[Current & Culture] What Is the Fate of Min Hee-jin, the True Cinderella Beyond NewJeans?

Key Architect of HYBE's Rebranding and NewJeans' Success
Press Conference Rebuts Audit Findings
A Scene of Shock Filled with Profanity and Insults

Lee Jae-ik, SBS Radio PD and Novelist

Since working as a broadcast producer in 2001, I have witnessed the rise and fall of countless singers. Especially when a rookie who appeared on a program I directed grew rapidly and became a superstar, I often fell into the illusion that I had contributed to the birth of a star. Furthermore, when they became a global star?someone so distant yet admired?I would fondly recall their rookie days when they appeared on my radio program with passion and dedication.

Times have changed. Now, the share of terrestrial broadcasting in the popular music market has steadily decreased to the point where it’s hard to imagine it shrinking further. About ten years ago, it was a daily routine to see managers coming and going in the office to promote rookie singers, but now such scenes have become as rare as people reading newspapers on buses or subways. This is partly due to the diversification of media such as YouTube and various music streaming platforms, and also because entertainment agencies have grown so large that the power dynamics have reversed. Many agencies now surpass terrestrial broadcasters in market capitalization and operating profit. Especially, creating K-pop groups has become a business involving massive capital and manpower. The intense conflict currently unfolding between HYBE and Min Hee-jin, CEO of ADOR, vividly reveals the reality of the K-pop business.

Until now, controversies in entertainment agencies mostly involved conflicts with their artists. Most cases involved singers suing agencies for not receiving proper revenue settlements or insufficient support during activities. Among idols, the legal dispute between the boy group Block B and their former agency Stardom is well-known. Sometimes legal disputes arise even when the agency is not at fault. The recent mudslinging battle involving Fifty Fifty was truly disheartening. Just before a movie-like success story could be completed, everything collapsed. Who really gained anything? There were also money games unrelated to the artists. The SM Entertainment acquisition battle between Kakao and HYBE a year ago was a huge topic in both the entertainment industry and the stock market. And once again, HYBE has become the center of attention.

To summarize what has come out so far, HYBE has accused CEO Min of trying to steal NewJeans and ADOR. They even exposed suspicions of Min’s manipulative management. In response, Min held a press conference that was shocking with profanity and insults flying around. She tearfully revealed that HYBE had recklessly infringed on NewJeans’ intellectual property (IP) and that HYBE was trying to oust her for pointing out these issues, exposing the company’s unfair practices in detail. She also declared her intention to countersue HYBE. At first glance, it seems similar to the Fifty Fifty incident, but the scale is on a different level. Just last year, ADOR’s loans generated by NewJeans reached the 100 billion won range. HYBE’s stance is to protect NewJeans at all costs, regardless of their response to CEO Min.

In fact, if anyone fits the Cinderella-like success story better than NewJeans, it is CEO Min. She joined SM Entertainment as a new employee through the 2002 public recruitment and became a registered director in 15 years. She is the mastermind behind rebranding Big Hit Entertainment into today’s HYBE and the key figure who created the current NewJeans. Without grand academic credentials, background, or luck, Min Hee-jin achieved all this through ability and effort. What will become of the fate of K-pop’s Cinderella, Min Hee-jin? I wish her luck.

Lee Jae-ik, SBS Radio PD and Novelist