HYBE has been at the center of controversy after the company's "music industry report" was released in a recent congressional audit.
HYBE's chief operating officer and Belift Lab CEO Kim Tae Ho stated that the reports "are merely data monitoring and do not represent HYBE's stance."
The report mentioned HYBE's idols, along with harsh judgments about idols from other entertainment companies, especially regarding their looks.
The report also covers controversies surrounding personal lives, opinions from online communities, and marketing strategies.
Among the reviews, HYBE commented on a YG Entertainment group, attracting the attention of Korean netizens.
HYBE believes that the group's popularity started with their performance at Coachella and it seems that a similar strategy is being planned for them in the European market.
The article also mentioned that there was suspicious voting activity for the global popularity award at OOO (the award's name), with most of the invalid votes allegedly coming from OOOO (the name refers to when writing about a group). This could be due to interference from their international fandom.
This comment is speculated to be referring to Blackpink. HYBE was criticized for implying that Blackpink's success was solely due to their performance at Coachella, undermining the group's current popularity.
The audience thinks that Blackpink has been successful since their debut with Whistle and Boombayah, then they entered Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 with As If It's Your Last and Ddu-Du Ddu-Du. So, is performing at Coachella just the beginning of their success? Is that why HYBE tried to send LE SSERAFIM to Coachella?" (meaning HYBE also sent the group they manage to Coachella to seek fame).
Other netizens joined the conversation and shared their opinions on HYBE's alleged stance on Blackpink's success.
"What nonsense are they saying? Is Blackpink's success from Coachella?" or "HYBE should have given their group a lot of practice before sending them to Coachella"; "Blackpink was already famous before Coachella" - these are the comments of the audience about the incident.
