Full Rebuttal with Data Disclosure on Member Poaching Allegations
Source Music Rebuttal: "Min CEO's False Claims, Will Disclose Data"
Min Hee-jin, CEO of ADOR, is engaged in a dispute over allegations of poaching trainees from Source Music, another HYBE subsidiary, and the conflict is expected to escalate into a legal battle.
Min Hee-jin, CEO of ADOR, is answering reporters' questions as she leaves Yongsan Police Station in Seoul after completing her first summons investigation on the afternoon of the 9th regarding allegations of "breach of trust in the course of business."
On the 23rd, ADOR issued an official statement regarding reports alleging that CEO Min poached NewJeans members who were trainees at Source Music, stating, "The content of the article in question is a fabricated falsehood reconstructed based on speculation, and we plan to take strong legal action against it."
They continued, "The contents mentioned in the report, such as internal meeting minutes, work assignments, and personal KakaoTalk messages, could not have been handled without the cooperation of HYBE and Source Music in the investigation and without the transmission of false information. In particular, leaking personal information of trainees whose contracts have already ended and artists who have changed affiliations without permission, including medical records and related materials and demos, constitutes a breach of contract and a serious offense," they emphasized.
ADOR also stated, "Contrary to the Dispatch article, the debut of Team N was not indefinitely delayed due to CEO Min's neglect," and to prove that there was no neglect on Min's part, they disclosed email records from 2021 that captured the situation at the time.
ADOR rebutted that during the N Team project, a joint venture among CEO Min, Source Music, and Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, there were many disagreements over the concept, making discussions on each company's roles and responsibilities (R&R) and production timelines inevitably difficult.
They also added that CEO Min sent an official email in 2021 to Park Ji-won, HYBE's CEO, attaching an official position on the matter, but did not receive a response from HYBE at that time.
ADOR stated, "Since the entire article is based on false information, rebutting it is almost meaningless," and pointed out, "The complete distortion and fabrication of the overall facts and timeline constitute serious defamation and obstruction of business against ADOR, NewJeans, and CEO Min."
Source Music immediately responded in the afternoon through an official statement on social media, denying the claims. Source Music said, "There are false claims related to Source Music in the statement distributed by ADOR CEO Min, so we must clarify the accurate facts," and asserted, "The claim by CEO Min that Source Music copied her launching strategy is false."
They added, "Source Music has never copied the launching strategy proposed by then-Chief Brand Officer (CBO) Min, nor have we acknowledged any complaints from CBO Min."
Source Music pointed out, "Chairman Bang's opinion in May 2020 regarding the launching strategy proposed by CBO Min was to realize the proposal through a 'new team' under the label to be established by CBO Min, not through Team N," and criticized, "CEO Min is distorting the facts by suggesting that Chairman Bang proposed realizing her launching strategy through Team N, despite being well aware of the discussions at the time."
They further warned, "CEO Min has been continuously spreading false information about Source Music, and in addition to the damages lawsuit previously filed against her, we will take strong legal action regarding this matter as well." They also emphasized, "We are willing to disclose any materials held by Source Music if necessary for a clear investigation of the truth."
Earlier that morning, Dispatch reported allegations that CEO Min took current NewJeans members, who were trainees at Source Music in 2021, and debuted them under her own label, ADOR.
The report claimed that NewJeans members were trainees under a project called Team N at Source Music, that CEO Min participated as the branding leader of the Team N project in May 2020, with Chairman Bang responsible for music, Source Music handling performance and management, and Source Music CEO So Seong-jin as the decision-maker.
During this process, CEO Min reportedly demanded increasing decision-making authority over branding, music, and performance, and as CEO So tried to accommodate Min's demands, Chairman Bang stepped away from music production duties in March 2021, Dispatch reported.
Dispatch also claimed that NewJeans members were already preparing the song "Attention" and had a certain level of performance completed during their trainee period at Source Music, but the debut of Team N was delayed due to CEO Min delaying branding proposal work more than four times over about a month.
Initially, HYBE planned to debut Team N as its first girl group, but this plan fell apart, and there were indications that CEO Park opened the possibility for Team S (now LE SSERAFIM) to become HYBE's first girl group instead. Subsequently, CEO Min transferred NewJeans members to ADOR and debuted them, reportedly setting the debut plan based on advice from a shaman, with current members also chosen by the shaman, and related conversation logs were disclosed.
On the 15th, Source Music filed a damages lawsuit against CEO Min at the Seoul Western District Court, reportedly seeking around 500 million KRW. Source Music believes that Min's mention of Source Music and LE SSERAFIM during a press conference in April interfered with their business and damaged their reputation.
Source Music plans to take legal action regarding this issue separately from the damages lawsuit.
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