The drama continues to unfold in K-pop land as NewJeans‘ parents have recently stood up against BELIFT LAB, and most importantly, its parent label HYBE. An email exposed by Ilgan Sports, sent by NewJeans’ CEO Min Hee Jin to HYBE, reveals serious parental concerns over what they think is an imitation of NewJeans by another HYBE group, ILLIT.
This is the translation of the letter sent to Min Hee Jin, CEO of ADOR from parents of NewJeans members on March 31st 2024, per Ilgan Sports (link in thread) asking to intervene in the plagiarism concern at HYBE as well as how the member are being treated. pic.twitter.com/PZPWeJ44aX
— Cato_o_o (@cato_o_o) May 13, 2024
The parents’ letter was a direct hit at the seeming lack of originality and it accuses HYBE and BELIFT LAB of making a debut for ILLIT that suspiciously mirrors NewJeans in style and choreography. This might suggest imitation rather than a simple coincidence, as previously pointed out by NewJeans’ CEO, and now, the parents:
“We express deep concern over the controversy that has risen with many similarities in concept (photos, music video, etc.), styling, choreography, etc. between NewJeans and a group that debuted under another label of HYBE.”
Unfortunately, the conflict is not just about the similarities, as the group’s parents claimed that HYBE’s chairman, Bang Si Hyuk, allegedly snubbed NewJeans members and ignored them in company corridors. The letter says that the girls, whose ages go from 16 to 20, have felt invisible in their own company.
Ilgan Sports shares letter NewJeans’ parents sent to Bang Si Hyuk through Min Heejin:
— “Every time NewJeans members met president Bang Si hyuk at the company, we wondered why President Bang pretended not to know the members and ignored their greetings (…) it wasn’t just once… pic.twitter.com/gWc9siirsT
— Kpop Charts (@kchartsmaster) May 13, 2024
As of now, both Min Hee Jin and NewJeans’ parents are demanding answers and actions from HYBE. Not to mention Bunnies (that’s NewJeans’ fandom name) who are worried about the future of the girl group. While it’s undeniable that similarities can exist, they’re asking for respect for NewJeans’ identity, which they say is being overshadowed by corporate strategies.
