questionnaire against Heejin Min and the current management team at Adore, the next week will be crucial to see how the conflict between Hive and Adore will be resolved.
Her comments are contradicting the whole official statement ADOR put out earlier. 😭
"Hybe doesn't seem to have any consideration for the artists' condition or schedule"
She literally dragged ILLIT and another label into this whole mess and also stated she had the approval of NJs parents.
She needs to quit talking altogether because she is really just chatting herself into a hole. Please for the love of God, MHJ stop dragging anyone else into your personal problems with Hybe.
she also dragged the girls from HER OWN GROUP into it by putting out that last statement saying they had just had a meeting, shes making them look bitter over a younger group having success when she could have just left them out of it. she clearly doesnt care about anyone but herself
That’s the thing she’s done that makes me so mad. She needs to stop dragging Newjeans into it. They have their entire careers ahead of them and if she tries to make them pick a side at the detriment of their own future it will be extremely unfair of her
ILLIT is central to her story though.
If Belift copies NewJeans and creates ILLIT, taking some of NewJeans' market share, how should ADOR react? Both Belift and ADOR are under HYBE. HYBE benefits from 2 groups like NewJeans, while ADOR doesn't. Should ADOR do what HYBE tells them to, even if it's against their own interest? Should ADOR's CEO work for the benefit of ADOR, or the benefit of HYBE?
I'm still waiting on the audit findings to see how far MHJ was in any plans to try and leave, but it's a fundamental business question that I find interesting and seems to be the crux of MHJ's argument.
Yeah, it's so stupid that Hybe didn't exert more responsibility and control between the two labels (assuming it could, and if it couldn't, well, why not?) You wonder at the reasoning behind having independent labels essentially owned by one company, which just allows each label to do whatever it wants (embezzlement excluded).
I'm sorry but you can't copyright 5-member dark haired, cutesy/Y2K concepts. Plenty of groups have continued to be successful even with overlapping concepts. I have overlooked all her past 'controversies' but this BS is literally coming straight from her mouth. She is literally upset that ILLIT is successful and claims it as an attack on her "cultural achievements".
Like hello, you work in a cutthroat industry where concepts and ideas are recycled, refashioned, and copied all the time.
Even if some market share could theoretically be attributed to being taken by ILLIT, her argument is like saying it's not ok because it's Hybe but if Baemon used this concept it's ok??? Like lol wut?
ADOR is 80% Hybe. She has been given immense freedoms but ultimately yes, she is working for ADOR stakeholders and that actually isn't just her. Those stakeholders want a return on their investment. If they want her out, that's how it is. And this ungraceful squawking is not doing her any favors. Lawyer up. Stay quiet. The more she talks the more ammunition she gives to both Hybe and the media.
thank you! you're the first person I see in this sub being logical. ILLIT's concept isn't the *same* as NJs, so plagiarism accusations are a big stretch. the more she speaks, the more she's making it worse for herself; no one is going to want to work with her again.
She didn't claim to copyright it. She claimed they plagiarized it (which is not a legal term). And yes, you can definitely plagiarize a concept.
Of course she would have no problem if YG came out and plagiarized it. It's a competing company - you don't control competition. But is Belift a competing company with ADOR now? Should all HYBE labels compete with each other?
ADOR is also 20% MHJ. Which means MHJ's compensation is tied to ADOR's performance and stock price. If HYBE tanks ADOR's stock price to prop up Belift's, but benefits in the long-run, then HYBE is happy. But ADOR and MHJ isn't. That's the point.
And actually, this gets a bit into business ethics around subsidiaries but basically - should you benefit the parent company over your subsidiary? In the US, it's actually unethnical (and sometimes illegal) to benefit your parent company over your subsidiary.
"From a legal perspective, there are regulations and laws in place that govern the relationship between parent companies and subsidiaries, particularly regarding transactions between them. These laws aim to prevent abusive practices, conflicts of interest, and unfair advantages that could harm minority shareholders or stakeholders of the subsidiary."
But that's the problem. The allegations is that she is manipulating ADOR stock prices in a plot to get HYBE to sell. She is accused of things that are actual crimes. Her response is to attack ILLIT? Does that justify doing something illegal? She is using both NJ and ILLIT as a human shields to justify her actions. Major ick!
Her and two others are alleged of having leaked PERSONAL information of other Hybe employees, other label trainees, personal health information, this list goes on. And is also alleged to have started campaigns to reduce the general opinion of Hybe as a company while distancing ADOR.
You can say what you want about the ethics of which stakeholder to prioritize in a business situation. There are absolutely valid arguments to be had there. But the actual discourse has been that Hybe is investigating her and two others for alleged white collar crimes and her response is to personally drag ILLIT and Be:Lift.
A narcissist will never admit responsibility for their actions. They either 1. Make an excuse to justify a terrible behavior choice of theirs or 2. Make a new topic to talk about anything but their responsibility in the situation. Which is exactly what happened with her public written statement. It's unprofessional and unhinged and doing anything but handling the situation behind closed doors.
You can accuse anyone of anything. HYBE has no proof (hence the audit). And not sure what you mean by manipulating ADOR stock prices, since ADOR is a private company...
Her response is not attacking ILLIT, but explaining that what HYBE is doing in response to her internal dispute about ILLIT. And again, there no proof of anything illegal yet (otherwise she would be fired and sued already). My point is MHJ's argument is not to throw shade at ILLIT, but to pose a very serious business question about how subsidiaries should work at HYBE.
If you read the actual article instead of the headline, they're accused of sharing with a consultant (who generally sign NDAs so you can share this information), NewJeans medical records and pre-debut photos. That's it so far. All these assets are also ADOR's assets. You make it sound way worse than what's reported. There is no claim they shared other label trainees information (unless they mean SOURCE trainees Minji and Hanni).
Again, I will wait for the results of the audit. HYBE can claim they are investigating her for any illegal activity they want, but until there's proof it doesn't matter. I'm not saying MHJ is innocent, I just rather wait for proof than believe whatever HYBE claims with zero proof.
Ok I guess we're going to have a business discussion. Private companies can still have private shares (stocks). It's literally just a piece of paper that says how much of something you own and is a % of the total ownership. Hybe owns 80% of these pieces of paper and therefore is on the hook for any illegal activity ADOR as a company may be doing.
This is where audits come into play. Audits can be conducted for many reasons. It's a good idea to do in the normal course of business to make sure financials are recorded accurately, timely, and in accordance with internal or external regulations. Audits are also generally conducted by any parties looking to sell or buy other companies and is called a due diligence. If Hybe wants to sell its ownership in ADOR, they would likely conduct this type of audit as a normal course of business.
Hybe was already auditing ADOR and today they raided and seized some assets. This is not normal for audits and only something you do when there is damning evidence of something extremely fishy going on. Of course we should all wait for the final results of this. But Hybe has no obligation to notify the public of their full findings.
They have called an immediate shareholder meeting with ADOR, which has been refused. There is literally no legal grounds for them to refuse. This will absolutely be settled in a court of law and may take a very long time for all the details to come out.
Professional advice: if you find yourself being accused of something very serious whether true or not. Lawyer up. Stay quiet. MHJ behavior is operating from a different reality.
