ADOR and HYBE Reply to NewJeans’ Conference: Contract Still Valid, Decision to be Announced
At a press conference held on November 28, NewJeans member declared that starting from November 29, their contract with ADOR will be terminate, adding that ADOR have violated contract clauses.
In response, ADOR quickly issued a statement expressing regret over the press conference, stating, “We find it unfortunate that the press conference was planned and conducted without sufficient review, even before receiving a response to the notice of correction. As a contractual party, ADOR has not breached the contract (with NewJeans), and the claim of unilateral loss of trust does not constitute valid grounds for termination.”
ADOR further asserted, “The exclusive contract between ADOR and the members of NewJeans remains valid. We hope that all future activities will continue as they have until now, in collaboration with ADOR.”
Meanwhile, on November 29, the parent company of ADOR, HYBE, has issued their own response.
In particular, HYBE stated, “We will respond appropriately to (NewJeans’) contract termination notice,” adding, “We will announce our stance as soon as the decision on whether to terminate the contract is made.”
The person responsible for this announcement was HYBE CFO (Chief Financial Officer), Lee Kyung-joon.
Previously on November 14, ADOR responded to NewJeans’ letter of demand, stating, “We received the notice of certification from NewJeans this morning and are currently reviewing it to understand the specific requests. We will do our utmost to address these matters wisely and continue to work closely with our artists.”
In response to inquiries about rumors of an investment by a listed company (referred to as Company D, or Dabeolink) in NewJeans and Min Hee-jin, ADOR added, “Min Hee-jin has reaffirmed that the rumors regarding any meetings with this company or involvement of NewJeans members’ relatives are entirely groundless.”
Previously, on November 13, NewJeans sent ADOR a notice demanding correction of alleged contract breaches, warning they would terminate the contract if issues weren’t resolved within 14 days. Their requests included an apology from a manager for disrespectful remarks toward Hanni, removal of unauthorized photos and videos, an investigation into damages from alleged “album pushouts,” and resolution of a dispute with music video director Shin Woo-seok.
Earlier, on November 5, Min Hee-jin addressed the issue in an email to reporters, “I’m compelled to clarify my position on the baseless rumors circulating about me. Among these, I’ve heard reports within the investment industry that I am supposedly ‘set to receive investment from someone’ or ‘enter into a contract with someone.’ I have also heard of a specific company being mentioned, but these are entirely untrue.”
She continued, ”I am issuing this statement to prevent any potential harm or misuse of this issue, in hopes of stopping these false rumors, and ask for your understanding.”
Company D had initially planned an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting for October 8 to elect new board directors, including 5 nominees, one of whom is reportedly Hyein’s uncle, an alumnus of Hanyang University and a chairman of Company H. However, this meeting was postponed twice.
On November 7, Company D disclosed a revised notice through the Financial Supervisory Service’s electronic disclosure system, listing 7 new board nominees, excluding the previously mentioned 5 candidates.
Below is ADOR’s full official statement:
“Hello, this is ADOR.
With the numerous inquiries from reporters, we would like to clarify the following.
Regarding the notice of certification, we received it this morning and are reviewing it to understand the specific requests. We will do our best to resolve matters wisely and continue working closely with our artists.
As for questions regarding the listed company, Min Hee-jin has reaffirmed that rumors regarding any involvement of NewJeans members’ relatives or meetings with this company are unfounded.“
