An interview with the mother of a NewJeans member have revealed various problems the parents have with HYBE.
Amidst intense conflict between HYBE and its subsidiary ADOR, the mother of a NewJeans members conducted a phone interview with Ilgan Sports. Concerned about causing harm to the kids, Ms. A, one of the cautious mothers, lamented on the 12th, saying, “I felt really distressed because I wondered if we caused this trouble by sending such emails.”
“A few NewJeans moms, including me, went to HYBE on the day of Min Hee-jin’s (ADOR) press conference (April 25),” said Ms. A. She added, “We were worried something big might happen, and we thought we could bridge the gap between HYBE and ADOR.”
Ms. A explained the situation at the time, “Mr. Park Ji-won (the CEO of HYBE) arrived about 20 minutes late, and other executives came first,” adding, “We didn’t have much time to talk about our mediation efforts, and they brought laptops and said, ‘Min Hee-jin made these mistakes.’”
Earlier, Ms. A and other parents of NewJeans members sent emails to ADOR on March 31st, pointing out issues like plagiarism by a new girl group X under HYBE’s subsidiary label Belift Lab and demanding action.
Afterwards, Min Hee-jin sent an email including these opinions to HYBE and Belief on April 3. On April 16, ADOR sent another email regarding this issue, and HYBE replied to the 1st email on that day. Afterwards, HYBE responded to ADOR’s second email on April 22 in the morning and started an audit in the afternoon.
Ms. A then refuted the allegations that NewJeans’ parents were persuaded by Min Hee-jin to send such emails, stating, “We asked Ms. Min Hee-jin if we could use such words, and since we didn’t know much about it, we asked Ms. Min Hee-jin to check if she wanted to send the email.”
She emphasized, “At the meeting (with HYBE), we clearly stated that we (NewJeans parents) started this.”
“At first, when the concept photos of girl group X were released, my friends sent them to me, saying, ‘Is this a new photo of NewJeans?’. I was puzzled. It was too similar. So the moms exchanged opinions and asked Ms. Min Hee-jin. It was clearly something we initiated”, Ms. A added.
Ms. A also lamented that it was not just NewJeans that Bang Si-hyuk ignored greetings from, but other artists too.
“Some kids had similar experiences after their debut. One kid was in the same elevator, but he wasn’t greeted.” She continued, “When we brought up the issue that day, HYBE said, ‘It’s a misunderstanding,’ and said, ‘Chairman Bang Si-hyuk may have a facial recognition disorder.’” She added, “We couldn’t say much there, but after we left, I thought, ‘Does a facial recognition disorder mean muteness as well? Even if you don’t recognize someone, don’t you usually greet them?’”
Ms. A then said, “At that meeting, HYBE officials talked about Ms. Min Hee-jin’s accusations regarding girl group X. They said this topic was sensitive and delicate, so they strictly ordered us (NewJeans parents) not to talk about it to the kids.” She added, “But before even an hour passed after leaving HYBE, related articles suddenly came out. I thought, ‘What are these people doing?’”
“Later, Mr. Park Ji-won came and said to us, ‘Ms. Min Hee-jin didn’t share anything about NewJeans Tokyo Dome in June, but we have many professionals, so we’ll manage well”, Ms. A also revealed, adding, “Then he said that when the Tokyo Dome is over, (NewJeans will) have a long vacation.”
Ms. A said, “I didn’t ask how long the vacation would be, but Mr. Park said, ‘It usually takes about a year and a half to recruit a Grammy-winning producer, but we’ll try to do it as soon as possible.’”
She explained, “So when we came out, we said among ourselves, ‘If they said they’ll attach a Grammy producer as soon as possible, then the vacation must be about that long.’ We said we should ask about it next time.”
Ms. A also emphasized, “We clearly stated to HYBE that we want to be with Ms. Min Hee-jin in managing NewJeans,” adding, “It’s the consensus of all five member’s parents. “In fact, there are many worries. If Ms. Min Hee-jin is not there, won’t we be leaving our children unattended in HYBEfor a long time? Before this happened, we heard from Ms. Min Hee-jin that there were plans for a NewJeans world tour next year. But to have a long vacation…”
Meanwhile, a high-ranking HYBE official said about Ms. A’s claim, “Giving a long vacation doesn’t mean giving them a break,” adding, “Don’t idols usually have a lot of activities after a comeback and then have a rest period? It means that they’ll work hard again after that.”
He continued, “It’s not at all about stopping NewJeans activities,” explaining, “HYBE will take special care of NewJeans and support them to become the best artists.”
The high-ranking official also said, “There is a lot of evidence regarding Ms. Min Hee-jin’s embezzlement allegations,” adding, “When this evidence is revealed in court, many people will know HYBE’s sincerity.”