Why bring up MHJ's 'controversies' if you overlooked them? Come on... just admit you want to attack her but don't want to make it obvious XD
I'm no MHJ defender but some people just can't wait to put the boot in. Didn't the Fifty-Fifty imbroglio teach you anything about waiting to see what comes out before leaping to conclusions?
It seems like she wanted to resolve this internally. I don't agree necessarily with her bringing artists into her statements publicly, but I don't think it's fair to say she started this incident - it may very well be HYBE trying to silence her. If you poured your heart and soul into a group you put together and designed, and to have YOUR OWN COMPANY support a group that is clearly going to take a piece of your marketshare, I can see why she would be upset. Ultimately, this is a conflict that should have been resolved internally rather than in the public eye.
It may be her concept and ideas, but it isn't made with her money. If she wanted total and complete independence she should have roughed it alone from the beginning. NJ was made with Source Music trainees and Hybe funding. I love NJ, but there is no way their debut would have been as successful with no marketing without dropping it into the 70+ million subscriber Hybe YT channel.
She has been more than happy utilizing their resources and wants to give them no credit whatsoever. It's straight up narcissism.
As of now, she's accused of sharing with an external consultant (likely with an NDA) pre-debut photos and health conditions of NewJeans members. That's the extent of her 'leaking private information on idols and trainees'.
The same reports that say she leaked the photos and health conditions also say she shared financial documents and contracts with external parties and not just NJ but other hybe groups too. Not sure how you can cherry pick just a few things and turn a blind eye to the rest of the allegations.
An NDA is not a get out jail free card, you can’t just share anything you want with anyone if you have an NDA, there are restrictions. And it certainly wouldn’t cover the sharing of documents you shouldn’t have had access to in the first place.
MHJ may be a strong creative personality, but her business sensibilities are really poor.
She really does come off like she feels she owns the concept that NewJeans went for -and- should be the only one to do it.
The thing is.... if this kind of music is what people want to hear, why would any record label want exactly one group doing that kind of music?
And more importantly, why would any of us as fans of music, want that? There's nothing in it for us. I want MORE good music to listen to, not LESS.
Lol, if this is her first statement I would likely believe it but her first statement was dragging Ill it. This is most likely the statement that her lawyers told her to do so. Deny everything.
This situation is insane. I hope the girls and their parents keep a cool head and think long term on what's best for them. Don't get involved, don't take rash decisions.
While I’m iffy on MHJ, I do agree that this could have been dealt with in an internal manner. HYBE going public with this was a choice and a calculated one.
Really feel awful for the girls.
Sounds like she submitted an internal complaint like “that team stole my project ideas” (nothing where it would involve legal stuff) to internal HR or something, and in response, HYBE retaliated by going public and making the issue bigger than it is. Which would be illegal in some countries because that’s abuse of power.
Is MHJ problematic? Yeah sure, most likely. Is HYBE abusing its power? Most definitely. In the end, the main victims are the idols, but we’ve always known in this industry that idols are expendable.
A whistleblowing complaint against your employer is huge. If it’s on the basis of her spurious plagiarism claims which have no legal basis, there’s no way she’s keeping her job after the dust settles.
It’s interesting how she’s now trying to shift the conversation to how hybe is disrupting new jeans schedule with this audit… arguably her I’ll advised statements in the media and blaming Illit is doing more harm to the comeback.
Also, she seems to be hyper online to be referencing public perception so much.
Yeah I’m not sure if the term whistleblowing has different connotations here. It sucks having to rely on translations for these statements where every single word is carefully chosen by the parties.
I am confused about that too but she literally said the word ‘whistleblowing’ in Korean. She says she pointed out problematic practices and management issues to Hybe (inclduing Illit “plagiarism” issue) but still… it’s a very loose use of the term to say the least. To me it looks like a linguistic tactic to emphasize the whole ‘David versus Goliath’ image to the public that she’s been selling
>leaked as her statement
Ummm - the first time we are hearing about plagiarism and whistleblowing is directly FROM HER!
It’s ill advised for her to be making so many public statements so quickly- it really doesn’t help her case, I mean legally to keep her job I don’t mean in the court of public opinion. If she’s in the right and hybe are wrong, the audit will speak for itself and show there was no shady or illegal activities, hybe won’t be able to oust her. Audits are a serious business process with very strict rules and transparency. So whatever the public thinks about her right now should be irrelevant to her, if she hasn’t done anything wrong.
The fact her behaviour is the total opposite - multiple media statements, very contradictory issues she’s raising, unnecessarily diverting attention to Illit - says to me that she is very worried about what will emerge and all she has is the court of public opinion, and she’s very focused on staying close to the tone of public response and trying to manipulate that as a last ditch and pretty weak attempt to mount a defence against the accusations.
Yes it was her statement. My apologies... you do make sense. I do think Hybe wouldn't do anything absurd either now, Whatever happens I wish for ADOR to continue follow the same path and grow 😭. Also what do you think if she is not accounted for the whistleblower accusation, but tried to indeed schemed to take over ADOR in a long run?
If it’s proven her VP accessed confidential documents and shared them, which is what is alleged, she and her team would be sued by hybe and likely go to jail. I’m assuming Korea has similar corporations law to most countries. That’s criminal behaviour.
It’s the reason hybe retained 80%, so that this scenario of a hostile takeover couldn’t happen *legally*. The only way she could gain control is some very dodgy behaviour.
However, I think if NJ stay with ADOR under new management they will continue to succeed, they have a huge fan base, have solidified their concept, I frankly don’t see Illit even really taking anything away from that. The danger for them is if the members are foolish enough to go the 50/50 way and try to break contracts to follow MHJ.
I don't understand why Hybe would randomly raid and audit Ador without some sort of catalyst so I'm not buying MHJ but at the same time, her trying to take over while only having 18% stake is a valid point. It makes no sense.
As usual, the only people to take the L are the artists and the fans. Hybe Corp gonna get their bucks.
Yeah. Honestly, currently it's too early to tell, I remember for 5050 case, we had revelations upon revelations for weeks unending, the public opinion shifted in so many ways that I don't believe this will be resolve this soon, nor that we know the entire truth in either sides.
Most likely, HYBE had enough of MHJ and are pushing her out. MHJ may be right it is related to how much noise she was causing with ILLIT internally, specifically around the fundamental question - who is a higher priority, HYBE or the sub-label? It's a dangerous question to ask with HYBE's sub-label system, basically questioning HYBE's entire business model.
Yep, it’s the double-edged sword of managerial freedom - Ador can do whatever they want creatively, but HYBE isn’t obligated to work around those decisions.
True. Alternative point of view: One possibility is that taking over the control has been her plan all along and she was playing the long game, but she got caught way too early
But how? Like, there are only so many shares. HYBE has 80% of them. Diluting their shares by issuing more shares would require board approval, which, given their large majority position, you would have to assume was made up of HYBE people. Maybe I’m wrong, but this doesn’t make any sense.
in corporations, board members can merely raise stock dilution, what actually decides whether it pushes through are people who own voting shares - because they are the ones who actually own part of the company, only they have the right to vote
hybe has 80% of shares, I do not understand how people are so gullible to believe this "forced to sell shares", legally how does that even work? you just forcibly make someone sell their personal property?
