NewJeans face new plagiarism lawsuit over 'How Sweet'

NewJeans are embroiled in another plagiarism dispute, this time over their 2024 single "How Sweet."

According to Billboard on Friday, NewJeans, its agency Ador and parent company Hybe have been sued in the US over alleged copyright infringement.

Four songwriters, including Audrey Armacost, filed the lawsuit claiming that NewJeans' "How Sweet" copied elements from their demo track "One of a Kind." The plaintiffs are seeking royalty compensation from both the group and the agency.

According to the complaint, Armacost received an instrumental track through a publisher in January 2024 and was asked to develop topline melodies and lyrics as a candidate song for NewJeans. She and three other writers subsequently composed and recorded "One of a Kind" over the instrumental, but the song was ultimately rejected during the selection process.

The lawsuit claims that "How Sweet," released four months after the rejection notice, contains a first verse that is substantially similar to the demo both quantitatively and qualitatively.

The filing also includes a technical analysis alleging that both songs share a topline melody sequence consisting of 31 notes across approximately eight measures, while also using a 4/4 time signature and the key of B-flat minor.

Ador strongly denied the allegations.

"After confirming with Bana, which handled the songwriting and production of the track, we were informed that there was no plagiarism involved," the agency said on Saturday. "Ador and the (NewJeans) members also plan to actively respond to the lawsuit in line with Bana’s position."

The dispute marks the second plagiarism controversy involving NewJeans in recent years. In 2024, British jazz-funk band Shakatak claimed that NewJeans' "Bubble Gum" copied its 1981 song "Easier Said Than Done," citing similarities in rhythm, melody and tempo.

Ador denied the accusation at the time and requested an independent analytical report from the band. No further legal action or additional evidence has been publicly disclosed.

Both "Bubble Gum" and "How Sweet" were produced by 250, a producer affiliated with Bana.

Unlike the earlier Shakatak dispute, however, the current case involves a demo track that was directly submitted to the agency during the song production process, meaning Ador and the producers had documented access to the material at the center of the lawsuit.