NewJeans Holds Contest for New Stage Name Amid Dispute with ADOR “Serious Contract Violation”
On Jan 23rd, NewJeans (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein) announced via their newly created SNS account, “We plan to hold a two-day contest to decide a new stage name to use for a certain period. Please participate actively by leaving comments.” Regarding this, ADOR expressed concerns that such independent activities, including the contest for a new stage name, “may constitute a serious breach of contract“.
ADOR stated, “Our stance remains that the exclusive contract is still valid, and we are sincerely participating in the ongoing legal proceedings. We deeply regret that the members are attempting independent entertainment activities, such as soliciting a new stage name, before a legal judgment has been made. Such actions could constitute a serious breach of contract.”
Earlier that day, NewJeans released a separate statement, revealing, “ADOR filed a ‘lawsuit to confirm the validity of the exclusive contract’ and recently applied for an ‘injunction to preserve agency status and prohibit signing advertisement contracts’. A few days ago, we received the lawsuit and injunction documents.” They also announced the appointment of law firm Sejong as their legal representative. Sejong is the legal representative of former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin.
The members claimed, “While ADOR and HYBE publicly urge us to return, behind the scenes, they have continued to harass and attack us relentlessly. Recently, they secretly approached some of our parents, attempting to sow discord.”
On Nov 28th last year, NewJeans held an emergency press conference to announce their intent to terminate their exclusive contract with ADOR. The following day, they officially declared the contract terminated. In December last year, ADOR filed a lawsuit to legally confirm the validity of their exclusive contract with NewJeans. Additionally, they applied for an injunction to preserve their status as the group’s agency and to prohibit the members from signing independent advertising contracts.