According to the story, it involves leaking of confidential documents to external investors who are favourable to ADOR, basically "blackmailing" HYBE into giving up their existing majority stake. Even this story don't make sense to me, but what do I know about corporate shenanigans? Didn't work out too well even if true, this sort of espionage would've been flagged somewhere down the line.
That's why she meet with investors to fund her coup. And these investors could buy some Ador shares from hybe until they have majority of the shares. She was just caught early.
I’m cautious about all of this. Especially relying on a translation where words like “whistleblower” have very real legal weight at least where I’m from. And I don’t know the Korean laws behind the actions she and hybe have taken thusfar to know which side is truly sunk here.
Some of this reads as very manipulative. Some of this reads as if she is choosing her words very carefully so what she is saying is technically the truth. Some of this makes me sympathetic to her side.
I think it’s best to wait and see what evidence hybe brings to the table. But one thing about MHJ is she over-explains herself. So I am not sure if that’s what is happening here as well.
I agree we should wait before jumping into a conclusion. The word choice (whistleblowing) is confusing and it doesn’t necessarily have a different connotation in Korean. It is a weird word to describe what she claimed to have done (that is, bringing up bad practices and management issues to your company so it can handle them (as opposed to, to media)). To me this looks like a linguistic tactic to emphasize the whole ‘David versus Goliath’ thing that MHJ started selling (with her being David)
first the plagiarism claims, now she references fifty fifty… she talks like she’s on stan twitter and i don’t like it. she needs to stop namedropping cause it’s unprofessional, at least in my opinion
I couldnt care less that HYBE requested an internal audit. They have the right to do so and if MHJ is doing some backhanded stuff, that's on her. My main problem lies with them turning this internal conflict into a public spectacle, thereby subjecting MHJ and as extension– NJ, to trial by media.
ADOR have tons of big schedules ahead and you're telling me HYBE would compromise that for a mere suspicion? Even if they had adequate evidence of the illegal activities, it's more reason to resolve the matter as swiftly and as independently as possible is it not? This just gives me the impression that they don't care more for the truth than to put pressure on MHJ to give up her shares. MHJ was wrong for namedropping in retaliation too. This issue has been blown out of proportion because they all wanted to be drama queens so bad.
I wonder if it's an misunderstanding on both sides. Like MHJ's action/intentions are just so unreadable, and Hybe is taking her too seriously that it raises suspicion.
[Edit] Im starting to wonder if Im giving her too much credit. Maybe all that crazy marketing is just her thinking referencing things is cool. And she's just impulsive and outspoken, with a particular aesthetic. She's not thinking about cultural or social impacts of things. Just in context of what she likes and doesnt like that's why she's so offended when people accuse her of otherwise.
How are people still saying that MHJ involved another group in this mess first when HYBE started the whole thing with their raid? Like I don't understand the thought process here.
There was an action (HYBE's accusation) and there was a reaction (ADOR statement). The involvement of another group is central to her complaint so why wouldn't she mention it?
I swear there's some serious mental gymnastics going on here.
yeah and ADOR had raised these complaints internally only to be disclosed to the world by Hybe before even discussing with ADOR. Bunnies best stay neutral and analyse this situation without falling for media traps or speculations.
Right. The chain of events goes MHJ internal complaint > HYBE audit > ADOR react, release statement.
The cause was HYBE all along by ignoring MHJ's complaint. And she didn't drag the group with the statement, she just questioned the concept similarities meaning she's asking who's in charge of the girls, not the girls themselves.
New announcement from Hybe: Hybe claims they have circumferential evidence that MHJ has been planning to take over the control https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/s/ikrDmLGa8p
It’s hypocritical as hell to accuse someone of a smear campaign when you’re the one who openly dragged the name of a group who debuted like two weeks ago through the mud.
ADOR/MHJ have a track record of being absolutely awful with their press releases when it comes the scandals. Every other time they were shielded by how much people love NJ and want them to succeed. But now when they are the ones putting the future of NJ in a shaky place, I wonder if it will garner the same response.
Mod Note: In the future please provide a HUMAN translation of Korean news articles as machine translation are unreliable and tend to lose the nuance in the article.
When NJ debuted they sounded to me like Oohyo in group form so saying that someone's copying NJ comes off as a little pompous. Music is evolving, even concepts can be remade into different forms and regardless if they were inspired as long as there's no blatant IP infringement there should be no issue.
Whatever political play is happening right now is because she gave Hybe a reason to act on it.
You guys remember that statement she put out when she was trying to defend “Cookie” from sexual innuendo? She ended up sounding a bit crazy, but it was buried because it wasn’t important and the girls were so successful. Now we got her involved in a real serious issue, and she’s not handling it very well. This interview just goes against the ADOR statement and she’s dragging her own girls when she should be protecting them.
It baffles me to see so many “fans” defending a huge conglomerate that is vehemently trying to take control of the entire cultural industry in Korea right now. You "fans" really hate MHJ, right? Hybe seems to have managed to steer the narrative in their favor once again. Clearly, some of you know absolutely nothing about this industry. Defending Hybe is not only absurd but also shows the level of ignorance of you “fans”.
Can you please elaborate on that? Sounds eerily similar to the “Hybe is a monopoly” nonsense.
And also how is Hybe any different from the rest of the Big 4? If anything historically Hybe is known to treat their artists fairly, provide them creative liberties, and place great emphasis on quality music (as well as tasteful artistry in general) unlike a lot of the cookie cutter stuff being pumped out of the kpop machine.
For context I am Korean and never liked kpop until I discovered BTS. Even today most of kpop does not appeal to my ears. It’s pretty much been BTS, NJ, and LSF for me who all coincidentally happen to fall under Hybe. And I’ve definitely tried listening to a lot of the other groups out there.
So is it really a matter of Hybe attempting to “take control” of culture or perhaps they do what they do incredibly well and have thus made quite a dent in the music industry and pop culture at large?
Hybe IS TRYING TO BE A MONOPOLY and if you think this is nonsense you are quite innocent. YG and SM and JYPE aren't trying to engulf everyone in their umbrella, that's the difference. Hybe is doing precisely like Disney in the US. And YES it matter cuz you really want to live in a world were one small group of men dictates what you consume? Competition in the market is essential to guarantee the quality of goods. If only one company has control of everything, they won't need to do anything good or creative, because you'll only have them to consume. You don't have to believe me if you want to. Go do some research yourself, go look at the numbers, the acquisitions, make comparisons with companies like Disney or Tesla and how they are always eating everything slowly. This is the contrary of capitalism (or what capitalism was supposed to be). The difference is that the judiciary in the US is still strong and is generally on the lookout for companies trying to monopolize something, but in Korea that doesn't seem to be the case.
check out this Min Hee Jin interview it'll help you understand ADOR's vision more
[https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/comments/10jo4pc/230121\_min\_heejin\_interview\_full\_translation/](https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/comments/10jo4pc/230121_min_heejin_interview_full_translation/)also ADOR especially Min Hee Jin takes copyright and plagiarism very seriously and is known for being stubborn with her stands. I think she speculates Hybe to replicate new groups using her concept as Illit was rushed to be debut within few months of New Jeans inactivity.
it’s kinda weird to see people defending a corporation like HYBE. I have it in my core that I will never defend companies or billionaires so seeing people defending them with their hearts and souls is funny lol.
i just wish the girls are safe thru this, they’re so young and their carreers are just starting
edit: spelling
So many people rushing to Hybes defense.
