K-Pop Industry Shaken as HYBE and ADOR Lock Horns over Copycat Allegations

Min Hee Jin, CEO of ADOR, is currently embroiled in a dispute with HYBE and has voiced her discontent by aiming at the rookie idol group and asserting that “ILLIT copied NewJeans.” However, her allegations appear to be met with little sympathy.

On the 22nd, HYBE detected signs of ADOR Label attempting to become independent from the headquarters and initiated an audit. HYBE sent an audit questionnaire to the ADOR executives, including CEO Min Hee Jin, whose response deadline is today (23rd). It is also known that HYBE has requested CEO Min Hee Jin resign.

Following the disclosure of the audit news, CEO Min Hee Jin issued a statement expressing her discontent. She criticized the five-member girl group ILLIT, launched under HYBE’s label Belift Lab, as imitating NewJeans, stating, “HYBE is severely infringing upon the cultural achievements of ADOR and its artist NewJeans.”

CEO Min Hee Jin also emphasized, “HYBE’s Chairman Bang Si Hyuk oversaw the production of ILLIT’s debut album. The imitation of NewJeans by ILLIT is not solely the responsibility of the label Belift Lab, but HYBE was also involved.” She also mentioned, “NewJeans is preparing for a comeback in May. ILLIT summoned NewJeans, who are currently inactive. The image of NewJeans has been overshadowed by the presence of the copycat, leading to unnecessary disputes and causing concern and fatigue among fans and the public. The primary perpetrators responsible for this situation are HYBE and Belift Lab, but the damage is entirely on ADOR and NewJeans.”

She warned, “I have no intention of accepting any promotion that says who is whose sibling group, just because they debuted from a label under HYBE,” after saying that she had never allowed or agreed to anyone, including HYBE and Belift Lab, to copy NewJeans’ achievements.

CEO Min Hee Jin’s labeling of the newly debuted rookie girl group as copycats has garnered disapproval from many. While initial discussions arose regarding similarities between ILLIT and NewJeans before ILLIT’s debut, the controversy subsided once ILLIT’s performances were showcased. Characterizing them definitively as copycats of NewJeans appears to be an ill-suited decision for someone in a leadership position within a label.

Also, CEO Min Hee Jin’s statement that she cannot accept the promotion of someone’s sibling group is nonsense. Even NewJeans had attracted public attention with modifiers such as “HYBE’s new girl group” and “BTS’s sister group” before their official debut. Certainly, CEO Min Hee Jin’s side did not explicitly label NewJeans as BTS’s sister group. However, it is widely recognized that they have benefited from their association with HYBE and BTS.

In particular, CEO Min Hee Jin said at a recent internal meeting at HYBE, “ILLIT copied NewJeans, TWS copied NewJeans, and RIIZE also copied NewJeans.” Not only that, but there were also circumstances where CEO Min Hee Jin said to the outside that “Chairman Bang Si Hyuk copied me and created BTS.”

In response, netizens pointed out that CEO Min Hee Jin is also inaccessible because of the controversy she raised. They claim that the movie Mustang: Rally’s Summer influenced the NewJeans concept. In addition, there were also evaluations that the music video of “Body&Soul” by the Japanese idol SPEED is similar to NewJeans.

CEO Min Hee Jin, renowned for her innovative concepts, rose to fame as a star writer. From 2002 to 2018, she oversaw acclaimed idol groups like Girls’ Generation, SHINee, and EXO at SM Entertainment. Upon joining HYBE, she continued to use her expertise to guide NewJeans toward success.

Nothing can be created out of nothing. Even novel ideas can be works inspired from somewhere.

We acknowledge CEO Min Hee Jin’s talent and accomplishments. However, it’s difficult to sympathize with her when she definitively claims, “They copied me,” and criticizes other idols that numerous individuals have worked hard to create.