On the afternoon of October 15, Hanni appeared as a reference at the National Assembly’s Environment and Labor Committee hearing. She stated, “Not only due to the bullying allegations but also from the atmosphere within the company and recent events, including HYBE employees criticizing NewJeans on the app ‘Blind’, I’ve become convinced that the company dislikes us.”
Explaining why she believes HYBE dislikes them, Hanni said, “We debuted through a different path. We didn’t follow the set path within the company, but we succeeded, and I think their actions to belittle us stem from that. The reason I believe they dislike us is because of this.”
When asked if the conflict between HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk and former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin might have affected how NewJeans is treated within HYBE, Hanni responded, “It’s possible. Given their relationship, there’s no need for this, but since they’re doing this, I can’t stay silent any longer.“
Unlike other groups under HYBE’s labels, which debut with Bang Si-hyuk’s involvement in production, NewJeans debuted under the leadership of former ADOR CEO – producer Min Hee-jin. Previously, there had been reports of conflict between Bang and Min.
During NewJeans’ YouTube live broadcast last month, Hanni claimed that a manager of another HYBE group said “ignore her” loud enough for her to hear. The manager in question is responsible for protocol for the group ILLIT. ILLIT’s label Belift Lab denied the claim, citing CCTV footage and the investigation of the individual involved.