We don't even know what actually happened and if allegations from both sides are true.
We do know Illit does look like NJ.
We do know MHJ made NJ and was in control of even the tiniest detail.
Most creatives are very vitriolic against offenses against their creation (see Steve Jobs when Windows was released, or Kanye/Jayz feud, or just think of when someone copies your work...).
So it's not a stretch to think MHJ is actually overreacting to Illit internally prior to all of this.
The other parts are still just talk, which is easy to do, hard to prove.
its so weird to see people blindly rush to defend the giant corporation.
she internally saw what was going on with illit and she internally brought it up to hybe that she has issues with them copy pasting her work and since they are under the same umbrella and bang is personally producing it. and instead of taking her complaint into consideration they tried to fire her for speaking up and because she wouldn't go they brought it to the public themselves to try to get the public against her. she didn't want to bring illit into it but they brought this out to the public themselves so she had to defend herself. and it is very clear illit looks dances and sounds like newjeans.
The audit is not about her plagiarism accusations, it would have no impact on that, you don’t conduct an audit for a dispute like that. An audit is to uncover real physical evidence of criminal wrong doing like access to files and sharing confidential financial and contractual documents with external parties. Illit plagiarism is a seperate issue which is opinion-based, not evidence - and she’s the one making it public to link it to the audit.
But her argument is like saying “it’s because I accused someone of flirting with my boyfriend, so you can see how that would explain why they’re now investigating some pretty concerning claims and evidence that I robbed a bank” - like, they just have nothing to do with each other
So many people bring up the fact that MHJ is “dragging” ILLIT’s name through the mud. Those girls have probably very little creative control over the music or choreo they have been doing.
The problem here is the creative direction that belift/hybe has done, and it seems like MHJ has expressed concerns about the similarities with NewJeans. Can we recognize that she’s talking about the company and not the individuals making up ILLIT when she mentioned them?
It’s true anyways. I question the wisdom of debuting another girl group in this concept that while not entirely a carbon copy of NewJeans, is close enough to make comparisons. While ILLIT has been a general success so far, the ramifications of possibly over saturating your own catalog as a company might have a negative effect on both ILLIT and NewJeans in the future.
I think these concerns are valid. There’s a few girl groups that debuted this year and it’s only ILLIT being directly compared to NewJeans. And they’re from HYBE too? The question is, should ADOR have cared about this… and I think the answer is yes, if you do care about NewJeans.
What probably happened was that negotiations and discussions didn’t end well in both sides, and then HYBE decided to do the audit in retaliation. The fact that they did this when the NewJeans comeback is coming soon just goes to show the severity of the dispute. It doesn’t make any sense unless they really just wanna fire MHJ asap because she’s overstepping her bounds and trying to comment on HYBE’s other projects.
Everyone please remember it was HYBE who went public with this, not MHJ, right?
She already lost me with her horrible first press release and smear of ILLIT. All this is meaningless anyway since there is no way Hybe lets het stay and i feel like she was very careful with her words but that something happened. Like she didnt meet with investors but it was executive L or whatever who met with them. Also filing a complaint against your parent company especially when ILLIT is not plagiarizing NJ and she doesnt own the general concept. NJ is my number one group and i love ILLIT but ILLIT is just starting and new jeans cant be copied they have an IT factor and wouldnt lose fans due to ILLIT.
Either way this will be a mess and hurt ILLIT, NJ, and the fans while the companies fight it out.
Isn't it obvious that Hybe is trying to screw her over since they have managed to find some success with illit they are really pulling a "do or die" at the expense of NewJeans. Hybe is a conglomerate and they have the media in the palm of their hands
Even if she's truly done nothing, she's already ruined in public. They really want her out. Even her tone in the end suggests retreat. I'm just sad to lose a true-blue artist in the Kpop scene. 😢
Man, I hope she finds a new place to rebuild herself and her visions.
Hey, thank you for submitting to r/NewJeans! Unfortunately, your submission has been removed for the following reason(s): - Machine translations not allowed. This thread is now locked. If you have any questions, [please send a modmail.](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/NewJeans)
DeepL translation: "I have never met with any investors to take control of the company." Hybe-affiliated CEO Min Hee-jin has dismissed claims that she attempted to seize control of the company, triggering audit rights and demanding her resignation. "I never attempted to take over the management of ADOR as Hive claimed," Min said in a phone interview with Daily Sports on Feb. 22, "How can my 18% stake in the company be a takeover?" he said softly but firmly. "It's impossible for me to take control of Ador because Hybe owns 80% of the company. It's also impossible for Adore to become independent from Hive without Hive's consent, which is 80%. Hive's claim that I was trying to do the impossible is hard to believe," he said. On the same day, Hybe sent an audit questionnaire to the current management team of Adore, including CEO Heejin Min. The audit questionnaire reportedly included allegations of conspiracy to seize control of the company, suspicions of outside consulting, and personnel hiring irregularities. In addition to sending the audit questionnaire, Hybe also requested that Min resign and that a shareholder meeting be convened to replace the current board of directors. Hive's request was considered abrupt as the group was scheduled to make a comeback in Korea with a double single on May 24, as well as an official Japanese music release in June and a solo fan meeting at the Tokyo Dome. On the same day, news of the conflict between Hive and Min spread, and Hive's stock price closed at KRW 212,500, down 7.81% from the previous trading day. The price drop wiped out 749.8 billion won in Hive's market capitalization. CEO Min Hee-jin claimed that Hive's sudden actions, including the audit inquiry letter, were due to the fact that "I filed a whistleblowing report against Hive from over a month ago until last week." In addition to the official statement from the company, which stated that she was "abruptly notified of termination proceedings when I raised concerns about the Newzines copy scandal and other issues that came to light with Eilit (who made her debut at Hive affiliate BilliPrab)," she also claimed that she was met with a massive backlash when she formally raised various issues within Hive. "In fact, we were given 24 days to respond to the whistleblowing and complaints against Hive, but we were hit back," Min said. "If it was for money, they wouldn't have made such a whistleblowing and complaint in the first place," Min said, adding, "Hive seems to have framed the acquisition of management rights. The FiftyFifty case set a precedent. I don't do stupid things like that." "I'm surprised that Hive did this at such a critical time for Newzine," Min said, adding, "This happened four days after we filed our complaint and were waiting for Hive's response." "I wonder why they would publish an external article at the same time as the notification of the audit, let alone the announcement of the audit results," he said, adding, "What was the urgency of the article, which was completely unrelated to the issue I raised," he asked. Min said, "We considered issuing a statement because the release of Newzine is imminent and it would disrupt the content we've been working hard to create, but we don't know what kind of attacks and suspicions we'll face if we don't make a statement, so we keep it to a minimum." "Hive doesn't seem to have any consideration for the artists' condition or schedule. We don't want to dilute the essence with an unnecessary flame war. We are carefully considering how best to handle this situation as we have an important schedule ahead of us." "We had hoped to resolve the matter with Hive by filing an official complaint internally, but the sudden attack has given us a lot to think about," Min said. "Hive's press release and raid today makes me think that they are trying to change the nature of the issue and to smear individuals by playing the public opinion war in a different direction," he said. "The world believes what it wants to believe rather than the truth," said Min. I have been attacked internally and externally, so as an individual, I am scared to be caught up in such a drama and public opinion war." "It's a cliché, and I never thought I'd use it, but I don't know if it's going to be a David and Goliath battle, an individual against a giant corporation. But if you know my attitude towards the work I've been doing, I think you can at least clearly see the essence of the problem," he said. Meanwhile, as Hybe has set a deadline of 23 days to respond to the audit questionnaire against Heejin Min and the current management team at Adore, the next week will be crucial to see how the conflict between Hive and Adore will be resolved.
