After splitting with their label late last year, K-pop stars NewJeans have revealed their new name, NJZ, CNN reports.
The future of the five-member girl group has been somewhat up in the air since leaving ADOR, a subsidiary of the South Korean mega-label HYBE, and leveling allegations of misconduct and mistreatment. As the group acknowledged at the time, the decision likely meant they would be unable to keep using the NewJeans moniker going forward.
In announcing their new name, band member Hanni (real name Pham Ngoc Han ) said NJZ hoped to start “turning this rough period of time into something more exciting.” The group’s first performance under their new name will take place next month at ComplexCon Hong Kong.
The rebrand, however, doesn’t put the whole matter to rest. After leaving ADOR, the label filed a lawsuit claiming the group was still under “exclusive contract.” They’ve also sought a court injunction to stop NJZ from signing any advertising deals.
Hanni said the group is “working a lot to resolve everything so that we can… go back to normal.” She added that NJZ doesn’t want the legal battle “to be the focus of our careers.”
In a statement shared with Rolling Stone about the name change, ADOR said, “While the legal proceedings concerning the exclusive contract between ADOR and the NewJeans members are ongoing, we deeply regret that the members have unilaterally made this choice.”
The label said it “remains committed to protecting the value of the NewJeans brand,” adding that it would be “willing to meet with NewJeans members or their legal representatives at any time to clarify any misunderstandings and collaboratively plan for the group’s future activities.”
The feud between NJZ and ADOR stems partly from a corporate dispute that erupted between HYBE and former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin, who was instrumental in developing NJZ and continued to lead their creative direction. Hee-jin was fired after HYBE alleged that she was trying to take ADOR independent, which Hee-jin denied (via Billboard).
NJZ balked at the decision and, in September, demanded Hee-jin be reinstated, saying they would not continue with the agency without her. In November, NJZ held a press conference announcing their decision to leave ADOR and accusing the label of “manipulation,” “mistreatment,” “deliberate miscommunications,” and workplace harassment. (ADOR has denied the claims.)
A preliminary court hearing in the NJZ/ADOR dispute is scheduled for March, while the lawsuit will head to trial in April.
NJZ’s Danielle (Danielle Marsh) said the band was confident they “will win this battle against HYBE and ADOR.”