“Every seed must weather storms to grow—but what ILLIT faced wasn’t just rain. It was a hurricane.”
While most rookie idols spend their debut year building a fanbase and celebrating milestones, ILLIT’s first year has been defined by survival. From the moment they debuted, the attention they received wasn’t admiration—it was hostility.
Their speech, facial expressions, even minor stage gestures were clipped, edited, and spread across YouTube Shorts and social media platforms as mocking memes. Rather than being acknowledged as artists, ILLIT became material for online parody.
Things escalated when the HYBE vs. ADOR leadership conflict erupted. ILLIT was forcefully framed as a “replacement project” for NewJeans. Former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin publicly accused ILLIT of plagiarism, a statement that opened the floodgates to one of the most brutal waves of online backlash a rookie group has ever seen.
From there, even the smallest comments became ammunition. When a member casually mentioned liking kalguksu (knife-cut noodles), some accused her of targeting NewJeans, who had made a similar comment in the past—suggesting ILLIT was “intentionally copying.”
Then came the “cold shoulder” incident: a NewJeans member claimed ILLIT’s manager ignored her. But later-released CCTV footage revealed it was ILLIT members who greeted first. Still, public sentiment had already turned. ILLIT was guilty in the court of online opinion—facts no longer mattered.
All of this, masked under the guise of “just criticism,” was anything but. What ILLIT endured was appearance-based ridicule, labeling, emotional scapegoating, and coordinated digital aggression—a toxic mix of industry politics and fandom-fueled hate.
Despite this, ILLIT didn’t back down. On their one-year anniversary, they held an intimate mini-concert, performing acoustic and band versions of Magnetic, Cherish, and Almond Chocolate. It was a night of warmth, sincerity, and quiet defiance.
They were a group once labeled “controversial simply for existing”, and yet their very act of continuing to exist—to sing, to perform, to smile—has become a symbol of strength.
But behind the scenes, the cost was real. ILLIT’s manager and a HYBE security staff member resigned, reportedly due to threats from NewJeans’ fans and some parents. The manager, only in their early twenties, has since been receiving psychological treatment.
This story, broadcast during Korea’s May holidays—Labor Day, Children’s Day, Parents’ Day—was more than a news piece. It was a wake-up call. A reminder that kindness is a choice, and cruelty has consequences.