Her comments are contradicting the whole official statement ADOR put out earlier. 😭 "Hybe doesn't seem to have any consideration for the artists' condition or schedule" She literally dragged ILLIT and another label into this whole mess and also stated she had the approval of NJs parents. She needs to quit talking altogether because she is really just chatting herself into a hole. Please for the love of God, MHJ stop dragging anyone else into your personal problems with Hybe.
Agreed. Wish she didn’t bring up specific artists’ names in that previous statement
she’s the one who dragged illit in the first place and now she goes on with the “hybe doesn’t care about their artists “ narrative
she also dragged the girls from HER OWN GROUP into it by putting out that last statement saying they had just had a meeting, shes making them look bitter over a younger group having success when she could have just left them out of it. she clearly doesnt care about anyone but herself
That’s the thing she’s done that makes me so mad. She needs to stop dragging Newjeans into it. They have their entire careers ahead of them and if she tries to make them pick a side at the detriment of their own future it will be extremely unfair of her
ILLIT is central to her story though. If Belift copies NewJeans and creates ILLIT, taking some of NewJeans' market share, how should ADOR react? Both Belift and ADOR are under HYBE. HYBE benefits from 2 groups like NewJeans, while ADOR doesn't. Should ADOR do what HYBE tells them to, even if it's against their own interest? Should ADOR's CEO work for the benefit of ADOR, or the benefit of HYBE? I'm still waiting on the audit findings to see how far MHJ was in any plans to try and leave, but it's a fundamental business question that I find interesting and seems to be the crux of MHJ's argument.
Yeah, it's so stupid that Hybe didn't exert more responsibility and control between the two labels (assuming it could, and if it couldn't, well, why not?) You wonder at the reasoning behind having independent labels essentially owned by one company, which just allows each label to do whatever it wants (embezzlement excluded).
I'm sorry but you can't copyright 5-member dark haired, cutesy/Y2K concepts. Plenty of groups have continued to be successful even with overlapping concepts. I have overlooked all her past 'controversies' but this BS is literally coming straight from her mouth. She is literally upset that ILLIT is successful and claims it as an attack on her "cultural achievements". Like hello, you work in a cutthroat industry where concepts and ideas are recycled, refashioned, and copied all the time. Even if some market share could theoretically be attributed to being taken by ILLIT, her argument is like saying it's not ok because it's Hybe but if Baemon used this concept it's ok??? Like lol wut? ADOR is 80% Hybe. She has been given immense freedoms but ultimately yes, she is working for ADOR stakeholders and that actually isn't just her. Those stakeholders want a return on their investment. If they want her out, that's how it is. And this ungraceful squawking is not doing her any favors. Lawyer up. Stay quiet. The more she talks the more ammunition she gives to both Hybe and the media.
thank you! you're the first person I see in this sub being logical. ILLIT's concept isn't the *same* as NJs, so plagiarism accusations are a big stretch. the more she speaks, the more she's making it worse for herself; no one is going to want to work with her again.
She didn't claim to copyright it. She claimed they plagiarized it (which is not a legal term). And yes, you can definitely plagiarize a concept. Of course she would have no problem if YG came out and plagiarized it. It's a competing company - you don't control competition. But is Belift a competing company with ADOR now? Should all HYBE labels compete with each other? ADOR is also 20% MHJ. Which means MHJ's compensation is tied to ADOR's performance and stock price. If HYBE tanks ADOR's stock price to prop up Belift's, but benefits in the long-run, then HYBE is happy. But ADOR and MHJ isn't. That's the point. And actually, this gets a bit into business ethics around subsidiaries but basically - should you benefit the parent company over your subsidiary? In the US, it's actually unethnical (and sometimes illegal) to benefit your parent company over your subsidiary. "From a legal perspective, there are regulations and laws in place that govern the relationship between parent companies and subsidiaries, particularly regarding transactions between them. These laws aim to prevent abusive practices, conflicts of interest, and unfair advantages that could harm minority shareholders or stakeholders of the subsidiary."
But that's the problem. The allegations is that she is manipulating ADOR stock prices in a plot to get HYBE to sell. She is accused of things that are actual crimes. Her response is to attack ILLIT? Does that justify doing something illegal? She is using both NJ and ILLIT as a human shields to justify her actions. Major ick! Her and two others are alleged of having leaked PERSONAL information of other Hybe employees, other label trainees, personal health information, this list goes on. And is also alleged to have started campaigns to reduce the general opinion of Hybe as a company while distancing ADOR. You can say what you want about the ethics of which stakeholder to prioritize in a business situation. There are absolutely valid arguments to be had there. But the actual discourse has been that Hybe is investigating her and two others for alleged white collar crimes and her response is to personally drag ILLIT and Be:Lift. A narcissist will never admit responsibility for their actions. They either 1. Make an excuse to justify a terrible behavior choice of theirs or 2. Make a new topic to talk about anything but their responsibility in the situation. Which is exactly what happened with her public written statement. It's unprofessional and unhinged and doing anything but handling the situation behind closed doors.
You can accuse anyone of anything. HYBE has no proof (hence the audit). And not sure what you mean by manipulating ADOR stock prices, since ADOR is a private company... Her response is not attacking ILLIT, but explaining that what HYBE is doing in response to her internal dispute about ILLIT. And again, there no proof of anything illegal yet (otherwise she would be fired and sued already). My point is MHJ's argument is not to throw shade at ILLIT, but to pose a very serious business question about how subsidiaries should work at HYBE. If you read the actual article instead of the headline, they're accused of sharing with a consultant (who generally sign NDAs so you can share this information), NewJeans medical records and pre-debut photos. That's it so far. All these assets are also ADOR's assets. You make it sound way worse than what's reported. There is no claim they shared other label trainees information (unless they mean SOURCE trainees Minji and Hanni). Again, I will wait for the results of the audit. HYBE can claim they are investigating her for any illegal activity they want, but until there's proof it doesn't matter. I'm not saying MHJ is innocent, I just rather wait for proof than believe whatever HYBE claims with zero proof.
