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The row that rocked K-pop: NewJeans tell BBC why they spoke out
The row that rocked K-pop: NewJeans tell BBC why they spoke out
"It took a huge amount of courage to speak out," NewJeans have told the BBC in their first interview since a court blocked their attempt to leave their record label, in a case that has rocked the K-pop industry.
"This fight is necessary. Although it will be extremely difficult and arduous, we will keep doing what we have done so far and speak up," said Haerin, one of the members of the five-piece.
"We thought it was important to tell the world about what we've been through. All the choices we've made so far have been the best choices we could have made."
NewJeans looked invincible in the charts when they launched what was an unusual rebellion in the high-pressure, tightly-controlled world of K-pop. Hanni, Hyein, Haerin, Danielle and Minji stunned South Korea and fans everywhere with their decision in November to split from Ador, the label that launched them.
They alleged mistreatment, workplace harassment and an attempt to "undermine their careers", which Ador denies. It sued to enforce their seven-year contract, which is set to expire in 2029, and sought an injunction against any commercial activities by the group.
On Friday, a South Korean court granted it, ordering NewJeans to stop all "independent" activities, including song releases and advertising deals, while the case was still under way. NewJeans has since challenged the injunction in court.
Friday's ruling was a "shock", the group told the BBC.
"Some people think that we're famous enough to do whatever we want and say whatever we please. But the truth is, it's not like that at all," Hyein said. "We held it in for a long time, and only now have we finally spoken up about what we think, what we feel and the unfairness we've experienced."
The K-pop industry has repeatedly come under fire for the pressure it puts on its stars not only to perform and succeed, but to appear perfect. But rarely do conflicts spill into the public, exposing stars' grievances and rifts with their labels.
NewJeans' dramatic announcement last year followed a long and public spat with Ador and its parent company, Hybe - South Korea's biggest music label, whose client list includes K-pop royalty such as BTS and Seventeen.
Ador told the BBC in a statement that the contract with NewJeans still stands, adding that "most of their claims have risen from misunderstandings". The court said that NewJeans did not "sufficiently prove" that Ador had violated the contract, adding that the label had upheld "most of its duties, including payment".
The girls were rehearsing for a performance in Hong Kong, when news of the ruling dropped. They found out when Minji got a worried message from her mother: "She asked me, 'are you okay?' And I was like 'what happened?'"
"I was stunned," Minji says. So were the others when she told them. "At first I thought I didn't hear her properly," Danielle says. "We were all kind of in shock."
This was their second of two interviews with the BBC in as many weeks. In the first interview, which happened before the ruling, the group had been excited to release their new single, Pit Stop - their first since they announced their break from Ador and renamed themselves NJZ.
They spoke about how they coped with a difficult period, including finding comfort in cooking. "I'm not really good at it but it's kind of healing," Minji had said, before promising to cook an "amazing dinner" for the group.
In the second interview, which was 24 hours after the ruling, they seemed disheartened and unsettled, less sure of what was to come. "If we knew we were gonna go through this, maybe we would have chosen…" Hanni trailed off as she teared up.
Seconds later, she continued: "Even if we do everything we can and it doesn't work out the way we hope it does, then we'll just have to leave it to time. I'm sure time would figure it out for us."
The following night, they took to the stage in Hong Kong and, despite the court order, performed Pit Stop under their new name. But the evening, which they had pitched to fans as a fresh start, ended in tears as they told the crowd they were going on a hiatus.
"It wasn't any easy decision to make," Hyein said on stage, as each of them took turns to address their fans. "But at the moment for us, it's about protecting ourselves, so that we can come back stronger."
Just three years into their debut, the future of the young stars - they are aged between 16 and 20 - is now in question.
But they tell the BBC that this is not the end of the road for them as they "find more ways" forward. With the legal battle expected to last for months, if not years, Minji says that gives them time to plan what they want to do next.
Ever since they debuted in July 2022, NewJeans have delivered remarkable success with each new release - OMG, Ditto, Super Shy, Attention. A year on, they were the eighth biggest-selling act in the world.
Critics called them a "game-changer" as their uniquely playful blend of 1990s R&B and sugar-coated pop melodies broke through a K-pop market dominated by electronic beats. And their breezy dance moves stood out among super-synchronised videos.
They were still on the rise when Min Hee-jin - Ador's former boss and their long-time mentor, who launched them - began trading accusations publicly with Hybe. The music label had created Ador, granting Min a minority shareholding and further stock options, before she was removed from her role last August.
Hybe was now accusing her of plotting Ador's takeover and Min, in an emotional press conference, accused them of undermining NewJeans by launching another girl group with a similar style. The fight got uglier and Min left the company, alleging she was forced out.
That's when NewJeans broke their silence - they demanded Min's return in two weeks in a livestream.
They were not able to contact her for a while, Danielle told the BBC in the first interview: "We didn't know what was happening and we didn't have a way to support her. That itself was a hard thing because she was always there for us and… in a way a person to look up to."
Ador had said Min could not return as CEO, but could continue as an internal director and NewJeans' producer. When Min didn't return, NewJeans announced that they were leaving Ador and accused the label of not meeting other demands: an apology for alleged bullying and actions against what they claimed were controversial internal reports.
Ador, which denies all these allegations, appears to blame Min for their dispute with NewJeans. "The core of this issue lies in the label's ex-management providing distorted explanations to their artists, leading to misunderstandings. They can be fully addressed and resolved upon the members' return to the label," Ador told the BBC in a statement.
In the months since, Hanni, a Vietnamese-Australian, testified in tears to South Korean lawmakers in an inquiry into workplace harassment. "I came to the realisation that this wasn't just a feeling. I was honestly convinced that the company hated us," she told them, after describing several incidents where she said the group felt undermined and bullied.
NewJeans' case was dismissed because the labour ministry said K-pop stars did not qualify as workers and were not entitled to the same rights.
Then in December, NewJeans took another rare step by supporting fans who were calling for the impeachment of South Korea's disgraced president, Yoon Suk Yeol who had briefly imposed martial law - the group provided free food and drinks to fans who showed up at the huge protest rallies.
With each round of publicity, there was also criticism, much of it involving their age. Some said they had "crossed the line", while others called them "stupid and reckless," and even "ungrateful" for picking a fight with Ador. Others questioned if they were making their own decisions.
Being young doesn't mean they should be taken less seriously, the group says. "That's an easy way to devalue the fact that we are actually trying to do something," Hanni says. "The decisions we've made in the past year have been decided through a very, very large amount of discussion between us."
As the dispute has dragged on, the critics have got louder, dubbing the girls as troublemakers rather than game-changers. Following the ruling, which their critics welcomed, NewJeans say they have been "very aware of the intense scrutiny and judgment" ever since they held that press conference last year.
"There hasn't been a single moment when we've expressed our opinions without worry or tension," Minji says. "We've thought more than anyone else about how much responsibility each of our actions carries, and we're currently bearing that responsibility ourselves."
It's not clear how long their hiatus will last. Ador says it hopes to meet the group soon to discuss the future, but NewJeans insist they don't feel protected enough to go back.
Their lawsuit with Ador will return to the headlines next week when the hearings begin - and so will all five of them.
The one thing that seems constant is their determination to get through this together.
Two weeks ago, Hanni had said: "We've always said to each other, if one person doesn't want to do it, then we're not going to do it. It has to be all all five of us that agrees to do it. That's how we've gotten here and that's how we are going to get to the end."
On Saturday, she repeated: "We're gonna get through it."
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