On December 29th, NewJeans’ fandom Bunnies stated, “Despite all NewJeans members expressing their intention to return together, HYBE and ADOR notified only one member of contract termination. This is a violent act aimed at unilaterally dismantling the complete five-member NewJeans and is an act of deception toward the court, the artists, and the fans.”
They continued, “The court acknowledged the validity of the exclusive contracts based on mutual trust, yet once all NewJeans members declared their return, ADOR suddenly changed its attitude and notified only one member of termination, attempting to deliberately divide the group,” adding, “Did ADOR CEO Lee Do-kyung appeal to the court to bring NewJeans back only to tear them apart?”
Bunnies further argued, “A decision to dismantle the complete lineup of a group that is the company’s only artist and has driven profits with its high IP value cannot be explained by ordinary judgment standards of an entertainment company,” claiming, “This is a malicious abuse of power by HYBE, ADOR’s major shareholder and the entity with actual decision-making authority, and by Bang Si-hyuk.”
*They emphasized, “Dismantling the complete NewJeans lineup against fierce opposition from fans and against the wishes of the artists damages NewJeans’ value, tramples on artistic freedom, and clips their wings. ‘NewJeans’ is the crystallization of memories and bonds built together by the five members and their fans. Free NewJeans and guarantee the members’ freedom.”*
NewJeans has been engaged in a dispute with ADOR over their exclusive contracts for about a year since November 2024. After losing the first trial in October in a lawsuit seeking confirmation of contract validity, all members declared their return to ADOR. However, ADOR drew a line, stating that there had been no prior consultation regarding the return of Minji, Hanni, and Danielle, excluding members Haerin and Hyein.
ADOR announced its position on this day after continuing discussions with Minji, Hanni, and Danielle for more than a month and a half. ADOR confirmed Hanni’s return to the agency and said it is “in discussions” with Minji. However, by notifying Danielle of contract termination, full five-member NewJeans activities ultimately fell through.
Sources: Daum