What's Up with NewJeans?

If you're any bit aware of the current K-pop scene, then you will have undoubtedly heard of NewJeans. For those unfamiliar with them, NewJeans are a five member girl group who ‘debuted’ in July 2022. What was so interesting about their debut compared to many other K-pop artists, was the secrecy surrounding them right up until they surprised K-pop audiences with the release of their first single ‘Attention’. From then on, the girls have achieved success at a rate never seen before from any other K-pop group or idol, which is astonishing considering NewJeans have only been active for just over two years.

In this time, they have dominated both domestic and international charts, even breaking records to claim the most first-day sales of any Korean girl group album debut, as well as the Guiness World Record for the fastest K-pop act to reach one-billion streams on Spotify. They have surpassed the achievements of other major and internationally praised K-pop groups including BTS and BlackPink, groups who have taken years to build their reputation. Not to mention, NewJeans has had high profile collaborations with brands such as McDonald’s, Coca Cola (their song ‘Zero’), and they were even selected by South Korea’s Ministry of Culture as honorary ambassadors for Korean tourism earlier this year. 

It’s no secret that NewJeans are a force to be reckoned with in the Korean entertainment industry, so why are fans suddenly worried about their future as a k-pop group?

Behind the scenes, the past few months have been messy for NewJeans, to say the least. Though their label ADOR runs as an independent record label, they fall under their parent company HYBE - one of Korea’s biggest entertainment companies. In April of this year, we began to see the power struggle between HYBE and ADOR’s CEO, Min Hee-Jin (previously HYBE’s chief brand officer). Min was accused of trying to take autonomy over ADOR and break it away from its parent company. This prompted multiple internal investigations, press conferences and even involvement from Seoul’s Central District Court, alongside accusations from Min, claiming that HYBE’s new girl group ILLIT were trying to copy and replace her artistry, including her project NewJeans.

Fans have expressed concern for the young members of NewJeans, having no ability to defend themselves or speak out in an industry that’s known for silencing idols. However, between August and September, Min stepped down as ADOR’s CEO (involuntarily, she claimed), followed by NewJeans’ members Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, and Hyein releasing a surprise livestream. In this since-deleted livestream, they expressed their loyalty to Min, detailing their experiences of bullying from HYBE, as well as their unwillingness to continue without Min by their side as the label’s CEO. Though we don’t know the exact reason as to why this video was quickly removed, fans can only speculate that it had ruffled a few feathers at HYBE. 

This leaves us with today, where fans are uncertain about the future of NewJeans. As a personal fan of the group, I am impressed by how the young girls have been handling the situation. As a whole, the Korean entertainment industry is brutal and built on fear of speaking out. So often it silences the voices of idols, knowing that they are so easily replaceable due to the incredibly competitive nature of the K-pop business. Witnessing the members publicly come out with statements whilst disregarding the consequences that may follow, it is refreshing and quite exciting to see idols starting to stand up for themselves. HYBE should be careful with their next move for NewJeans, or it may come to bite them in the back, particularly with their incredibly involved and loyal fans. 

We can only wait and see what the future holds for NewJeans.