NewJeans has unilaterally terminated its exclusive contract with Ador, a subsidiary of Hybe, and announced plans to embark on a new journey outside the company, during a press conference held in Seoul, Thursday.
"Our contract will be terminated as of midnight, today. It was Ador and Hybe that violated the contract, so we are ending it," member Minji said.
"Moreover, we have never breached our exclusive contract and have always given our best efforts. There is no reason for us to pay any penalties. It is Ador and Hybe who have violated the terms, and the responsibility lies with them,” she added.
Hanni elaborated on their decision, citing Ador’s lack of will and ability to fulfill its fundamental duty of protecting NewJeans.
“Staying here feels like a waste of time and a source of continued mental anguish. Most importantly, there is nothing for us to gain professionally, which is why all five of us have no reason to remain,” Hanni said.
Hyein hinted at potential challenges regarding the continued use of their group name, NewJeans, but expressed their determination to fight for its trademark rights.
“The essence of NewJeans will always be with us, and we will not give away our name easily. It represents everything from the beginning of our journey to where we are now,” Hyein said.
The group also reassured fans and business partners that they would honor their planned schedules and advertisement commitments.
“We want to tell advertisers that they don’t have to worry. We are committed to ensuring that our contract termination with Ador does not negatively impact others,” member Danielle said.
NewJeans also expressed a desire to collaborate with former Ador CEO Min Hee-jin in the future.
“We haven’t spoken to Min about our contract termination with Ador, but we would certainly love to work with her again if possible,” Minji added.
The termination comes just eight days after Min resigned from her position as an internal director at Ador. Reinstating Min as CEO, a role she was removed from in August, was one of several demands made by the group. NewJeans had warned that failure to meet these demands by Thursday would constitute a breach of their contract, leading to its termination.
On Nov. 13, NewJeans sent a certification of contents to Ador, citing “major contract violations” and demanding corrective actions within 14 days. Their demands included reinstating Min Hee-jin as CEO, issuing a formal apology from the manager of Illit over alleged workplace harassment against member Hanni, and pursuing legal action to identify the author of an internal document that reportedly instructed Ador to “discard NewJeans and start anew.” Illit is a rookie girl group under Belift Lab, a Hybe subsidiary and sister company of Ador.
However, Ador failed to meet the group’s demands. On Wednesday, one day before the deadline, Ador only urged Belift Lab to adopt a “sincere and respectful approach” to the workplace harassment allegations involving Hanni, falling short of the actions NewJeans had requested.
