Die-hard fans have been showering girl group NewJeans’ former company HYBE with criticism since the quintet announced their departure from the label in November, but it appears that they also The New York Times joined the mix.
The outlet appeared to fire shots at ADOR and their handling of the situation in their “best songs of 2024” list, where they crowned the group bronze, with their song “Supernatural” at No. 3.
The New York TimesPop critic Jon Caramanica alluded to the label’s controversial lawsuits against the girl group, seemingly confused as to why anyone would want to block the success of what he considers one of the best tastemakers in the music scene at the moment.
“Why anyone would want to get in the way of the most stylistically impressive K-pop group in years by making songs as stunning, nostalgically precise, and modernly sophisticated as this one is beyond me,” Caramanica wrote.
The critic linked to an article reporting NewJeans’ complaints against ADOR and HYBE, as well as their complaints about the label’s diminishing of the work of their executive producer and frontwoman, Min Hee-jin.
“This was a group risking its external image and internal influence to defend its creative life,” Caramanica wrote.
“It’s a rare scenario at this level in K-pop, a genre and a business where careful choreography – of music, imagery and star behavior – is crucial to the power of the art.”
The critic goes on to criticize the label as “derailing”.[ing] NewJeans,” calling him out for his “methods of micromanagement.”
HYBE has filed a lawsuit against the members of NewJeans to prove that their contract remains exclusive, as well as legal action against their management, despite the girls’ abandonment proclamation.
