NewJeans Parents speak out on the truth regarding the treatment NewJeans had to go through while under Source Music and HYBE

 [theqoo - hot] [Exclusive Interview] Cockroach-infested dorms, students encouraged to give up their studies… NewJeans’ parents speak out

date: 24/07/2024

◆Minji's mother: "A room full of cockroaches, sending a girl home alone from work at 2 a.m."

Minji's mother said that she was happy when Minji, who was the first trainee at Source Music, was transferred to ADOR. She also told a story about her time as a trainee at Source Music that she had never told before.

Minji's mother said, "Minji came to Seoul alone at the age of 13 to start her trainee life at Source Music." Although as parents they wanted to check on her, they were prohibited from entering the dormitory. 

Minji's mother first visited the dormitory a year later when she moved in. At the time, it was a shock in itself. There was mold growing in every corner and cockroaches popping out here and there. Minji's mother said, "Thinking of Minji enduring silently in such a difficult environment still pains my heart."

It wasn't just the harsh environment that was difficult for a 14-year-old to endure; it was also the endless waiting without certainty. Minji's mother recalled, "Like any trainee, it was continuously waiting. What made it harder for Minji was that Source Music left her for years without any explanation or plan," and “It wasn’t like her debut was set in stone, there was no specific explanation of plans or plans for forming a debut group.”

She added, "They even made her work past 2 AM on Saturdays and Sundays, commuting alone in the dark, I can still vividly remember Minji’s voice calling me to ease her fear as she walked home from work alone in the dark at dawn."

Minji was also passionate about her studies. Due to the pressure of "missing school if she fell asleep," she would only wash up and head to school. It was common for her to sit in front of the school gate from 6 AM and wait for the gate to open.

However, Source Music encouraged Minji to give up her studies. Minji’s mother explained, “Before (Minji) entered high school, we heard ridiculous things like it would be hard to train at a regular high school and to not go there, so it would be better for her not to enter.” Minji found solace in going to school amidst Source Music's rigorous training.

At the time, Minji, who had not heard any plans or explanations about the future from Source Music, could not give up on her studies. After much thought, she expressed her desire to go to high school. According to Minji's mother, the company at the time replied, "It seems possible to go to an arts high school." The problem was that the arts high school entrance exam was just around the corner. Minji, who had not prepared anything, searched for a teacher on her own, took classes, and was able to go to an arts high school. Minji's mother emphasized, "What allowed Minji to endure even in such a harsh environment was her strong will to pursue her dream."

Later, Source Music became part of HYBE's label. Expectations arose that Minji would debut as the company's first girl group. However, during this process, they learned that HYBE had recruited a well-known celebrity for their girl group instead. Minji's mother said, "During the sudden change in debut order, they were left in crisis without any explanation," but "CEO Min Hee-jin couldn't easily abandon the children she had once embraced. As a result, they debuted as NewJeans."

Minji's mother emphasized, "We signed with ADOR. The fact that Min Hee-jin was involved in the process of moving from Source Music to ADOR was comforting. We are still satisfied with ADOR and we have never considered leaving the company."

"The problem lies with HYBE, who is harassing us. I remember the articles pouring out like witch hunts for three days starting April 22. They even framed the parents and NewJeans in a strange way. It is also shocking how a large corporation is personally attacking CEO Min Hee-jin. How can we trust and rely on a parent company like this?”

◆Hyein and Haerin's mother: "We were mistaken for 'Newfties'... It was a terrible 3 days"

Hyein and Haerin's mothers also stated, "We have never thought or planned to leave ADOR or the company." 

They said, “We have an exclusive contract with ADOR and we are satisfied with ADOR, so there is no reason for us to do that. However, last April, HYBE described us as if we were betraying the company and leaving. We were also called ‘Newfties’ in reference to past incidents. The process of being misunderstood like this was truly horrible.”

The members' mothers said, "Source Music decides the future of the last trainee debut evaluation but there was no feedback for several months. All the members were anxious, thinking they would not be able to debut. Also, we did not hear any explanation from Source Music's CEO So Sung-jin until we moved to ADOR. If Source Music is so wronged now, why was there no explanation before? It is natural for CEO So Sung-jin to explain the whole story first before the transfer, but that process did not happen. They started off with all kinds of nice words when we signed the contract, but we have not met since then." "HYBE turned CEO Min Hee-jin, the parents and even NewJeans into strange people overnight. Can we trust a company like this?"

She also explained the circumstances that led to her signing with Source Music. Hyein’s mother said, “We signed with Source Music because Big Hit (now HYBE) promised us their first girl group and said Source Music was the only company that could accept female trainees. We talked about this when we signed the contract. We were even more excited about the move to ADOR with CEO Min Hee-jin.”

The mothers continued, "We, as well as all the members, remember the circumstances in which Source neglected NewJeans during the children's trainee days," and added, "There is currently a lot of serious evidence that HYBE is neglecting NewJeans, I wonder if they want all of this to be made public."

On the 22nd, Haerin's mother pointed out that Source Music and others released videos of NewJeans from their trainee days saying, "I question whether Source and HYBE, which released the content without permission even though the content had already been transferred, are companies with a sense of professional ethics."