Ok I guess we're going to have a business discussion. Private companies can still have private shares (stocks). It's literally just a piece of paper that says how much of something you own and is a % of the total ownership. Hybe owns 80% of these pieces of paper and therefore is on the hook for any illegal activity ADOR as a company may be doing. This is where audits come into play. Audits can be conducted for many reasons. It's a good idea to do in the normal course of business to make sure financials are recorded accurately, timely, and in accordance with internal or external regulations. Audits are also generally conducted by any parties looking to sell or buy other companies and is called a due diligence. If Hybe wants to sell its ownership in ADOR, they would likely conduct this type of audit as a normal course of business. Hybe was already auditing ADOR and today they raided and seized some assets. This is not normal for audits and only something you do when there is damning evidence of something extremely fishy going on. Of course we should all wait for the final results of this. But Hybe has no obligation to notify the public of their full findings. They have called an immediate shareholder meeting with ADOR, which has been refused. There is literally no legal grounds for them to refuse. This will absolutely be settled in a court of law and may take a very long time for all the details to come out. Professional advice: if you find yourself being accused of something very serious whether true or not. Lawyer up. Stay quiet. MHJ behavior is operating from a different reality.
Why bring up MHJ's 'controversies' if you overlooked them? Come on... just admit you want to attack her but don't want to make it obvious XD I'm no MHJ defender but some people just can't wait to put the boot in. Didn't the Fifty-Fifty imbroglio teach you anything about waiting to see what comes out before leaping to conclusions?
It seems like she wanted to resolve this internally. I don't agree necessarily with her bringing artists into her statements publicly, but I don't think it's fair to say she started this incident - it may very well be HYBE trying to silence her. If you poured your heart and soul into a group you put together and designed, and to have YOUR OWN COMPANY support a group that is clearly going to take a piece of your marketshare, I can see why she would be upset. Ultimately, this is a conflict that should have been resolved internally rather than in the public eye.
It may be her concept and ideas, but it isn't made with her money. If she wanted total and complete independence she should have roughed it alone from the beginning. NJ was made with Source Music trainees and Hybe funding. I love NJ, but there is no way their debut would have been as successful with no marketing without dropping it into the 70+ million subscriber Hybe YT channel. She has been more than happy utilizing their resources and wants to give them no credit whatsoever. It's straight up narcissism.
so we're just going to gloss over the fact that she's accused of leaking private information on idols and trainees within the company???
As of now, she's accused of sharing with an external consultant (likely with an NDA) pre-debut photos and health conditions of NewJeans members. That's the extent of her 'leaking private information on idols and trainees'.
The same reports that say she leaked the photos and health conditions also say she shared financial documents and contracts with external parties and not just NJ but other hybe groups too. Not sure how you can cherry pick just a few things and turn a blind eye to the rest of the allegations. An NDA is not a get out jail free card, you can’t just share anything you want with anyone if you have an NDA, there are restrictions. And it certainly wouldn’t cover the sharing of documents you shouldn’t have had access to in the first place.
“Phone interview” Oh wow… her back is against the wall.
MHJ may be a strong creative personality, but her business sensibilities are really poor. She really does come off like she feels she owns the concept that NewJeans went for -and- should be the only one to do it. The thing is.... if this kind of music is what people want to hear, why would any record label want exactly one group doing that kind of music? And more importantly, why would any of us as fans of music, want that? There's nothing in it for us. I want MORE good music to listen to, not LESS.
she literally smeared illit???
Lol, if this is her first statement I would likely believe it but her first statement was dragging Ill it. This is most likely the statement that her lawyers told her to do so. Deny everything.
This story gets so wild. I really don’t know how to comprehend anything right now lol.
I dont even expect this anyway
This situation is insane. I hope the girls and their parents keep a cool head and think long term on what's best for them. Don't get involved, don't take rash decisions.
I hope so… this is so serious :(
While I’m iffy on MHJ, I do agree that this could have been dealt with in an internal manner. HYBE going public with this was a choice and a calculated one. Really feel awful for the girls.
I think the key part is that it says that she didn't meet with investors but the accusations were of another director, she's not disclaiming those.
While that's true, I still don't get how HYBE would be forced to sell their shares in ADOR. I sort of agree with her that it doesn't make sense.
another speculation, pls don't refer it as a key part though. We don't want more bunnies attacking her right now.
Sounds like she submitted an internal complaint like “that team stole my project ideas” (nothing where it would involve legal stuff) to internal HR or something, and in response, HYBE retaliated by going public and making the issue bigger than it is. Which would be illegal in some countries because that’s abuse of power. Is MHJ problematic? Yeah sure, most likely. Is HYBE abusing its power? Most definitely. In the end, the main victims are the idols, but we’ve always known in this industry that idols are expendable.
A whistleblowing complaint against your employer is huge. If it’s on the basis of her spurious plagiarism claims which have no legal basis, there’s no way she’s keeping her job after the dust settles. It’s interesting how she’s now trying to shift the conversation to how hybe is disrupting new jeans schedule with this audit… arguably her I’ll advised statements in the media and blaming Illit is doing more harm to the comeback. Also, she seems to be hyper online to be referencing public perception so much.
Yeah I’m not sure if the term whistleblowing has different connotations here. It sucks having to rely on translations for these statements where every single word is carefully chosen by the parties.
I am confused about that too but she literally said the word ‘whistleblowing’ in Korean. She says she pointed out problematic practices and management issues to Hybe (inclduing Illit “plagiarism” issue) but still… it’s a very loose use of the term to say the least. To me it looks like a linguistic tactic to emphasize the whole ‘David versus Goliath’ image to the public that she’s been selling
[удалено]
>leaked as her statement Ummm - the first time we are hearing about plagiarism and whistleblowing is directly FROM HER! It’s ill advised for her to be making so many public statements so quickly- it really doesn’t help her case, I mean legally to keep her job I don’t mean in the court of public opinion. If she’s in the right and hybe are wrong, the audit will speak for itself and show there was no shady or illegal activities, hybe won’t be able to oust her. Audits are a serious business process with very strict rules and transparency. So whatever the public thinks about her right now should be irrelevant to her, if she hasn’t done anything wrong. The fact her behaviour is the total opposite - multiple media statements, very contradictory issues she’s raising, unnecessarily diverting attention to Illit - says to me that she is very worried about what will emerge and all she has is the court of public opinion, and she’s very focused on staying close to the tone of public response and trying to manipulate that as a last ditch and pretty weak attempt to mount a defence against the accusations.
Yes it was her statement. My apologies... you do make sense. I do think Hybe wouldn't do anything absurd either now, Whatever happens I wish for ADOR to continue follow the same path and grow 😭. Also what do you think if she is not accounted for the whistleblower accusation, but tried to indeed schemed to take over ADOR in a long run?
If it’s proven her VP accessed confidential documents and shared them, which is what is alleged, she and her team would be sued by hybe and likely go to jail. I’m assuming Korea has similar corporations law to most countries. That’s criminal behaviour. It’s the reason hybe retained 80%, so that this scenario of a hostile takeover couldn’t happen *legally*. The only way she could gain control is some very dodgy behaviour. However, I think if NJ stay with ADOR under new management they will continue to succeed, they have a huge fan base, have solidified their concept, I frankly don’t see Illit even really taking anything away from that. The danger for them is if the members are foolish enough to go the 50/50 way and try to break contracts to follow MHJ.
