NewJeans asks for temporary group name, appoints legal representatives amidst dispute with ADOR, HYBE
NewJeans is looking for a temporary group name, while also revealing that they are never returning their old agency, HYBE and ADOR.
On Instagram, the K-pop girl group asked their fans for suggestions on a possible group name.
"We'll be holding a two-day public contest to decide on a new stage name, which will be used for a certain period," they wrote on their new social media page, @jeanzforfree.
Their fans, fondly called "Bunnies," flooded the comment section with suggestions like Jeanz, JEAN5, BEJEANZ, Lovenniez, Jeanz Club, and Blue Jeanz.
'No intention of ever returning to HYBE or ADOR'
Alongside the announcement, the group released a statement declaring they will "never return" to their agency, ADOR and HYBE. They also appointed Shin & Kim LLC, "one of Korea's leading law firms," as their legal representative.
"Through the media, we confirmed that ADOR has not only filed a lawsuit against us to 'confirm the validity of our exclusive contracts' but has also applied for an injunction to 'preserve the agency's status and prohibit the signing of advertising contracts.' We received the lawsuit and application documents a few days ago, and we have appointed Shin & Kim LLC as our legal representative," the statement began.
They continued that their new lawyers are "the most suitable choice" as they are "already familiar with the issues and wrongdoings of HYBE and ADOR."
NewJeans also detailed several instances of alleged mistreatment by their agency, including an attempt to indefinitely suspend their careers under the guise of a "long-term break," which the group believes was an attempt to abandon and replace them. They also claimed that the agencies were behind the "baseless criticisms" spread through media and YouTube channels.
"While ADOR and HYBE publicly claim they want us to return, behind the scenes, they have continued to harass and attack us relentlessly, just as they did before. Recently, they even secretly met with some of our parents in an attempt to persuade or sow discord among us," they claimed.
"Instead of resorting to underhanded tactics to defame, divide, and manipulate through false information and media play, we hope they will address the matter truthfully and fairly," they added, stating they "have no intention of ever returning to HYBE or ADOR, where even the minimum level of trust cannot be expected."
"After the termination of our exclusive contracts, we wanted to conclude our remaining scheduled activities and agreements amicably and without conflict, and we hoped to avoid causing harm to the involved representatives," they said, adding that they would "fight until the end through legitimate means" to perform their music freely for their fans again.
They ended the statement: "We feel apologetic for causing concern to our fans who cherish and love us. However, we will fight until the end through legitimate means so that we can share our music with you freely again as soon as possible. Please show lots of support. Thank you."
In November 2024, NewJeans announced they were quitting their label ADOR over what they described as "mistreatment."
Band member Hanni said in a press conference that the group has "faced mistreatment, not just towards us but also including our staff," without elaborating.
The K-pop act's decision to part ways with ADOR came after it sent an ultimatum to its parent company HYBE—behind K-pop sensation BTS—telling the firm it would terminate its contract unless a set of demands is met.
NewJeans debuted in 2022 and has become among HYBE's most successful groups. They have topped global charts, including the Billboard 200, and last year broke the Guinness World Record for "Fastest K-pop act to reach 1 billion streams on Spotify."
They are known for their hit songs, How Sweet, Bubble Gum, Right Now, Supernatural, and Hype Boy, among others.
