ILLIT drags BTS, Jennie, and aespa to refute Min Hee Jin's accusations of copying NewJeans
Also read: NewJeans makes final call on HYBE settlement after reading fans' letters: ADOR issues statement
ILLIT, managed by BELIFT LAB (also under HYBE), is a 5th-gen girl group with Yunah, Minju, Moka, Wonhee, and Iroha. The band was formed through the survival show R U Next? and officially debuted earlier this year. During the third court hearing, Min Hee Jin, the former creative force behind NewJeans, told the judge, 'From the styling to the lighting, props, set design, gaze direction of the members, and even the way the photos were framed, ILLIT's hanbok photoshoot looks just like NewJeans'' (via KBIZoom). She also pointed out how the group copied debut strategy, citing NewJeans' first appearance at a Chanel event, and how ILLIT rolled out at a high-profile fashion show soon after. Her legal team claimed even the makeup, hair, and outfits felt lifted, pointing to fans' reactions online, with comments like 'Isn't this NewJeans?' and 'I thought I was looking at a NewJeans update.' Min even flagged choreography, saying ILLIT borrowed sequences from NewJeans' tracks like Attention and Ditto.
Also read: Explained: Controversy and drama at Hybe, the K-pop company behind BTS
BELIFT Lab fought back the accusations, telling the court that ILLIT's concept is nothing like NewJeans'. They argued that NewJeans leans into a retro Y2K aesthetic with no fixed storyline, while ILLIT follows a 'fantasy princess meets magical girl' theme with its own narrative and world-building. They also pointed out that ILLIT debuted through the reality show R U Next?, where fans saw the journey from day one. In contrast, NewJeans went for a surprise drop, no teasers, no names, just a music video out of the blue, which they called a completely different market strategy.
On the hanbok controversy, the agency pushed back hard, saying plenty of K-pop idols have done hanbok shoots in palace backdrops and Min didn't invent the look. 'This claim is baseless and ignores the genre's visual traditions,' they said. As for the choreography, BELIFT Lab argued that moves like hair whips, arm rolls, and sitting poses are standard across K-pop. They cited acts like BTS, Jennie, aespa, G-Dragon, IVE, and ITZY. Letting one group claim ownership over these moves, they warned, would kill creativity and crush fair competition in the industry.
While the two seemingly innocent bands are being dragged into the mess, what's really baffling fans is that they've got nothing to do with it. Meanwhile, HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk is now under the scanner, with Korea's financial watchdogs investigating him for allegedly raking in illegal profits during HYBE's 2020 IPO. He skipped out on speaking at a recent hearing, and now it's all going to the prosecutors.
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