BLACKPINK, ILLIT, NewJeans lead the "copycat" group, the shame of all Kpop?

During a recent audit session of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, Congressman Shin Dong Wook said that plagiarism is becoming a problem that is hindering the development of K-pop.

Mr. Shin Dong Wook proves his argument by comparing the somewhat similar choreography of two hot groups, ILLIT and NewJeans. In reality, the development of Kpop music in 2024 is slowing down due to the lack of its own color, from "little sister" BlackPink to the copy of virtual idol Plave. Both Lisa (BlackPink) and NewJeans are also caught up in the noise of "borrowing" ideas from lyrics to scenes in MVs.

On April 3, 2024, an internal battle broke out between HYBE Group and former CEO Min Hee Jin when she released evidence showing that HYBE had consulted NewJeans' plan to create the 5th generation girl group ILLIT. At the trial held on October 11, the female CEO continued to affirm: "ILLIT's creative director requested NewJeans' plan right from the planning stage of creating ILLIT".

Despite the numerous evidences presented, Belif Lab (ILLIT's management company) has continuously denied the plagiarism suspicions, while the "big guy" HYBE has ignored the matter. In July 2024, the British band Shakatak sent a complaint letter to HYBE and the record label ADOR, accusing the girl group NewJeans of illegally using the composition and musical elements from Shakatak's song Easier said than done in the song Bubble gum.

At the same time, Lisa (BlackPink) was also caught up in a similar scandal. Specifically, Gabriel Moses - the director of Travis Scott's MV FE!N accused Lisa's MV Rockstar of plagiarizing a scene from FE!N. The director of the MV FE!N was outraged and strongly condemned on social media: "They contacted my editor to ask for permission to use FE!N as a reference. Even though they refused, Lisa still did it."

Even the virtual music group Plave has become the target of plagiarism. The virtual idol rookie group AFOTS had to apologize and cancel their schedules because of the plagiarism scandal involving Plave's MV The 6th Summer.

The problem of plagiarism is not new in the leading industry of the land of kimchi, but it has only recently been seriously examined.

Responding to Mr. Shin's suggestions, Jung Hyang Mi, director of the Copyright Office of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "There are many different issues that need to be considered, from the issue of identifying copyrights for choreography to the issue of management by companies."

"We will complete our research on general principles of choreography copyright around November. Based on that, we will issue a specific regulation this year to guide those in charge of choreography."

Plagiarism in K-pop exists openly because there are no clear regulations, because of concerns about affecting the creativity of artists.

“It would be great if there were clear quantitative standards and metrics, but they are hard to find in music. Since such approaches can limit creativity, finding a legal agreement or standard is a difficult task,” pop music critic Hwang Sun Up told The Korea Herald.

Another reason why plagiarism is ignored in K-pop is because of the lengthy litigation process, but no clear verdict.

In 2015, the plagiarism scandal between JYP chairman Park Jin Young and composer Kim Shin Il ended with a court settlement, leaving the public extremely disappointed with Korean law. Korean media commented that the development of K-pop is slowing down due to a lack of creativity and the explosion of plagiarism. In addition, the absence of big names like BTS or BlackPink is also part of the reason.

NewJeans was accused of plagiarizing Vietnamese music before their comeback, should ILLIT "take the blame" instead? Minh Lợi11 months agoWhile the conflict between ADOR company and parent group HYBE tends to become increasingly tense, NewJeans' reputation and appeal remain undiminished. Before the comeback, the group was discussed because of suspicions of plagiarism.