NewJeans' parents accuse HYBE of plagiarising girl group's concept for ILLIT's debut, deets here

Amid the HYBE vs ADOR drama, girl group NewJeans' parents have accused the BTS label of mistreatment of the K-pop idols. The family of girls have also taken legal action against the company, claiming that HYBE CEO Bang Si Kyuk 'ignored and mistreated' the group and did not have any intention to protect the members. They also accused the parent company of plagiarising NewJeans' concept for their brand new group ILLIT.

NewJeans’ parents expose HYBE in new report

A report published in Ilgan Sports detailed an email from NewJeans' parents, originally addressed to CEO Min Hee Jin and subsequently forwarded to BelIFT LAB (JCM's joint venture with Big Hit Entertainment) regarding ILLIT's debut. The email highlighted parents' suggestions and concerns about the new girl group's debut brought to light by NewJeans' legal representatives. It also detailed how Chairman Bang would not acknowledge their presence, despite being part of the same entity.

“Whenever the NewJeans members encountered Bang Si Hyuk in the company building, we wondered why Bang Si Hyuk would pretend not to recognise the members and turn a blind eye to their greetings. At first, we didn’t believe our children, thinking, ‘Oh, he probably just didn’t recognise you then,’ so we attempted to verify this.” The email reads.

The parents went on to state, "However, since this issue has occurred several times, with different dates and locations, even when it was just Bang Si Hyuk and the members, we believe there is no other option except to recognise that they are, in fact, NewJeans."

Accuse the company of plagiarism

The parents also claimed that HYBE plagiarised NewJeans' ideas for their new girl group ILLIT, including photography, style, dance, and music video design. The research emphasises the striking and uncanny similarities between ILLIT's ideals and those of NewJeans. They have also demanded an explanation from HYBE regarding the eerie similarities.

Bang Si Hyuk, who oversaw the production of ILLIT, has also been accused of playing a pivotal role in the plagiarism of NewJeans's concept. Previously, the chairman had promised ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin that NewJeans would be the first group to debut under HYBE; however, he signed with Source Music, and debuted LE SSERAFIM instead.

HYBE and ADOR drama

HYBE and its subsidiary, ADOR, have been at loggerheads for quite some time now. It all began when HYBE conducted an audit, including that of the CEO, Min Hee Jin, after reports suggested that they were trying to establish independent management rights. Soon after the audit, Min Hee Jin was asked to step down from the position. However, Min Hee Jin denied the allegations and went public with the feud. She said that the main issue is about HYBE's another subsidiary, BELIFT LAB, copying the concepts of NewJeans for their latest girl group, ILLIT.

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