The NewJeans case and the problems of the Korean entertainment industry The group is back in business, but is there really cause for celebration?

One of the main clichés when talking about K-pop, or more generally about the South Korean entertainment industry, is that it is too artificial: the music all sounds the same, idols look like dolls, and overall, it lacks authenticity. Yet, in the summer of 2022, a generational shift occurred. The surprise debut of NewJeans, a group made up of five members (Hanni Pham, Danielle Marsh, Minji Kim, Haerin Kang, and Hyein Lee) under Asia’s biggest music conglomerate, HYBE, was destined to tell a story much larger than that of a typical girl group.

In the first two years of their career, NewJeans reached a level of artistic and stylistic influence comparable only to groups like BTS or Blackpink. Ambassadors for Chanel, Gucci, and Dior, headliners at Lollapalooza, and muses for Takashi Murakami, NewJeans seemed ready to become the next ultra-viral phenomenon in global pop. Everything appeared perfect until November 2024, when, during a press conference, the five members announced their decision to terminate their contract with ADOR, HYBE’s subsidiary label, citing mismanagement and internal abuse.

It was an unprecedented move in K-pop, considering the long history of so-called “slave contracts” that bind idols for periods ranging from seven to nine years. From that moment, a legal dispute began between NewJeans and ADOR, lasting nearly ten months and culminating at the end of October with a negative outcome for the artists. Despite this, the battle did not seem to be over yet, at least until the morning of November 12, when the members suddenly decided to return to operating under the same label that they had previously described as “an unsafe place.” At that point, one question became inevitable: what went wrong?

The legal battle between ADOR and NewJeans

To understand the scale of the conflict, we need to go back to April 2024, when HYBE Co. launched an internal audit against Min Hee-jin, CEO of ADOR and the creative force behind NewJeans, accusing her of attempting to make the subsidiary independent due to a supposed conflict of interest with Bang Si-Hyuk, HYBE’s founder and the mastermind behind BTS. Min denied the accusations but was dismissed from her position in August, sparking discontent within the group, which demanded her reinstatement and accused HYBE and ADOR of destroying their relationship of trust.

The girls, all under 20, stated they no longer wanted to work under HYBE or ADOR and accused the label of workplace harassment and interference in their careers, including claims of internal sabotage by staff members. To make matters worse, during the dispute, sensitive documents, including medical records, videos, and photographs taken when the members were still minors, were used against the artists as evidence by ADOR without their consent.

In February 2025, in an attempt at redemption, NewJeans rebranded themselves as NJZ, but the court immediately blocked the project and promotional activities with an injunction. Despite this, the group performed at ComplexCon Hong Kong and later announced an indefinite hiatus. After almost ten months of legal battles, in October 2025, the Seoul District Court issued its final ruling: the contract with ADOR remained valid until 2029.

The court rejected the argument that Min Hee-jin’s dismissal constituted a breach of contract and urged both parties to “reflect calmly” on the future. From October 30, NewJeans had fourteen days to file an appeal, but just 24 hours before the deadline, two press releases announced the return of Hyein and Haerin, followed by Minji, Hanni, and Danielle under ADOR’s management.

The issue of idol rights

The NewJeans case brought renewed attention to one of the most complex issues within the Korean entertainment industry. As of today, South Korea still lacks a specific legal framework protecting the rights of entertainment workers, a gap that has persisted for years, especially since many idols start their careers as minors, sometimes as young as thirteen or fourteen, as in the case of Hyein and Haerin, who signed their contracts with ADOR as teenagers. According to online speculation, this condition may have influenced the group’s decision to return to HYBE.

Only in 2023 did South Korea take its first concrete step toward protecting entertainment workers by passing an amendment to the Popular Culture and Arts Industry Development Act, as reported by Quartz Magazine. The new regulation introduced stricter limits on working hours for minors and required greater transparency in contracts and agency accounting, aiming to reduce the unfair practices that have plagued the industry for decades.

It was only in recent weeks, presumably following the NewJeans case, that the government announced the creation of the first idol labor union, as reported by the Chosun Daily. The initiative aims to officially recognize idols as full-fledged workers with legal rights and protections. The request, submitted to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, argues that idols provide labor under the supervision of agencies, follow set schedules and locations, and receive regular payments. However, under current legislation, idols are still classified as “service providers” and therefore excluded from coverage such as accident insurance, anti-harassment protections, and occupational disease benefits — a legal gap that in the past has contributed to cases of industry dropouts or even suicide.

What’s next for NewJeans?

The group’s fans, known as Bunniez or Tokki, have not reacted positively to the news of NewJeans’ return. After months of public support throughout the legal battle, the forced comeback under HYBE and ADOR is seen as a moral defeat rather than a reconciliation. On X, fans who from the beginning celebrated the group’s authenticity and its “different approach” compared to traditional K-pop expressed frustration over what feels like a decision made without real freedom of choice.

Many fear that without Min Hee-jin and the original creative team, responsible for the group’s artistic, visual, and musical identity and praised by international outlets such as the New York Times, the BBC, Dazed and Time Magazine, NewJeans may lose their identity. The main concern is that HYBE could dilute their language, imposing more commercial and standardized formulas, erasing the freshness that once made them a unique phenomenon in the industry.

Beneath the surface, however, the fans’ frustration goes beyond artistic disappointment. Many see this case as evidence that the K-pop system continues to exercise total control over its artists, denying them contractual and creative autonomy. The story of Hanni, Danielle, Minji, Haerin, and Hyein confirms that the Western perception of K-pop as a hyper-controlled industry is not far from reality. Even when five young women try to defend their rights, they end up returning to the environment they once tried to escape, risking everything, even their careers. In the group’s last public appearance, Danielle, while accepting an award, shouted to the crowd: “NewJeans never die”. A phrase that now resonates louder than ever, but one that leaves an open question: at what cost?