🔗 2025-02-19 njz_pr Instagram Post

Hello.

This morning, I saw that five organizations—the Korea Management Federation (KMF), the Korea Entertainment Producers Association (KEPA), the Record Label Industry Association of Korea (LIAK), the Recording Industry Association of Korea (RIAK), and the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA)—distributed an appeal through the media.

Since there is no way they are unaware that the court dates for the injunction and the main lawsuit have not even begun yet, it is truly regrettable that they are treating unconfirmed facts as established facts and making remarks that harm the fairness of the trial. As always, I would like to point out that there are very few channels representing the artist’s position compared to companies that can freely state their positions through associations or influential media outlets, and I ask for your understanding in advance that this may be a long post.

In their statement, the five organizations claim that the NJZ members are attempting to resolve a matter or dispute that should be resolved privately through media warfare and unilateral declarations, rather than through consultation between the parties or legal procedures. However, I believe the public remembers who it was that started the media manipulation by massively publicizing groundless suspicions to the press in order to oust the former ADOR CEO, who tried to resolve HYBE’s serious problems internally. At the time, HYBE intended for, or neglected, the flood of media articles making nonsensical claims of ‘tampering’ and ‘gaslighting’ against ‘NewJeans’ as well. Also, everyone remembers the fact that the media manipulation, pouring out hundreds of articles a day, began less than a week before NewJeans’ comeback. No agency does such a thing one week before their artist’s comeback. I would like to ask where and what the association members were doing at that time.

The five organizations also claim that the K-pop industry is suffering a fatal blow in the process of a dispute between private parties being unilaterally publicized by one side and becoming controversial to the public. However, those who have suffered fatal damage due to such unilateral and unbalanced media reporting are the NJZ members, and the fans and the public who love and support music. And that damage continues even now. Furthermore, damages such as the stock price decline brought upon by HYBE itself are HYBE’s problem, not a problem of the K-pop industry. This is a passage where we can confirm that they are borrowing the name of an association to represent only the interests of a specific company.

The five organizations also argue that mere allegations can dominate portal sites, internet communities, and social media for a considerable period and be accepted as facts without proper fact-checking, rebuttal, or criticism. This is the only correct part of the long text written in the statement, and it is indeed true. Numerous false facts surrounding the NJZ members have dominated portal sites, internet communities, and social media, and even now, media articles representing only HYBE’s claims and interests, and cyber wrecker channels broadcasting groundless personal opinions as professional opinions, are overflowing. Nevertheless, it breaks my heart to watch the reality that individual entertainers can neither stop this nor actively protect themselves. Perhaps this is the feeling of helplessness that many entertainment industry workers, artists, trainees, and their families feel regarding associations and the industry structure.

While criticizing the NJZ members for engaging in independent activities without the exclusive contract with ADOR being lawfully terminated, the five organizations claim that if contracts are not legally protected and are broken by a unilateral declaration, the K-pop industry will lose its foundation for existence. However, this is a completely wrong argument intended to mislead the public. From the perspective of the families who had to watch since the trainees were all minors, I would like to reveal that despite the unfaithful fulfillment of the contract and internal harassment, there was no organization or space where trainees and artists could report the unfairness and damage they felt and receive protection, and it was a blind spot for fundamental rights where they had to rely solely on the company’s morality. From the perspective of the members who decided to courageously raise their voices through lawful procedures and face difficulties against an agency that has no will to fulfill its duty of protection that should be legally upheld, I remind you that it is inevitably contradictory for associations to stand on one side and claim only the precariousness of the foundation for existence, that is, the company’s loss.

As is already widely known, HYBE has openly discriminated against, attacked, and tried to bury the NJZ members, and ADOR, a label under HYBE, had neither the ability nor the intention to prevent this, and even went so far as to try to destroy the foundation of ‘NewJeans’ entertainment activities, as seen in the case of attacking Dolphiners Films. Accordingly, the NJZ members could no longer endure it and inevitably terminated the exclusive contract, and since legal termination takes effect immediately, the exclusive contract with ADOR is currently terminated. Therefore, the members can engage in activities freely without being restricted by the exclusive contract from the moment of termination. This is a very obvious legal principle under Korean law. Just seeing the demand for legislation unreasonably ahead of the trial shows how forced and unconvincing ADOR and HYBE’s contract-related claims are. I even worry whether the statement by the associations announced today is devising means to excessively restrict individual rights and exercise invisible legalized violence. The association’s claim sounds as if the K-pop industry will not collapse only if exclusive contracts are operated like slave contracts.

This case is strictly a dispute between a specific agency that treated its affiliated artists unfairly and specific affiliated artists; it is not a matter that affects the entire K-pop industry. Rather, I believe that the members’ courageous decision can serve as an opportunity for the K-pop industry to become healthier and overflow with various creative artists. In addition, it is truly regrettable that you issued a unilateral position perceiving pre-investment as if it were a debt relationship. Trainees start this work betting their precious youth and their own lives. Therefore, it is common sense that the requirement of good faith is a mutual obligation of the contracting parties, not unilateral. I hope this will be an opportunity for artists and trainees who should be spending the brightest youth of their lives, and the fans who support them, not to waste precious time due to people who pursue only their own interests without fulfilling their own responsibilities by abusing wrong practices and customs.

While organizing my position, a reporter gave me a tip. It was that the five organizations would not stop at distributing the statement today but would hold a press conference inviting numerous reporters at the JW Marriott Hotel on Thursday, Feb. 27. I heard there was an option for lunch provision at the press conference, but considering that the unit price for lunch at the JW Marriott Hotel is at least 100,000 KRW, I felt skeptical about whether many reporters could attend considering the Kim Young-ran Act (Improper Solicitation and Graft Act), and whether a lunch reception gathering for the media with such blatant intent is realistically possible. Also, I heard that the five associations redistributed the same content around 1 PM, as if distributing it in the morning wasn’t enough? What intent does distributing the same content again on the same day, which isn’t even a correction distribution, hold? Isn’t this exactly what media manipulation is? I politely request that, just as the five organizations stated in their statement, you stop the attempts at media manipulation representing only the position and claims of a specific agency. Even for the sustainable growth of the K-pop industry, the faults of a specific agency that thinks of its affiliated artists only as a means of making money and treats them like parts that can be replaced at any time must be corrected, and this is because it will be resolved through the court’s judgment.

Not long ago, I heard from an official of ComplexCon, who is helping with the performance preparations, that HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk personally called officials in the US to urge that the NJZ members’ performance be canceled. Is it excessive speculation to think that the sudden statement announcement by the five organizations today is not unrelated to the content above? I was so unpleasant and angry, and I thought that HYBE thinks of the members only as a means of making money, just the same as before, and is only thinking of hindering and causing them to wither away instead of cheering for them to do well. Afterwards, it was conveyed that ADOR also attempted to hinder in various places.

Chairman, when we sent a protest email in April 2024, we requested a response from you, Chairman, but you have not given any answer until now. If you have so much to say, please call us, not other places. I also do not understand why the Chairman of the entire HYBE is personally intervening in a dispute with ADOR. Do you think you can still claim that ADOR and HYBE are not one body?

The NJZ members are scheduled to perform at the ComplexCon event held in Hong Kong. The NJZ members are preparing for the performance diligently with happy and excited hearts at the thought of showing a new side of themselves to fans all over the world for the first time after escaping the terrible HYBE and ADOR. Despite the obstructive acts, the Hong Kong ComplexCon performance will proceed as scheduled, so we ask for the fans’ continued passionate interest and support.

Thank you for reading this long text, and as always, I am very apologetic for causing a disturbance. I hope you have a warm day.