In a bombshell interview, NewJeans parents break their silence on HYBE

Earlier this week, South Korean portal Dispatch published a lengthy article containing a series of accusations against Min Hee Jincurrent CEO of ADOR, as well as unpublished photos and videos of the so-called “Team N”, a girl group that was supposed to debut through Source Music in 2018, with artistic direction by Hee Jinand which included members of NewJeans in its lineup.

Throughout the publication, the vehicle accuses the CEO Min of “stealing” Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin It is Hyein from Source Music, to debut them under their own label. Now, after the content was released, the artists’ parents gave an exclusive interview to the South Korean portal Sports World, declaring their support for ADOR and exposing the situation of their daughters when they were at the other company. See everything that was said!

Minji

Right at the beginning of the report, the mother of Minji reveals that her daughter started as a trainee at Source Music at the age of 13, moving alone to Seoul with the intention of following her dream. The woman claims that, at first, her parents were not allowed to go to the dormitory, and that she only received permission a year later, being shocked by the condition of the accommodation, which had “mold growing in every corner and cockroaches appearing here and there”.

“My heart still hurts when I think of Minji, who silently endured a difficult environment,” the singer’s mother said, adding that the poor housing conditions were not the only struggle for the young girl. “What made Minji struggle the most was making her wait for years and neglecting her without giving us any explanation or plans for the future. There were no plans for her debut, nor was there a debut group that had been assembled. There were also no concrete plans for her future.”

The mother of the oldest member of NewJeans also revealed that Source Music made her daughter train until 2 am, including Saturdays and Sundays, causing the girl, then 14 years old, to walk home alone in the early hours of the morning.

This situation also had a direct impact on the girl’s studies. The matriarch explains that Minji I didn’t want to leave my studies aside and, afraid of missing school, I often ended up just taking a shower and going straight to the educational institution, waiting for the gates to open at 6 am.

Even with the young woman’s desire to continue studying, considering school as a way to rest from the hard training, in addition to not having any certainty about her debut, the artist’s mother reveals that Source Music even asked her to drop out of school: “They even said that, as it is difficult for her to balance high school and rehearsals, she should not enter high school”.

Another point highlighted by the mother of Minji in the interview was the moment when Source Music became a subsidiary of HYBE. According to the woman, after the merger, her daughter gained hope of debuting in the label’s first girl group, however, her expectations were dashed when she discovered that a former idol had joined the formation.

“In this process, Minji was at risk of being discarded without any explanation. However, Min Hee Jin remained committed to the trainees and helped them debut as NewJeans,” he explained.

Finally, the mother of Minji declares that he is very happy with ADOR, and strongly criticizes HYBE for harassing the company:

“We signed a contract with ADOR. We were happy that Min Hee Jin was with ADOR when we left Source Music. We are still very happy that Minji is with ADOR and we have never thought about leaving the label.

The problem is that HYBE is pestering us. I remember all the reports that flooded in for 3 days starting from April 22nd. The reports even tried to frame NewJeans and its parents as outsiders. It’s disgusting that a conglomerate would target a person like they did with Min Hee Jin. How can we depend on and trust this kind of parent company?”

Hyein and Haerin

The mothers of the younger members, Haerin It is Hyeinthey began the interview by saying that they are happy with ADOR and that they never had the intention of leaving the company, unlike what was described by HYBE in April.

“We have an exclusive contract with ADOR and we are quite happy with it, so there is no reason for this. But last April, HYBE described us as if we were betraying the company and leaving. The process of being misunderstood in this way was really terrible,” they said.

According to the women, their daughters also went through the same situation. Minjiwhere they spent months without answers about their final evaluations, in addition to criticizing Source’s CEO, So Sung Jin.

“We didn’t hear back for months after Source Music’s final evaluation for rookie trainees. All the members were nervous that they wouldn’t debut, and we didn’t hear anything from Source Music’s CEO until we switched to ADOR.

If Source Music feels so wronged, why didn’t they explain it to us then? There was a change and it’s only fair that So Sung Jin gave us an explanation, but there was none of that. When we signed, he told us everything we wanted to hear, but we’ve never met him since.”

The person responsible for Hyein further explains why she agreed to sign a contract with Source Music. According to her, “When we signed with Source Music, it was with the understanding that Big Hit (now HYBE) promised that (NewJeans) would be the first female group and that Source Music was the only label that was accepting female trainees. We were told this when we signed. We received Min Hee Jin and the change to ADOR even more so.”

The mothers further stated that “We are not the only ones who remember how Source Music neglected NewJeans while they were trainees. All the members remember. Currently, there is more evidence revealing HYBE’s neglect towards NewJeans. I wonder if they want us to reveal all of it.”

Another criticism made by the mother of Haerin was related to the release of videos of the NewJeans members during their trainee period without permission. She said, “Seeing how they released the content without receiving permission, despite the members being under a different label, makes me question whether HYBE has any professional ethics.”

Finally, those responsible ask that HYBE leave NewJeans and ADOR alone:

“Why do you keep picking on a company that is ‘doing well’? We have spoken to HYBE’s management many times. We have never asked for special treatment, just to be left alone. This lack of communication is baffling.”

Danielle

Just like the mother of Haerinthe mother of Danielle said she was shocked to see videos of her daughter and the other NewJeans members from their trainee days being released by Dispatch. According to the woman, she knows that Min Hee Jin did not try to “steal” the artists from Source Music, but rather that HYBE changed the release date.

“I vividly remember what was said when my daughter signed with Source Music. We were told that if Danielle joined the debut group, she would be part of the first girl group to debut under HYBE.

There was no discussion about bringing in a member who had already debuted previously. I learned about this discussion much later from an external news article,” he revealed.

The artist’s manager also states that she believes that the information published by Dispatch must have been shared by HYBE itself or by Source Music, in addition to stating that, if the article is not corrected, legal action may be considered.

“If HYBE or Source Music themselves did not provide confidential information, there is no way it could have been ‘leaked’. HYBE’s claim to be investigating the origins of the article is unbelievable. If it is not corrected, we may consider legal action.”

Concluding her speech, the woman still questions the company’s protection of her daughter: “How can I trust them with my daughter when they can use adulterated material to harass us at any time? How can we feel safe when we are always insecure about when or how they can attack us with distorted facts?”

Hanni

The Sports World report highlights that the parents of Hanni did not participate in the interview because they were in Australia, however, their position was shared by the other guardians, who stated that they both support the other parents.

“Hanni’s parents, who are in Australia, feel the same way as we do. There are more scary stories, but let’s stop here. It was HYBE who started attacking us first. We want to please put an end to this fight,” they said.

The NewJeans members’ representatives concluded by saying, “We are alarmed by the fact that Source Music released the demo track for ‘Attention’ and footage of the members as trainees without permission. It is also a big problem that they released personal information about the members without our permission. We have requested proof of the content from Source Music and Dispatch. It is appalling that Source Music would lie and manipulate content that could be misinterpreted, despite there being so many witnesses who have gone through this difficult time together.”