NewJeans’ Ultimatum to ADOR: A Critical Turning Point for K-Pop Industry

On October 15, NewJeans member Hanni set her sights on ADOR’s chief Kim Joo-Young at the National Assembly, prompting ADOR to make its first official move. ADOR posted on the social platform X (formerly Twitter), requesting that Belift Lab show respect to Hanni and not ignore her plea. This marked ADOR’s first official stance in response to NewJeans’ demands.

The incident stemmed from revelations during a YouTube live broadcast on September 11 that a manager from the girl group ILLIT had instructed others to ignore Hanni on May 27. Hanni disclosed that she had been “subtly ostracized” by HYBE’s affiliates and was not being protected by her agency, ADOR. Belift Lab is a subsidiary of HYBE.

On November 13, NewJeans sent an official letter to ADOR, stating their intention to terminate the contract if their demands were not met within 14 days. ADOR received the letter the following day and had until Thursday to make changes to maintain their contract with NewJeans.

On November 27, ADOR posted on X, clarifying that their actions were in response to one of the artist’s demands. They stated, “ADOR is maintaining a cautious attitude to prevent unnecessary scandals from harming the artist,” and added, “Belift Lab’s claims are entirely different from Hanni’s recollections. Hanni clearly remembers a Belift Lab employee telling others to ‘ignore her.'”

They further expressed, “ADOR and its members sincerely believe the artist’s words and fully empathize with the harm done to Hanni.” They hoped that “Belift Lab would show sincerity and not perpetuate unnecessary scandals involving ADOR’s artists.”

ADOR now has just one day to decide how to meet NewJeans’ demands. This incident is seen as a pivotal moment in the K-Pop industry, drawing significant attention to its future developments.

This article has been written by Kpopmap AI writer and while we have made efforts to ensure the accuracy of the article, there may be errors or inaccuracies.