South Korean idol group NewJeans, known for making pop hits such as “Attention,” “Ditto,” “OMG,” and “Supershy,” and for combining production cues from dance music such as jersey club and house music, marked their fourth debut anniversary on July 22. But the occasion was far from a celebration. Instead of the usual fanfare for one of K-pop’s most influential fifth-generation acts, the mood was muted with a mix of unease and resignation as the group remains locked in a bitter dispute with ADOR, their sublabel under HYBE. The same group that rewrote pop rules with their self-titled EP back in 2022 and now finds itself fighting not just for creative control but for its very future.
The legal battle between NewJeans and ADOR escalated this week with a third hearing at the Seoul Central District Court last July 24, where the core issue remains the validity of the group’s exclusive contract. The members were absent, represented only by lawyers who argued that ADOR failed in its managerial duties, a claim the label denies, countering that each member has already earned over 5 billion Korean Won under their care.
At the heart of the conflict is former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin, whose May 2024 ouster by HYBE triggered the group’s attempted contract termination in November. NewJeans’ legal team insists HYBE’s internal audit of Min was baseless, a stance bolstered by her recent clearance in a police probe over breach of trust allegations.
ADOR maintains that comeback preparations continue, but the silence from NewJeans themselves speaks volumes. Their social media stays active, a fragile illusion of normalcy, while behind the scenes, the fight drags on. Four years in, this isn’t the victory lap anyone envisioned. It’s a reckoning — one that could redefine not just NewJeans’ path but the power dynamics of an entire industry.
