NewJeans

Danielle, the former member of K-pop girl group NewJeans, is set to disappear from an official fan communication platform as the fallout from her high-profile exit from the group continues to escalate. On Tuesday, Phoning — a fan platform jointly operated by NewJeans’ agency Ador and the global fandom service Weverse — announced that it will reorganize certain content on the service. The platform thanked fans for their continued support for NewJeans and explained that the change is part of broader service maintenance. "We deeply appreciate the love and support fans have shown NewJeans," the platform said in an official notice. "While we value the memories that artists and fans have built together, some content will be reorganized to provide better service." As part of the update, chat records involving Danielle will be removed. Fans will be able to access the conversations only until 11 a.m. on April 3. The move comes amid an intensifying dispute between Danielle and Ador following her removal from the group. In December last year, Ador confirmed the return of members Haerin and Hyei

Danielle, the former NewJeans member embroiled in a contract dispute with her agency, has been spotted in public overseas for the first time in weeks, prompting an outpouring of fan support online. A short video posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, on March 1 showed Danielle at the Tokyo Marathon venue in Japan. The poster said the woman in a white cap and sunglasses was Danielle, while the man beside her in a green jacket was actor Lee Si-woo. Danielle holds a South Korean flag in one hand and a white banner in the other while looking toward the camera. She is known for her enthusiasm for running and has previously participated in the celebrity running crew “Unknown” alongside singer Sean. She reportedly attended the event to cheer on runners, including Sean. Fans reacted warmly, writing comments such as “We support you,” “So happy to see her smiling,” and “Hope she returns soon.” Danielle was removed from NewJeans in December after agency ADOR terminated her exclusive contract and filed a 43.1 billion won ($32.3 million) damages and penalty lawsuit again

The identity of the man who stood beside former Ador CEO Min Hee-jin at her recent press conference has sparked online interest — and fans quickly identified him as Black Q, the choreographer widely known as a key creative force behind K-pop group NewJeans. Min, now head of the newly launched label Ooak Records, held a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday to announce her legal victory in a stock payment lawsuit and outline future plans. During the brief appearance, she read a prepared statement proposing that she would forgo the 25.6 billion won ($19.2 million) awarded in the ruling if HYBE agreed to halt all ongoing legal disputes with her. She entered, read the statement in under 10 minutes without taking questions and exited — but attention shifted to the man who escorted and assisted her offstage. He was later identified as choreographer Black Q (Kim Young-hoo). ‘Father of NewJeans’ choreography Black Q gained public recognition in 2022 through Mnet’s dance competition show “Street Man Fighter” as part of the crew Eoddae. He later worked as a performance director at Ad

Min Hee-jin, the creative force behind K-pop girl group NewJeans and current head of Ooak Records, called Wednesday for an end to the ongoing legal battle between herself and HYBE Labels, proposing that she forgo a 25.5 billion won ($18 million) payment if all civil and criminal litigation is dropped. Speaking at a press conference in central Seoul, Min opened by reflecting on her Feb. 13 victory in a put-option lawsuit over a shareholder agreement dispute with HYBE. “I express my respect and gratitude to the court for carefully examining the essence of this case over a long period of time and confirming it through its ruling,” she said. “It was truly a long tunnel.” She said the court had determined that what she described as "sensational frames" surrounding the dispute were unfounded and recognized that her concerns about creative ethics were matters of managerial judgment. Under the ruling, Min is entitled to approximately 25.5 billion won. However, she said she intends to exchange the monetary award "for another value." The sum, she described, was "an amount one may never enco

Min Hee-jin, the former head of Ador who created the girl group NewJeans, has proposed that Hybe drop all ongoing civil and criminal litigation and bring their dispute to a close. In return, she offered to forgo the 25.6 billion won ($17.9 million) put option payment she is set to receive following her recent court victory against Hybe, framing the offer as an effort to resolve the protracted conflict. At a press conference, Min said she is willing to give up the payout the court awarded her if

K-pop powerhouse HYBE has appealed against a court's ruling that ordered the payment of 25.5 billion won ($17.7 million) worth of put options to Min Hee-jin, a former CEO of a HYBE subsidiary named ADOR, judicial officials said Friday. The appeal was filed with the Seoul Central District Court's Civil Division 31 on Thursday after the same court last week dismissed HYBE's lawsuit seeking to confirm the termination of its shareholders' agreement with Min and ruled on the put option payment. HYBE was also ordered by the court on Feb. 12 to pay 1.7 billion won and 1.4 billion won, respectively, to two former ADOR executives for the same reasons. HYBE reportedly demanded in its appeal that the effect of the first trial be suspended until the appellate court makes a decision. The conflict between HYBE and Min began in April 2024 and Min was dismissed as CEO of ADOR in August of that year. HYBE has argued that the termination of the shareholders' contract is valid because Min violated it by seeking to end girl group NewJeans' agency contract with ADOR and pushing for an initial public offering

A Seoul court’s ruling ordering K-pop conglomerate HYBE Labels to pay former Ador CEO Min Hee-jin about 25.5 billion won ($17.5 million) in a put option dispute has begun reshaping the next phase of one of K-pop’s biggest corporate battles. While the Feb. 12 decision clarified key legal questions surrounding Min’s shareholder agreement and creative autonomy, it also left a complex web of appeals, ongoing lawsuits and artist negotiations unresolved, placing renewed focus on how Min, HYBE and girl group NewJeans will navigate the months ahead. What court decided The central question in the case was whether Min had committed a substantial breach of her shareholder agreement with HYBE that would allow the company to terminate the contract and block her put option. HYBE argued that Min’s conduct, including efforts to pursue independence for sub-label Ador and her public remarks tied to internal disputes, amounted to a “serious violation” that destroyed mutual trust. Min countered that her put option was valid under the contract terms and that her actions did not meet the legal thr