The mothers all urged HYBE to leave ADOR alone. She sighed, “Why do you keep messing with a company that is ‘doing well on its own?’ I have talked to HYBE's board of directors several times. We have never asked HYBE to give us special treatment. Instead, we have appealed to them to just leave us alone. This is the first time I have seen people who are so incommunicative. I don’t understand HYBE.”

◆Danielle's Mother "HYBE's Outrageous Response, Who's Leaking information?"

“It takes time for me to even figure out the facts. For now, the news is not spreading.” (Text message from Park Tae-hee, CCO of HYBE to Danielle’s mother regarding the video distribution)

Danielle's mother was shocked after seeing the trainee videos released by a media outlet on the 23rd. She pointed out the fact that Hive changed its statement regarding the debut order, not to mention 'stealing members'.

Danielle's mother explained, "I clearly remember the conversation when my daughter signed a contract with Source Music," and "It was about how if Danielle were to debut, it would be the first group to be launched by HYBE."

She continued, “There was absolutely no talk of including members of previously debuted teams or anything like that. I only found out about that story much later through an external article.” Regarding the ‘stealing members’ article on the 23rd, she explained, “If it weren’t for HYBE or Source Music, it would absolutely not have been published.” 

She said, “But I’m bewildered how HYBE said they are still looking into the origins surrounding the article’s publication. This is content that would absolutely not have been published if it weren’t for HYBE or Source Music, but HYBE said they would only look into the origins once we requested it. If the article isn’t corrected, we are considering legal action.”

Danielle's mother confided that through this incident, she felt that HYBE and Source Music were 'companies that did not protect their artists at all.'

“I wonder how I can leave my daughter in HYBE and live comfortably. It seems unthinkable to trust a company that doesn't have accurate facts and might harass and write articles anytime with fabricated materials.”

original source

COMMENTS

• Why am I crying while reading Minji's mother's interview ㅠㅠㅠㅠ Stop HYBE......Fuck... ㅜㅜ

• The birth of Source is So Seong-jin. That's why she must be getting angry and doing an interview. What kind of father would let his daughter live in a room full of cockroaches and mold, and then send her out alone at 2 in the morning and tell her not to go to high school?

• This is really the worst

• These companies are really disgusting

• If the mothers just sit still, how can they possibly sit still when things are so fucked up right now? Do the girls have to beg in tears? Seriously, I swear I've never commented on a single related post but HYBE is seriously evil. Tell them to go to court and talk about it ㅋㅋㅋ Those who lost have a lot to say ㅠ Celebrities live off their image but it's so obvious that HYBE is the one who keeps trying to make the first move in the news ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

• The parents really endured a lot and then finally let it all out... The kids must have had a really hard time.

• The old office building of Source Music was near my company, the facilities were really bad and it looked like there would be cockroaches. It's near Sinsa Station. The office building was like that, you don't even need to look at the dormitories to know.

• Please let this evil company HYBE fail

• They've had a hard time since they were trainees...

• Seriously, can't they just leave NewJeans alone? Why do they keep acting like that? I'm telling you that HYBE is becoming more and more unpopular.

• The delay in debut was originally revealed during the press conference, so why are they spreading rumors and media manipulating about them stealing trainees? We need to investigate the IP addresses of all the people who have been making hate comments on Theqoo for the past few days.

• HYBE has been tormenting them like this and they've been patient all this time. They're really a blessing.

• I don't know anything about HYBE and NewJeans but I 100% agree with this. I feel like why do they keep messing with a group that's doing too well even if they just leave them alone? Whether it's Min HeeJin or whoever, NewJeans are doing too well right now, so I feel like why are they doing this? Leave them alone. They're the golden eggs, so why do they keep trying to kill the goose and break the eggs? HYBE is really weird 

• I sincerely support NewJeans, ADOR and CEO Min Hee-jin

• They're not asking for any special treatment, they're just asking them to leave NewJeans alone but they can't even do that, this is so annoying...

• It's so upsetting that they made a child come home alone at 2 a.m. I was scared even when I was dropped off in front of my apartment complex because I had to go to the academy.

• Why on earth is HYBE doing all this? It's going to ruin their company's image and there's no financial gain.

• The more I look at this, the more I feel like Min Hee-jin and NewJeans are just begging them to leave them alone, but they can't leave them alone and they keep poking them in the face. It's so annoying because it seems like they're trying to tame them somehow because they're not finished yet

• This child abuse is crazy, f*ck HYBE is a crazy company

• Leave them alone. If they leave them alone even now, these things will be covered up. ADOR, Min HeeJin, NewJeans and their parents are asking them not to make a big deal out of it, but HYBE & Source & Belift Lab keep blowing it up. Especially this time, the leaked video of their trainee days and stuff... I don't even know what they're trying to say with that. The more they release things, the worse it gets for them. Please leave NewJeans and Min Hee Jin alone.

• Even though I'm older, I'm still scared of going home at dawn ㅠㅠㅠ

• Wow, they sent a 13 year old to a dorm and the parents aren't even allowed in. What the heck. Seriously...

• Chubby piece of trash

• After witnessing a clear case of child abuse, those kids who are saying, "It's the same everywhere else, so if you feel wronged, you should have gone to a bigger company"— isn't that just shielding and enabling? Are they really turning a blind eye to this?

• If you're on HYBE's side, if you have a conscience, you need to stop. If you look at what they've done to the girls so far, it's so disgusting.