On November 20, former CEO of ADOR (the management company of the NewJeans group) Min Hee Jin announced: “Today, I officially resign from my position as Internal Director at ADOR.
In addition, I also terminate the shareholder agreement with HYBE and will initiate legal proceedings to hold HYBE responsible for the violations of this agreement. I will take steps to sue HYBE and its affiliates for their illegal actions."
Min Hee Jin further explained, “For the past 7 months, I have been going through a nightmarish dispute with HYBE, starting with their illegal audit in April.
I have made every effort to protect the shareholder agreement, as well as restore ADOR to its original state before April. However, HYBE has shown no intention of admitting its mistakes or changing, so I realized that continuing to make efforts would be a waste of time.”
“I don’t expect them to repent, but it seems naive to me to believe that they would have at least some basic human conscience,” the former CEO continued. “I have no desire to be associated with a twisted organization that is driven solely by financial gain.
Until recently, HYBE continued to act hypocritically and inconsistently, using its subsidiaries to file baseless lawsuits against me, manipulating the media to defame me, and offering a production contract with many malicious terms as if they were doing me a great favor.
HYBE's actions in 2024 will be remembered as an unprecedented scandal in Kpop history.
For the past 7 months, I have fought with all my strength, spirit and finances to revive ADOR, which was ruined due to HYBE's serious violation of the shareholder agreement.
It was a fierce fight against baseless violence from a corporation disguised as a big business, but I did not back down and persevered to the end.
HYBE's moral decline has reached its peak, and even if they continue their dirty media tricks, I believe the public has begun to see through their true nature so I'm no longer worried.
However, if any force tries to fabricate or defame me, I will sue to the end.
Some people may not understand why I have been fighting for so long, but I believe that the existence of someone like me in this world has its own meaning and reason. I hope everyone will pay attention to the new Kpop journey that I am about to embark on.
I end this statement with a sense of relief and would like to share these words: “The bad behavior of one individual cannot be allowed to tarnish a good industry. What happened is completely wrong.”
Min Hee Jin joined HYBE as CBO (Chief Brand Officer) in 2019. She has been the CEO of ADOR since 2021, launched the group NewJeans in 2022 and achieved great success.
The conflict between Min Hee Jin and HYBE erupted in April this year, when HYBE suddenly conducted an audit of ADOR, suspecting that Min Hee Jin and her associates had plotted to take over the company.
In August, Min Hee Jin was removed from her position as CEO at ADOR. HYBE offered Min Hee Jin to continue as internal director, but she refused, claiming that the contract contained harmful terms.
On November 13, all 5 NewJeans members (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein) sent a letter to ADOR, declaring that they would terminate their exclusive contract if major violations were not resolved within 14 days.
