“Who are NewJeans?” is a question many may be asking themselves after seeing them all over the news for their major lawsuit with their management companies, HYBE Labels and ADOR. HYBE is an entertainment company, founded by Bang Si-hyuk who helped create BTS, while ADOR is a subsidiary and record label under HYBE. NewJeans debuted under HYBE and ADOR with the song “Attention.”
The timeline of events paints a picture of a group's fight for creative freedom against a dominant record label and owner.
May 2, 2022
The former CEO of ADOR, Min Hee-Jin, was seen as a mother figure to these girls, helping them and coaching them into their debut. But in the eye’s of many fans, she's seen as a controlling mass manipulator because of the way she treated the girls and the steps she took to fight against the labels. But drama between HYBE and Min Hee-Jin started way before the group had even debuted around May 2, 2022, When Hybe had picked another girl group to debut before NewJeans.
During that time Min Hee-Jin stated that Source Music, another company under HYBE’s umbrella, was sabotaging the debut of NewJeans by debuting another girl-group from HYBE called LE SSERAFIM first and pushing NewJeans' debut back. Min Hee-Jin stated that her and all the members felt neglected while being under HYBE because of this new group.
July 22, 2022
NewJeans’ held a typical debut once it was their turn with their company trying to gain exposure for these girls months in advance. On July 22, 2022, they did a surprise release for their hit debut song “Attention.” The success of this song sent these girls soaring for the next couple of years, until in April 2024 when it all came crashing down.
But who are these girls, and what are the main problems causing their ultimate downfall? NewJeans consist of five members: Hanni, Haerin, Minji, Hyein, and Danielle. Each member in the group holds a different position that has contributed to their success.
A big part of K-pop is the combination of singing and dancing. Each member is assigned their own position: Minji is the main dancer of the group and sub-vocalist, while Hanni holds the main vocalist position and is also the leader of the group. Haerin is also a main vocalist and holds the sub-dancer position, while Danielle and Hyein both hold a dancer-vocalist position. Hyein is also the Maknae, which is used in Korean culture to describe the youngest member of the group.
April 22nd 2024
On April 22, 2024, HYBE had audited Min Hee-Jin and then based on their findings asked Min Hee-Jin to step down from her position as CEO of ADOR. During that time, they didn’t specify what the main problem was or what was found out during this search but, Over time, many speculated it was the 18% stake Min Hee-Jin owns in the company and how she could use this to control and manage the company.
In response to HYBE Min Hee-Jin publicly released a series of pictures and videos against HYBE, which were reposted all over social media, showcasing the girl's trainee videos and breaking the privacy contracts. It showed these two unknown girls plus the five members had held with HYBE. The group originally was supposed to consist of seven members which was shown in the video, but when they debuted, there were only five girls. The identities and whereabouts of these two girls have been concealed and no more information as come out about them.
The South Korean media outlet, Naver, was able to get an exclusive interview with Min Hee-Jin, where she claimed that after the debut of HYBE’s newest girl-group, ILLIT, she and other many fans noticed the shocking similarities; the way they dressed, song concepts, and their similar choreography styles.
August 27th 2024
On August 27th, Min Hee-Jin announced she would step down as CEO and would soon be replaced by someone else. Speculation from the internet said she would still stay on as a producer, but she later rejected that idea, saying HYBE was being unreasonable. Later, the NewJeans members went onto their community app called “Phoning” to voice their opinions on the matter and express their frustrations and distress for the new changes.
September 11th 2024
On September 11th, 2024, a now deleted video called “What NewJeans wanted to say,” which has now been re-uploaded across all platforms, was posted. While the video was up, the five girls were reading from their prepared statement. That, among other things, was a way for them to open up about their toxic work environment and bring focus to what was happening inside HYBE and how the other groups were treating them.
During this video, one of the members Hanni opened up about her incidents, mistreatments, and toxic work environments. In Hanni’s statement, she claimed that the manager of another group, later to be known as ILLIT, was told to ignore her.
November 28th 2024
On November 28th, the five members of NewJeans with their team held an emergency conference on a YouTube live stream, and told the world they would be terminating their contracts with ADOR due to many mistreatment allegations that when brought to HYBE and ADOR’s attention, they denied it, causing their silence on the issues. The group was no longer obligated to do things like post on their social media or interact with others.
February 7th 2025
On February 7th, the world finally heard something from NewJeans when they announced they would now be independent and be called NJZ. Even though they had announced their independence, Min Hee-Jin still thinks that the group is hers, and she has been trying to prove that with her most recent lawsuit in court.
March 21st 2025
On March 21st, the Seoul court sided with ADOR, temporarily preventing the girl group from becoming an independent band, and now required the band to receive ADOR’s approval to participate in any activities. The court settlement had come out a few days before, NJZ was set to headline the last day of ComplexCon, where they would debut their new song, “Pit Stop.” The new CEO of ADOR replied with a statement about them headlining, saying that HYBE and ADOR would be present at the event with staff representing the girls and watching over them.
As of April 23rd, 2025 this is the most up-to-date information we have about the NewJeans conflict. The girls said they plan to challenge the court’s decision by raising additional legal issues, and submitting more evidence to change the court's ruling. The members have no intention of staying with HYBE and want to continue with their own path and journey.
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