SEOUL, April 5 — K-pop group NewJeans, which had previously attempted to rebrand itself as NJZ in February after a fallout with record labels ADOR and HYBE, has wiped its newly created independent social media accounts.
On Instagram, the account previously known as @njz_official has been renamed @mhdhh_friends, and all posts on it have been deleted.
Similarly, a separate account said to be organised by the members’ parents was also reportedly renamed to @mhdhh_pr.
K-pop news site Allkpop reported that “mhdhh” may refer to the members’ first names: Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein.
Last month, a South Korean court ruled against NewJeans, which had sought to sever ties with their label ADOR over what they called “mistreatment” by the company.
The court sided ADOR after NewJeans announced it was leaving the agency, issuing a ruling that the group must not pursue independent endeavours.
NewJeans then announced a temporary hiatus following their performance at ComplexCon in Hong Kong on March 23.
The group’s objection to the temporary injunction ruling will be heard in court next week.
NewJeans made their debut in 2022 and the K-pop phenomenon is among HYBE’s most successful acts.
The group and ADOR have been caught in the heated contract dispute since August, following allegations that HYBE forced out the group’s star producer, Min Hee-jin.
The band issued an ultimatum for Min’s reinstatement, which HYBE declined.
In response, the members took their grievances public, accusing the label of intentionally sabotaging their careers.