NewYearsDayProject | a song a day blog

It’s time to check in with NewJeans . On August 27th, Min Hee-Jin was dismissed as the CEO of NewJeans’ label ADOR , a sub-label of Hybe Corporation . The corporate intrigue has left one of Hybe’s most internationally and financially successful acts in limbo. NewJeans is like the victim of a divorce in which the custody lies legally with their father label. NewJeans, however, expressed their loyalty to Min Hee-Jin, who formed the group and managed every step in their process toward global ubiquity. But NewJeans aren’t completely helpless. As one of the biggest K-pop acts, the group has an active fanbase. On September 11, NewJeans hosted a livestream on YouTube and demanded that Min be reinstated as CEO of ADOR by September 25th. This statement by the group was believed to be responsible for Hybe’s 3% dip in value of the company’s shares .  WE ARE BOUND TO EACH OTHER. With the turmoil at ADOR, NewJeans’ releases this year have lagged compared to the last two years. The group has releas

Today it’s back to the world of the Hybe Corporation . In 2019, Hybe hired Min Hee-jin (민희진) as the company’s chief brand designer. She worked as the company began a transitional phase when BigHit Entertainment took on several subsidiary record labels. Min had worked for SM Entertainment , one of the big three K-pop labels in the ‘90s to early ‘10s, and had been the creative director behind some of the label’s biggest acts such as Exo , SHINee , (f)x , and Girls' Generation. She then worked developing other K-pop acts on every label for Hybe except for BigHit because that label had its own specialized brand designer. But upon being hired at BigHit (later Hybe), Min demanded her own subsidiary, Ador , of which the brand designer became CEO. Ador was formed in 2021 and signed their first act in 2022.   WANNA BE A WINNER. Min Hee-jin planned to release a girl group in 2022. Hybe Corporation was known for its boy bands and rappers. Still, with SM, YG , and JYP releasing successful f

TWS (pronounced two-us or in hangeul 투어스)  debuted earlier this year on Pledis Entertainment , an independently-operated sub-label of Hybe Corporation . Today all successful K-pop group members promote their group on social media, but the concept of Pledis’s latest boy band was to release “boyhood pop,” or pop music that “captures the daily stories of boys.” Furthering this concept, the group uses the tagline: “twenty-four seven with us.” The group is well-marketed as the cool boyfriends of voyeuristic K-pop fans. With members ranging from 16 to 20, TWS serves as a fifth (or fifth?)-generation K-pop group, marketed to middle school and high school students, which can be seen in their highly-stylized music video “ Plot Twist .” The video features the group living in dormitory-style quarters and attending a co-educational high school. FIRST ENCOUNTERS ARE ALWAYS HARD.   Lyrically, "Plot Twist" by TWS is about the awkwardness and nervousness of first encounters. The lyrics de