'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
On November 11, 2024, Channel A News reported that it obtained a planning proposal from a HYBE whistleblower, claiming that NewJeans' planning proposal created by Min Hee-jin was plagiarised by BELIFT LAB.
The whistleblower claimed that BELIFT LAB (another HYBE subsidiary) allegedly used the planning proposal to create its rookie girl group, ILLIT. As per Channel A News' report, Min Hee-jin had also previously claimed the same during her injunction hearing on October 11, 2024.
Hankyoreh Newspaper reported that a planning proposal titled "21-Year Team Launch Strategy (NewJeans Plan)", contained a similar design and concept style compared to ILLIT's proposal. The publication reported that the fonts and design template were the same between the two proposals. Both proposals had similar visions and goals for both girl groups.
Trending
Fans criticized BELIFT LAB for the alleged plagiarism and trended the phrase ‘BELIFT APOLOGISE TO NEWJEANS’ worldwide on X.
Several fans noted how the ILLIT's planning proposal allegedly used the same "fonts, the color scheme, the layout, the wording" as ADOR's girl group's document. They demanded that BELIFT LAB come forward and apologize to the Attention hitmakers.
"Do you know why creatives go crazy when they see their work being plagiarized?? Its because the amount of time & effort taken to conceptualize everything is no joke..talk about the fonts, the color scheme, the layout, the wording..everything serves a purpose," one fan wrote.
"And what's worse they getting the same pay too or MORE. while the other one getting promotions, ador has to pay unnecessary fees that they never got to experience," another fan added.
"I need belift to actually come forward and apologize to newjeans for their misogyny and for stealing their 7 year plan! (this is no hate towards illit, they’re not the higher-ups making decisions)," one fan said.
Others called the label "unoriginal" and lashed out at them for allegedly plagiarising the ADOR girl group's concept.
"Belift are frauds!!! They’re unoriginal and don’t belong in the music industry," a fan remarked.
"The controversial plan for ILLIT has been revealed to be very similar to the actual NewJeans plan. Everything from the size, shape and text alignment is legit copy paste yikes," another fan wrote.
"At this point there is nothing original about them and these thieving employees have the audacity to make a 30 minute video criticizing NewJeans cuz there is a pig that supports theft and plagiarism," a fan wrote on X.
Alleged similarities between ILLIT and NewJeans' planning proposals explored
On November 11, 2024, Hankyoreh Newspaper reported that the planning proposal of both groups used popular American YouTuber Emma Chamberlain as an example. ILLIT's document was created in 2023 while NewJeans' was created in 2020.
An industry insider weighed in on their views stating that it's uncommon to see two K-pop groups' planning structures and documents be similar since the music industry trends shift every six months.
ILLIT's document also used "creator" as its keyword, which is a synonym for NewJeans' "influencer" keyword. Furthermore, Hankyoreh Newspaper reported that they checked whether every HYBE subsidiary idol group uses the same proposal templates. They discovered that each label had a different template for each of its groups.
In April 2024, Min Hee-jin accused BELIFT LAB of copying the ADOR group's concept to debut ILLIT. Since then ILLIT and BELIFT LAB have been embroiled in the plagiarism scandal.
Later, on October 11, 2024, the former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin attended her first hearing for her injunction, which she filed to get re-appointed as ADOR's (a HYBE subsidiary label) Chief Executive Officer. TenAsia reported that the hearing was held at the Seoul Central District Court's 50th Civil Division, where Min Hee-jin stated:
"After the release of ILLIT's teaser photos, reactions like 'I thought that was New Jeans' exploded online. ILLIT is copying NewJeans in all areas of entertainment activities including hair, makeup, costumes, choreography, photos, videos, and event appearances."
Min Hee-jin also claimed at her hearing that she learned from an HYBE internal employee that ILLIT's Creative Director (BELIFT LAB) had previously requested NewJeans' planning proposal.
Hankyoreh Newspaper reported that BELIFT LAB stated that ILLIT's planning proposal was finalized on July 21, 2023, and shared with the internal company executives. The label added that the alleged whistleblower had sent the ADOR girl group's document to them on August 28, 2023, which meant that there was no scope for plagiarism.
Reportedly, the label has announced to sue Min Hee-jin for defamation and "obstruction of business" for the ongoing plagiarism controversy.
