At the recent “2024 DaVinci MOTEL” event held on September 27, Min Hee Jin, former CEO of ADOR, unexpectedly presented a previously unreleased demo of NewJeans. The track, known as “NJ1 Demo”, contained beats that caught the attention of fans, but also led to controversy. Online discussions began with netizens drawing parallels between the demo’s beat and the song “IYKYK”, which was released on October 24 by ILLIT.
There were claims that Min Hee-jin had mentioned that the beat from the NewJeans demo had been developed two years earlier, leading some to suggest that there may have been misuse of the composition by ILLIT. The timing of the revelation, combined with the ongoing discussion, has raised questions about potential copyright infringement and creative integrity in the music industry.
While the claims remain unverified, documents previously leaked by Min suggested that HYBE may have compared or interfered with other K-Pop groups, leading many to believe that the beats from the NewJeans demo were repurposed and given to ILLIT. This fueled speculation that Min Hee Jin’s decision to reveal the demo was a subtle way to highlight potential plagiarism issues.
The situation has fueled widespread debate, with fans expressing concerns about artistic originality and ethical practices. Meanwhile, there has been no official statement from ADOR or ILLIT regarding the allegations.
Since their debut, ILLIT have been criticized for being too similar to NewJeans. Both groups are known for fast-paced and energetic electronic songs, which they promote with a dreamy school uniform concept and have similar choreographies. Additionally, both groups appeared at fashion brand events shortly after their debut. The album covers and accompanying products also feature cartoon characters with similar styles.
Therefore, many fans praise Min Heejin for being smart to predict that HYBE might steal NewJeans’ music and give it to another group, so she preemptively exposed her to defeat HYBE.
Source: X
