NewJeans was 'harmed' by ADOR, lost its place in Kpop, and was surpassed by a series of new groups?

NewJeans ' last official activity was the release of their debut single in Japan "Supernatural" on June 21, 2024. In Korea, it was the single "How Sweet" released on May 24, 2024.

After that, 5 NewJeans members - Minji , Hanni , Danielle, Haerin, Hyein - held a press conference in November 2024, announcing the termination of their exclusive contract with management company ADOR (under HYBE Group).

They have since been in a legal battle with ADOR. But their plans to re-debut as a new group called NJZ have fallen through, after the court granted ADOR's request for a temporary restraining order, "to maintain their agency status and prohibit NewJeans from signing any endorsement deals."

While the main lawsuit to "determine the validity of the exclusive contract" between ADOR and NewJeans is pending, NewJeans' shutdown is expected to last even longer.

As a result of the lawsuit, NewJeans slowly lost its footing in the advertising industry. As time went on, the advertising world increasingly viewed NewJeans’ hiatus as a risk. The longer the group remained silent, the more brands sought other faces to replace them.

Girl group aespa recently filmed their performance video for "Dirty Work" using an iPhone 16 Pro, just like how NewJeans created their "ETA" MV using an iPhone and became a hot topic in 2023.

Oh Haewon (NMIXX) became the advertising model for Coca Cola - a brand that has collaborated with NewJeans in many music videos. Stray Kids replaced NewJeans as the global model for Pepero. Group MEOVV participated in an event organized by Nike, also signaling a replacement for NewJeans.

The luxury industry is also showing signs of change. Minji has been dropped from Chanel's ambassador list, while other brands are considering new models and postponing contract renewals.

Shinhan Bank terminated its contract with NewJeans and has not renewed it since December last year, after the group announced its departure from ADOR.

An advertising agency representative said that brands value the model's commitment to their brand image, but they also look for credibility and continued relevance. "K-pop is a fast-paced industry. No matter how successful a group is, a one-year hiatus risks them being eliminated," said critic Lim Hee Yoon.

In the Japanese market, NewJeans' absence is becoming more and more obvious. It has been a year since Hanni's sensational performance of "Aoi Sangoshou" at the Tokyo Dome. According to Google Trends, searches for the keyword "NewJeans" in Japan have dropped sharply since the group went on hiatus since March this year, while Aespa has maintained stable coverage.

Not only groups of the same generation benefit, K-pop rookies also have more opportunities when NewJeans temporarily stops its activities. Starship Entertainment's new girl group KiiiKiii; SM Entertainment's group Hearts2Hearts; P Nation's first girl group Baby DONT Cry, produced by i-dle's Soyeon are attracting attention.

Or the recent debut of Allday Project, a co-ed group whose member Annie is the granddaughter of Shinsegae Group Chairman Lee Myung Hee, has become a hot topic.

With the potential of the management company The Black Label as well as the reputation of the members, Allday Project is predicted to become a formidable force among Kpop rookies. The proof is that Allday Project is proudly on the cover of Vogue Korea on the day of their debut, June 23.

However, critics also argue that NewJeans' musical color, artistic vision, and cultural impact on Kpop remain intact.

Regarding NewJeans, the lawyer representing the Bunnies team (NewJeans fandom) posted on YouTube that a fine of 1 billion won for NewJeans is very rare. Since the court has confirmed that the group was wrong in this case, an appeal is very difficult.

She also said that with the nature of the contract, if the group stops working for a certain amount of time, the contract will last that long and affirmed that "returning to ADOR is the only way for NewJeans".

NewJeans was 'playing dirty' by a force, spoke out in response, revealing the relationship of 5 members shocked Hoàng Anh11:04:16 06/04/2025Parents of NewJeans members posted a statement denying that there was an internal conflict. Although previously, Chosun Biz newspaper reported, some people had a view against terminating the contract with ADOR.