Five Korean Music Organizations Call for an End to Tampering in NewJeans Dispute, Expressing Fears of K-Pop Industry Collapse

Five major organizations in South Korea’s music industry have called for the elimination of tampering and the establishment of stronger legal frameworks following the dispute between NewJeans and ADOR. The Korean Entertainment Management Association, the Korean Entertainment Production Companies Association, the Korean Music Label Industry Association, the Korean Record Industry Association, and the Korean Music Content Association issued a joint statement on the 19th, stating that tampering can instantly destroy agencies that have invested heavily over extended periods. Tampering refers to external parties making preliminary contact with artists under exclusive contracts without going through their original agencies to discuss business matters. The five organizations criticized what they described as a growing trend of attempting to resolve private disputes—such as former ADOR CEO Minhee Jin’s press conferences, IVE’s member Hanni’s appearances before parliamentary hearings, and the group’s independent activities—through public relations campaigns and unilateral declarations over the past 10 months. They argued that these public campaigns, which dominate search engines, online communities, and social media platforms, are putting the entire K-Pop industry at risk, warning that if tampering becomes a precedent, South Korea’s entertainment management industry will collapse. They specifically noted the danger that foreign capital could take control of the entire K-Pop industry. The organizations emphasized that faithful fulfillment of exclusive contracts is key to preventing tampering and stressed the necessity of creating institutional support measures and self-regulation guidelines. They plan to hold another press conference in Seoul on the 27th to reiterate their position. In response, the parents of NewJeans members used their social media account (@njz_pr) to argue that this is a dispute between a specific agency and an artist, not a problem affecting the entire K-Pop industry, labeling such claims as misleading the public. The parents claimed that HYBE discriminated against and attacked the members, while ADOR lacked both the ability and willingness to protect them, thus justifying the termination of their exclusive contracts. Meanwhile, NewJeans is set to perform new songs at the Global Music Festival ComplexCon in Hong Kong from the 21st to the 23rd of next month, with tickets for the performance on the 23rd already sold out.