All Five Members of NewJeans Return to ADOR After Over a Year

All members of the group NewJeans have decided to return to their original agency, ADOR, by respecting the court’s ruling. This decision comes more than a year after they held an emergency press conference in November last year and announced their intention to leave the company. On the afternoon of the 12th, ADOR issued an official statement saying, “Hyein and Haerin, members of NewJeans, have expressed their willingness to continue their activities with ADOR.” The agency added, “After careful consideration with their families and thorough discussions with ADOR, the two members decided to respect the court’s ruling and abide by their exclusive contract.” Shortly after, Minzy, Hanni, and Danielle also released separate statements saying, “Recently, after careful deliberation, we have decided to return to ADOR.” NewJeans debuted in July 2022 under ADOR, which was led by former CEO Min Hee-jin, and has released numerous hit songs such as “Attention,” “Hype Boy,” “Ditto,” and “Super Shy.” However, the situation changed drastically starting in April 2024 when Min faced conflicts with HYBE. HYBE determined that Min’s side was attempting to seize control of the company, conducted an emergency audit, and filed charges of business fraud. In August, HYBE held a board meeting and dismissed Min Hee-jin from her position as ADOR’s CEO. In September, the NewJeans members demanded that Min return to her role as CEO, but HYBE refused. As a result, the members announced at an emergency press conference in November last year that they would terminate their exclusive contracts and pursue independent activities starting November 29, 2024, citing unresolved issues raised by ADOR. ADOR immediately filed a lawsuit in court to confirm the validity of their exclusive contracts, and the court granted a preliminary injunction to restrict the members’ independent activities. At the first hearing of the main lawsuit in April this year, ADOR sought a settlement, but the NewJeans members rejected it, arguing it was retaliatory action by ADOR’s board controlled by their parent company, HYBE, and that trust between them had been destroyed. Neither side reached an agreement during two mediation sessions in August and September. In the first-instance judgment for the exclusive contract validity lawsuit held on the 30th of last month, the members’ side lost. They stated at the time that they would appeal immediately, but a day before the appeal deadline, the NewJeans members finally decided to respect the court’s ruling and comply with their exclusive contract with ADOR.