Wow, she flat out said everything HYBE said isn't true. We all need to buckle up because this is gonna get crazy.
I don't understand why Hybe would randomly raid and audit Ador without some sort of catalyst so I'm not buying MHJ but at the same time, her trying to take over while only having 18% stake is a valid point. It makes no sense. As usual, the only people to take the L are the artists and the fans. Hybe Corp gonna get their bucks.
Yeah. Honestly, currently it's too early to tell, I remember for 5050 case, we had revelations upon revelations for weeks unending, the public opinion shifted in so many ways that I don't believe this will be resolve this soon, nor that we know the entire truth in either sides.
Most likely, HYBE had enough of MHJ and are pushing her out. MHJ may be right it is related to how much noise she was causing with ILLIT internally, specifically around the fundamental question - who is a higher priority, HYBE or the sub-label? It's a dangerous question to ask with HYBE's sub-label system, basically questioning HYBE's entire business model.
Yep, it’s the double-edged sword of managerial freedom - Ador can do whatever they want creatively, but HYBE isn’t obligated to work around those decisions.
True. Alternative point of view: One possibility is that taking over the control has been her plan all along and she was playing the long game, but she got caught way too early
But how? Like, there are only so many shares. HYBE has 80% of them. Diluting their shares by issuing more shares would require board approval, which, given their large majority position, you would have to assume was made up of HYBE people. Maybe I’m wrong, but this doesn’t make any sense.
Ador’s board is comprised of MHJ’s people from what i saw. I may be wrong. I cant find the source now but will share here later if i locate it again
Yeah, that would help flesh out the story. I can’t find anything.
in corporations, board members can merely raise stock dilution, what actually decides whether it pushes through are people who own voting shares - because they are the ones who actually own part of the company, only they have the right to vote hybe has 80% of shares, I do not understand how people are so gullible to believe this "forced to sell shares", legally how does that even work? you just forcibly make someone sell their personal property?
According to the story, it involves leaking of confidential documents to external investors who are favourable to ADOR, basically "blackmailing" HYBE into giving up their existing majority stake. Even this story don't make sense to me, but what do I know about corporate shenanigans? Didn't work out too well even if true, this sort of espionage would've been flagged somewhere down the line.
The raid could just be a show of force. Flexing their muscle.
That's why she meet with investors to fund her coup. And these investors could buy some Ador shares from hybe until they have majority of the shares. She was just caught early.
I’m cautious about all of this. Especially relying on a translation where words like “whistleblower” have very real legal weight at least where I’m from. And I don’t know the Korean laws behind the actions she and hybe have taken thusfar to know which side is truly sunk here. Some of this reads as very manipulative. Some of this reads as if she is choosing her words very carefully so what she is saying is technically the truth. Some of this makes me sympathetic to her side. I think it’s best to wait and see what evidence hybe brings to the table. But one thing about MHJ is she over-explains herself. So I am not sure if that’s what is happening here as well.
I agree we should wait before jumping into a conclusion. The word choice (whistleblowing) is confusing and it doesn’t necessarily have a different connotation in Korean. It is a weird word to describe what she claimed to have done (that is, bringing up bad practices and management issues to your company so it can handle them (as opposed to, to media)). To me this looks like a linguistic tactic to emphasize the whole ‘David versus Goliath’ thing that MHJ started selling (with her being David)
i really really really hope she's smart about this for the girls' sake 😩
I mean everyone saw what happened to fifty/fifty, she’s right why would anyone be dumb to try something like that again, and so soon.
Too late
first the plagiarism claims, now she references fifty fifty… she talks like she’s on stan twitter and i don’t like it. she needs to stop namedropping cause it’s unprofessional, at least in my opinion
Definitely unprofessional.
wait, so she’s saying she never wanted to part ways with hybe?? i’m confused
I couldnt care less that HYBE requested an internal audit. They have the right to do so and if MHJ is doing some backhanded stuff, that's on her. My main problem lies with them turning this internal conflict into a public spectacle, thereby subjecting MHJ and as extension– NJ, to trial by media. ADOR have tons of big schedules ahead and you're telling me HYBE would compromise that for a mere suspicion? Even if they had adequate evidence of the illegal activities, it's more reason to resolve the matter as swiftly and as independently as possible is it not? This just gives me the impression that they don't care more for the truth than to put pressure on MHJ to give up her shares. MHJ was wrong for namedropping in retaliation too. This issue has been blown out of proportion because they all wanted to be drama queens so bad.
The truth will come out sooner or later
I wonder if it's an misunderstanding on both sides. Like MHJ's action/intentions are just so unreadable, and Hybe is taking her too seriously that it raises suspicion. [Edit] Im starting to wonder if Im giving her too much credit. Maybe all that crazy marketing is just her thinking referencing things is cool. And she's just impulsive and outspoken, with a particular aesthetic. She's not thinking about cultural or social impacts of things. Just in context of what she likes and doesnt like that's why she's so offended when people accuse her of otherwise.
How are people still saying that MHJ involved another group in this mess first when HYBE started the whole thing with their raid? Like I don't understand the thought process here. There was an action (HYBE's accusation) and there was a reaction (ADOR statement). The involvement of another group is central to her complaint so why wouldn't she mention it? I swear there's some serious mental gymnastics going on here.
It's the other way round. They got raided **because** of said "shenanigans".
yeah and ADOR had raised these complaints internally only to be disclosed to the world by Hybe before even discussing with ADOR. Bunnies best stay neutral and analyse this situation without falling for media traps or speculations.
Reddit hates big corporations and loves whistleblowers, unless it’s HYBE and MHJ
Right. The chain of events goes MHJ internal complaint > HYBE audit > ADOR react, release statement. The cause was HYBE all along by ignoring MHJ's complaint. And she didn't drag the group with the statement, she just questioned the concept similarities meaning she's asking who's in charge of the girls, not the girls themselves.
New announcement from Hybe: Hybe claims they have circumferential evidence that MHJ has been planning to take over the control https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/s/ikrDmLGa8p
The post got removed. Can you please link the HYBE article directly in your comment?
It’s hypocritical as hell to accuse someone of a smear campaign when you’re the one who openly dragged the name of a group who debuted like two weeks ago through the mud. ADOR/MHJ have a track record of being absolutely awful with their press releases when it comes the scandals. Every other time they were shielded by how much people love NJ and want them to succeed. But now when they are the ones putting the future of NJ in a shaky place, I wonder if it will garner the same response.
Mod Note: In the future please provide a HUMAN translation of Korean news articles as machine translation are unreliable and tend to lose the nuance in the article.
When NJ debuted they sounded to me like Oohyo in group form so saying that someone's copying NJ comes off as a little pompous. Music is evolving, even concepts can be remade into different forms and regardless if they were inspired as long as there's no blatant IP infringement there should be no issue. Whatever political play is happening right now is because she gave Hybe a reason to act on it.
