Hanni Confirms Her Return; Discussions Ongoing with Minji
"Danielle's Family and Min Hee-jin to Be Held Legally Accountable"
Danielle, a member of the group NewJeans, will be leaving the team. On December 29, ADOR released a statement saying, "After the court's final ruling on the validity of the exclusive contract, we reached this decision following discussions with the members and their families."
Hanni has decided to remain with the agency. ADOR explained, "Hanni visited Korea with her family and had lengthy discussions. Respecting the court's decision, she has chosen to stay with ADOR." The company added, "We are also in discussions with Minji, and ongoing talks are being held to deepen mutual understanding."
ADOR stated, "We have determined that it would be difficult for Danielle to continue as an artist under the agency, and have notified her of the contract termination today." The company emphasized, "We plan to pursue legal responsibility against one member of Danielle's family and former CEO Min Hee-jin, as they bear significant responsibility for causing this dispute, Danielle's departure from NewJeans, and the delay in her return."
The company claimed that distorted information from external sources was the background of this dispute. ADOR said, "We have confirmed that the members have been exposed to biased information for a long time, which led to misunderstandings about the company." The company continued, "We agreed with the members that a process is needed to completely resolve misunderstandings based on accurate facts." ADOR also mentioned that it would later provide explanations regarding various controversies that arose during the dispute.
Debuting in 2022 with their album "New Jeans," NewJeans quickly rose to prominence as a leading fourth-generation group with hits like "Attention" and "Hype Boy." They continued to dominate the charts with every release, including "Ditto" and "OMG," but their activities faced setbacks since April due to a management dispute between HYBE and former CEO Min Hee-jin.
ADOR added, "We will do our best to resolve this matter smoothly and ensure that NewJeans can return to their fans as soon as possible."
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