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On Monday, November 4, 2024, NewJeans members were spotted at the grand opening of Gigi Hadid's knitwear brand, Guest In Residence’s pop-up store, in Seoul. Among the other K-pop stars, 2NE1's CL, Jay Park, THE BOYZ's Younghoon, and Squid Game actress Jung Ho-yeon also attended Gigi Hadid's private dinner to commemorate the pop-up store launch.
The star-studded dinner appeared to have taken place in a traditional Korean home known as a hanok. Hadid established Guest In Residence, a premium knitwear brand, in 2022. During the launch of the new store on Monday, she also debuted a new design for the brand event by donning a brown cashmere coat.
Although only three NewJeans members — Hanni, Danielle, and Minji — attended the event, fans of the girl group rejoiced to see their favorite K-pop idols click pictures and share a meal with the famous Victoria's Secret supermodel.
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Both 2NE1's CL and Jay Park shared clips from the night on their respective Instagram stories. Supporters flooded social media, expressing excitement at seeing Gigi Hadid as friends with the rising K-pop stars.
"They have so many connections in the fashion industry, it’s kinda insane seeing Gigi being like besties with the girls," one fan wrote on X.
Admirers hailed them as the "ensemble of the biggest stars of the idol" as they saw Jung Ho-yeon, CL, NewJeans, and Younghoo from THE BOYZ click pictures and interact. A few fans joked that 2NE1's CL must have "adopted" NewJeans as they are often seen together.
"Literally the ensemble of the biggest stars of the idol, k-hiphop, acting and modeling industry in one frame," one fan wrote.
"Now that the likes are private, we can all agree that NewJeans are the group that is loved by everyone in the industry," another fan wrote.
"CL hanging out with New Jeans on a regular basis, she's definitely adopted them," one other fan added.
Others shared how delighted they were to see the rookie girl group from ADOR with Gigi Hadid.
"You cant just put all of the coolest people and gigi hadid in the same room and expect me to not go insane," one fan commented.
"What a lineup! CL, NewJeans, Gigi Hadid, Jung Hoyeon, and Jay Park slaying in these new pics!" another fan wrote.
"Wow, what an iconic duo! Love seeing NewJeans with Gigi!" one other fan added.
NewJeans and Min Hee-jin's conflict with HYBE continues
HYBE Corporation, the parent company of ADOR that owns NewJeans, fired Min Hee-jin from the CEO post on August 27, 2024. Former HYBE Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Kim Joo-young was appointed the new CEO by the independent ADOR board of directors.
Following this, on September 11, the rookie girl group held an unauthorized YouTube livestream—which has since been deleted—to voice their displeasure over Min Hee-jin's removal. The group demanded that Min Hee-jin be reinstated as ADOR's CEO by September 25, 2024. On September 12, Min Hee-jin filed an injunction to get reappointed as the label's CEO.
However, the board rejected their demand during an emergency shareholders' meeting on September 25. Nevertheless, ADOR reinstated Min Hee-jin as the in-house director of the label, who would exclusively supervise NewJeans' productions till the group's remainder of the contract term.
Later, on October 29, the Seoul Central District Court dismissed Min Hee-jin's injunction plea due to a lack of justifiable reasons, legally blocking her from becoming ADOR's CEO in the future.
The court stated that HYBE didn't breach the shareholders' contract as it differed from her service agreement. The court also noted that ADOR's board is an independent panel that isn't obliged to follow HYBE's instructions.
In other news, on November 5, 2024, HYBE CEO Lee Jae-sang addressed the ongoing controversy and stated that the company would support the rookie girl group in their projects and releases.
Yonhap News reported that HYBE CEO highlighted how the ADOR's girl group became a million-seller with five consecutive albums and has maintained a steady popularity amongst fans despite the controversy.