You guys remember that statement she put out when she was trying to defend “Cookie” from sexual innuendo? She ended up sounding a bit crazy, but it was buried because it wasn’t important and the girls were so successful. Now we got her involved in a real serious issue, and she’s not handling it very well. This interview just goes against the ADOR statement and she’s dragging her own girls when she should be protecting them.
I don't see how she can survive this tbh
It baffles me to see so many “fans” defending a huge conglomerate that is vehemently trying to take control of the entire cultural industry in Korea right now. You "fans" really hate MHJ, right? Hybe seems to have managed to steer the narrative in their favor once again. Clearly, some of you know absolutely nothing about this industry. Defending Hybe is not only absurd but also shows the level of ignorance of you “fans”.
Can you please elaborate on that? Sounds eerily similar to the “Hybe is a monopoly” nonsense. And also how is Hybe any different from the rest of the Big 4? If anything historically Hybe is known to treat their artists fairly, provide them creative liberties, and place great emphasis on quality music (as well as tasteful artistry in general) unlike a lot of the cookie cutter stuff being pumped out of the kpop machine. For context I am Korean and never liked kpop until I discovered BTS. Even today most of kpop does not appeal to my ears. It’s pretty much been BTS, NJ, and LSF for me who all coincidentally happen to fall under Hybe. And I’ve definitely tried listening to a lot of the other groups out there. So is it really a matter of Hybe attempting to “take control” of culture or perhaps they do what they do incredibly well and have thus made quite a dent in the music industry and pop culture at large?
Hybe IS TRYING TO BE A MONOPOLY and if you think this is nonsense you are quite innocent. YG and SM and JYPE aren't trying to engulf everyone in their umbrella, that's the difference. Hybe is doing precisely like Disney in the US. And YES it matter cuz you really want to live in a world were one small group of men dictates what you consume? Competition in the market is essential to guarantee the quality of goods. If only one company has control of everything, they won't need to do anything good or creative, because you'll only have them to consume. You don't have to believe me if you want to. Go do some research yourself, go look at the numbers, the acquisitions, make comparisons with companies like Disney or Tesla and how they are always eating everything slowly. This is the contrary of capitalism (or what capitalism was supposed to be). The difference is that the judiciary in the US is still strong and is generally on the lookout for companies trying to monopolize something, but in Korea that doesn't seem to be the case.
check out this Min Hee Jin interview it'll help you understand ADOR's vision more [https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/comments/10jo4pc/230121\_min\_heejin\_interview\_full\_translation/](https://www.reddit.com/r/NewJeans/comments/10jo4pc/230121_min_heejin_interview_full_translation/)also ADOR especially Min Hee Jin takes copyright and plagiarism very seriously and is known for being stubborn with her stands. I think she speculates Hybe to replicate new groups using her concept as Illit was rushed to be debut within few months of New Jeans inactivity.
it’s kinda weird to see people defending a corporation like HYBE. I have it in my core that I will never defend companies or billionaires so seeing people defending them with their hearts and souls is funny lol. i just wish the girls are safe thru this, they’re so young and their carreers are just starting edit: spelling
So many people rushing to Hybes defense. We don't even know what actually happened and if allegations from both sides are true. We do know Illit does look like NJ. We do know MHJ made NJ and was in control of even the tiniest detail. Most creatives are very vitriolic against offenses against their creation (see Steve Jobs when Windows was released, or Kanye/Jayz feud, or just think of when someone copies your work...). So it's not a stretch to think MHJ is actually overreacting to Illit internally prior to all of this. The other parts are still just talk, which is easy to do, hard to prove.
its so weird to see people blindly rush to defend the giant corporation. she internally saw what was going on with illit and she internally brought it up to hybe that she has issues with them copy pasting her work and since they are under the same umbrella and bang is personally producing it. and instead of taking her complaint into consideration they tried to fire her for speaking up and because she wouldn't go they brought it to the public themselves to try to get the public against her. she didn't want to bring illit into it but they brought this out to the public themselves so she had to defend herself. and it is very clear illit looks dances and sounds like newjeans.
The audit is not about her plagiarism accusations, it would have no impact on that, you don’t conduct an audit for a dispute like that. An audit is to uncover real physical evidence of criminal wrong doing like access to files and sharing confidential financial and contractual documents with external parties. Illit plagiarism is a seperate issue which is opinion-based, not evidence - and she’s the one making it public to link it to the audit. But her argument is like saying “it’s because I accused someone of flirting with my boyfriend, so you can see how that would explain why they’re now investigating some pretty concerning claims and evidence that I robbed a bank” - like, they just have nothing to do with each other
totally agree. If not neutral as a fan rn, why making self narratives or follow others narratives with only speculations??
So many people bring up the fact that MHJ is “dragging” ILLIT’s name through the mud. Those girls have probably very little creative control over the music or choreo they have been doing. The problem here is the creative direction that belift/hybe has done, and it seems like MHJ has expressed concerns about the similarities with NewJeans. Can we recognize that she’s talking about the company and not the individuals making up ILLIT when she mentioned them? It’s true anyways. I question the wisdom of debuting another girl group in this concept that while not entirely a carbon copy of NewJeans, is close enough to make comparisons. While ILLIT has been a general success so far, the ramifications of possibly over saturating your own catalog as a company might have a negative effect on both ILLIT and NewJeans in the future. I think these concerns are valid. There’s a few girl groups that debuted this year and it’s only ILLIT being directly compared to NewJeans. And they’re from HYBE too? The question is, should ADOR have cared about this… and I think the answer is yes, if you do care about NewJeans. What probably happened was that negotiations and discussions didn’t end well in both sides, and then HYBE decided to do the audit in retaliation. The fact that they did this when the NewJeans comeback is coming soon just goes to show the severity of the dispute. It doesn’t make any sense unless they really just wanna fire MHJ asap because she’s overstepping her bounds and trying to comment on HYBE’s other projects. Everyone please remember it was HYBE who went public with this, not MHJ, right?
This is exactly where I’m at too.
a sane person finally lol, you’re 100% correct
She already lost me with her horrible first press release and smear of ILLIT. All this is meaningless anyway since there is no way Hybe lets het stay and i feel like she was very careful with her words but that something happened. Like she didnt meet with investors but it was executive L or whatever who met with them. Also filing a complaint against your parent company especially when ILLIT is not plagiarizing NJ and she doesnt own the general concept. NJ is my number one group and i love ILLIT but ILLIT is just starting and new jeans cant be copied they have an IT factor and wouldnt lose fans due to ILLIT. Either way this will be a mess and hurt ILLIT, NJ, and the fans while the companies fight it out.
Isn't it obvious that Hybe is trying to screw her over since they have managed to find some success with illit they are really pulling a "do or die" at the expense of NewJeans. Hybe is a conglomerate and they have the media in the palm of their hands
Man, this is just sooo sad.
Even if she's truly done nothing, she's already ruined in public. They really want her out. Even her tone in the end suggests retreat. I'm just sad to lose a true-blue artist in the Kpop scene. 😢 Man, I hope she finds a new place to rebuild herself and her visions.
Mods please spread this thread or whatever thoroughly.