NewJeans announces termination of contract; ADOR says it remains valid

The members of NewJeans said they are terminating their exclusive contract with ADOR, but the HYBE sub label said it remains valid.

In an emergency press conference on Thursday evening, Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, and Hyein announced their decision to leave ADOR.

In English, Hanni shared that the decision resulted from alleged mistreatment of the members and staff, miscommunication, and manipulation against them.

“This is not the type of work ethic we respect nor want to be a part of, and to continue working under a company with no intention of protecting NewJeans would only do us harm,” she said.

Danielle added that NewJeans intends to continue with their schedules and aims to release new music and meet fans worldwide.

She said that the members are aware that they may not be allowed to use the name “NewJeans” in the future, but assured that they are willing to “fight” for it.

“Regardless of our name, just remember that NewJeans never dies,” she said.

In a statement addressing the announcement, ADOR said that the press conference was held without proper communication, as they have not yet issued a response to NewJeans’ earlier demands.

They also said that they have not violated any contract, and that “unilaterally broken” trust was not a viable ground for contract termination.

“The exclusive contracts between ADOR and the NewJeans members remain valid. Therefore, we expect them to continue their scheduled activities ahead together with ADOR as they have until now,” ADOR said, based on a translation by Soompi.

They also said that they have requested meetings with NewJeans that were not carried out.

“We hope that even now, we can open our hearts and have sincere conversations together. ADOR will do our best to support NewJeans in their activities and help them grow further as global artists.”