If you’ve been following the ongoing turmoil between NewJeans, their parent company HYBE and their former label ADOR‘s now ex-CEO, Min Hee-jin, then you’ll know the chart-topping group has faced a turbulent year.
It all started as a battle for creative control. Hee-jin, who founded ADOR in 2021 after working as HYBE’s Chief Brand Officer, clashed with the entertainment giant over the management and artistic direction of both the label and NewJeans. What seemed like an internal power struggle quickly escalated into a much bigger fight, over artistic freedom and workers’ rights. By November 2024, the girl band officially left ADOR but remained under HYBE, with Hee-jin still involved as their creative director — and tension still remains.
Today the group made a bold move and announced a brand-new name: NJZ. Speaking to CNN about the change, member Hanni said that the rebrand is one of the ways that the group is “turning this rough period of time into something more exciting.”
“Even though we have to leave our previous name behind us for a bit, we’re not fully moving on from it. And we don’t want to either, because (being NewJeans) was still a very special period of time to us, and it’s something that our fans also probably hold really dear,” Hanni told the news outlet.
Based on her comments, it sounds like NJZ will mark a pretty different era for the group, in more ways than one. “It’s definitely going to be very different to what people are familiar (with) … and the image that we debuted. Beforehand, we were very focused on being the kind of ‘girl next door’… So, we’re going for a (look that’s) a lot more sharp, a lot more bold. And fashion-wise: We love wearing streetwear and non-gendered kind of clothing. I think that concept and aspect is going to play a really strong role in our (new) fashion as well,” Hanni added.
That said, it appears that the group’s parent company isn’t letting this go easily, taking legal action to block NJZ from signing advertising deals, with a court hearing set for March.
Will the group break free as an independent act? Will new music follow? Stay tuned for updates.
If you’re interested in more music news, read about Jennie’s teaser for her new album announcement.