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On Friday, July 19, the UK Band Shakatak released an X (formerly Twitter) post statement in response to ADOR's denial of plagiarism allegations with NewJeans' recent track, Bubble Gum.
The statement expressed that their agency, WISE MUSIC GROUP, hired a musicologist to help them prove their case of plagiarism allegations against ADOR and will send an analytical report as per ADOR's requests.
"To all our fans and friends in Korea thank you for all your comments about the usage of ‘Easier Said Than Done’ in several recent songs. Our publishing company Wise Music Group is on the case and has employed a musicologist to take this further. We will keep you posted."
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Previously, WISE MUSIC GROUP accused ADOR of allegedly using Shakatak's track Easier Said Than Done without permission for the NewJeans track, Bubble Gum. The agency stated there were several similarities between the two songs. Therefore, expressed their displeasure over ADOR's alleged unpermitted usage of Shakatak's song.
Concerning this, the agency also sent documentation and a letter of claim to ADOR, after hiring a law firm in Korea. As compensation for the alleged plagiarism, WISE MUSIC GROUP demanded various things including the immediate halt in the sales of Bubble Gum, a change in ownership, the reveal of profit numerals, and more.
Following these claims, the ADOR agency released a statement denying plagiarism allegations. They stated that the agency and their employees didn't use any part of the UK Band's song for NewJeans' Bubble Gum. Moreover, they also requested solidifying proof such as an analytical report that justified the plagiarism accusations.
UK Band Shakatak's accusations against ADOR: Details
On July 18, the UK Band Shakatak's agency revealed that they filed a complaint through their hired law firm in Korea, against ADOR for alleged plagiarism. They explained that they sent a letter of claim to ADOR and six other recipients in mid-June, pointing out the similarities between Easier Said Than Done and Bubble Gum.
The recipients of the letter of claim included ADOR, HYBE Labels, Sony Music Publishing, Korea Music Copyright Association, and more. Here's what the letter read:
"We have confirmed that the song 'Bubble Gum', composed and written by 250, Oscar Bell, Sophie Simmons, and Gigi and sung by NewJeans, is using components of the song 'Easier Said Than Done' by Shakatak without permission from WISE MUSIC GROUP."
The letter of claim further read:
"As a result, we demand immediate measures of response, including the discontinued sale of 'Bubble Gum. We have included detailed demands including the discontinued sale of 'Bubble Gum', the reporting of all profits from this work, a legal change in ownership, a seal, and payment for damages."
WISE MUSIC GROUP also listed down the several similarities they found between the two tracks. Some of them are, according to the agency, the same distinctive melody hook, use similar instruments, share similar rhythmic shapes, are performed at nearly identical tempos, have very similar choices of harmony, and demonstrate similar harmonic rhythms.
While ADOR denied these accusations, the band Shakatak responded by saying that they would report back regarding the issue after considering a musicologist.
