Two members of NewJeans, Hyein and Haerin, will return to their record label Ador, the agency has announced, in a move that has led fans to question whether the K-pop group will now split up.
NewJeans has been locked in a legal battle with Ador since the five-member group announced last year that they were leaving the agency due to mistreatment and manipulation. Ador has denied these claims.
Last month, a South Korean court ruled that NewJeans's contract with Ador, which runs until 2029, remains valid. NewJeans said it would appeal.
The dispute has rocked the K-pop industry, where record labels typically exercise strict control over their artists.
Ador, a subsidiary label of Hybe, South Korea's biggest music label behind chart-topping groups such as BTS, stated on X that Hyein and Haerin decided to respect the court's latest ruling after consulting with their families and the agency.
Plans for the other three members—Hanni, Danielle, and Minji—are still unclear, causing uncertainty among fans regarding the group's future.
Since their inception in July 2022, NewJeans has achieved remarkable success, but their ongoing legal issues have forced them into a temporary hiatus. Their first single Attention topped Korean charts, while SuperShy made numerous best of the year lists in 2023.
As tensions mount between the members and their agency, many supporters are voicing concerns that this could impact the group's cohesion significantly. If only two out of five members continue their contracts, that's basically a disbandment, one fan lamented, highlighting the precarious position NewJeans currently faces.
