Their intention: To make it seem like NewJeans copied NMIXX through these screen captures
NewJeans' Ditto was released on 23.01.02
NMIXX's Love Me Like This was released on 23.03.20
NewJeans' choreography came out first.
I'm not saying that NMIXX copied NewJeans. What I'm trying to point out here is that BELIFT Lab brings up that one screen capture to make it look like NewJeans copied NMIXX.
-The videos they brought to accuse NewJeans of plagiarism are all different (from NewJeans' choreography). But the ones they brought to deny ILLIT's plagiarism accusations are somehow very familiar.
-They've always had something against NMIXX, haven't they?? They even used LILLY as ILLIT's fandom name.
-Min Heejin and other companies should get prepared to sue BELIFT Lab. They've crossed the lines this time.
-Why are they dragging other idol groups into this mess?? Why drag NMIXX???
-Calling this explanation is just ridiculous.
-These nasty bastards are now dragging NMIXX?? JYP should sue them.
-Leave NMIXX alone
-Why bring NMIXX into this mess? Are they out of their mind??
-Did the company really make and post this...??
-Why bring in other idols, you crazy people?
-It's very selfish and disgusting of them to drag unrelated idol groups into this mess...
-Why are they doing this to NMIXX??
-Why bring up NMIXX of all a sudden?? Ridiculousㅋㅋㅋ
-It's very cheap of them to try to make NewJeans fight with other idols
-These three lines are enough to reveal the level of this company to the world;;;;;;
-Who do they think they are to do this?
-Stop mentioning IVE, it's really annoying.
-Their interpretation of IVE shows that they completely miss the point. IVE is all about self-esteem and confidence, not dolls and princesses.
-Dolls and princesses? What kind of nonsense is that?
-It's just gross.
-At least they got BLACKPINK right.
-And why are you calling IVE dolls and princesses, you idiots? They're all about self-love and confidence. Why are you using other company's girl groups for your nonsense?
-NewJeans is popular among teenagers too...
-Isn't it rude to drag other groups into this situation?
-This is seriously rude.
-They seem completely incompetentㅋㅋㅋㅋ What a mess.
-Since when does IVE have a princess concept?? They're so bad at this. How do they even create girl groups??
-How can they describe IVE's concept with the words 'Princesses' and 'Dolls'??? Have they never listened to their songs?
-They must be running the entertainment business with that kind of mindset. What a terrible analysis.
-Describing BLACKPINK as celebrities and IVE as princesses and dolls...ㅋㅋㅋ If they keep doing this, they should just quit the entertainment business.
-BELIFT Lab should focus on something else instead of making idols...
'If you compare it (NewJeans' choreography) to the movements of Mexico Jeans' choreography that already existed beforehand, you could say that it looks the same'
From 16:30
The fact that this is an official video statement...........
To fans who love ILLIT and all K-POP fans worldwide,
BELIFT Lab has determined that we can no longer delay releasing our statement after watching CEO Min Heejin's second press conference on May 31. Therefore, we present our position regarding CEO Min Heejin in writing and through a video.
The Seoul Central District Court's decision on May 30 to grant the injunction from Civil Division 50 is a decision to block HYBE's voting rights at the temporary general meeting of shareholders of ADOR, not a ruling on the plagiarism issue. It is wrong to distort this decision as if CEO Min Heejin had won a judgment on the plagiarism issue.
Separate from the injunction, the criminal case we filed against CEO Min Heejin for obstruction of business and defamation will now proceed. Furthermore, today, BELIFT Lab has additionally filed a civil lawsuit to hold CEO Min Heejin accountable for the damages to the artists, BELIFT Lab members, and participating creators who have carried the burden in silence despite their remarkable debut achievements in K-POP history.
CEO Min Heejin sacrificed an innocent rookie group for her own personal gain.
One of the ways CEO Min Heejin chose to pressure HYBE was to belittle a rookie group under HYBE label as a "copycat" or "imitation." This involved not only plagiarism allegations but also unreasonable claims such as obstructing their activities. In response to a journalist's question, CEO Min Heejin said, "Now (the media and netizens) should no longer mention it," effectively denying the time and process of the victims who had to endure unnecessary criticism due to her statements.
The belittlement and attacks on BELIFT Lab artists were based on photos and short videos captured and edited from similar scenes, removing the overall context of the content. There was no proper verification on whether the so-called "originals" mentioned by CEO Min Heejin were truly created by her or if they were indeed produced by BELIFT Lab. Raising the plagiarism issue in an official setting without presenting reasonable grounds for copyright infringement is not a responsible way for a creator and the head of a label to raise concerns.
Even though CEO Min Heejin's claims were misleadingly portrayed as facts, BELIFT Lab refrained from giving detailed statements because we hoped she would sort out the issue herself. However, CEO Min Heejin continues to insist on her claims, misrepresenting as if all her claims were acknowledged by the court.
BELIFT Lab has produced a video to present our position, which we now release to the public.
We express our regret that CEO Min Heejin's claims of plagiarism, used as a way to secure her own personal interests, are negatively impacting the broader field of pop culture.
The video produced by BELIFT Lab includes an analysis of the issues with CEO Min Heejin's plagiarism claims and the potential impact these claims could have on the entire field of pop culture, including K-POP. It will clearly explain CEO Min Heejin's unreasonable and fictitious claims, such as claiming random standards like the "production formula" and presenting marketing activities and holiday Hanbok photoshoots—already numerous similar examples existed—as if they were newly created.
Many artists and producers have contributed to the current state of K-POP. The path that was achieved by the effort of the senior artists should become a shortcut for their juniors. This is a cycle that allows the entire K-POP industry to grow larger. One should not block the path so that no one else can follow it, especially when it wasn't even their path, and they themselves benefited from the efforts of their predecessors.
BELIFT Lab is well aware of the allegations against the girl group produced by CEO Min Heejin—that they bear many similarities to domestic and international artists or that they might have used specific foreign works as references. However, we do not believe this constitutes evidence that CEO Min Heejin actually plagiarized or actively referenced these works. We believe that the allegations against the girl group produced by CEO Min Heejin are exaggerated and appear more similar than they are, due to intentionally edited content highlighting the similarities. If acts of editing and distorting information to favor one's own position are not corrected, it will hold back the activities of creators, and CEO Min Heejin will not be free from such consequences either.
Although CEO Min Heejin outwardly showed gestures of reconciliation in her second press conference, she failed to offer any apology or reflection to the innocent victims, including artists who suffered from severe and violent negative comments due to her actions, instead blaming others such as the media. This is deeply regrettable.
Protecting the artists from this incident and restoring the honor of the dedicated members and staff of the project is an important duty for BELIFT Lab. We will continue to do our best to achieve this.
-If only they had come out with a new concept, they might have survived. Why bury their own grave?
-So stupid. Their image is completely ruined now.
-Wow... Why are they also mentioning Oh My Girl and BLACKPINK here?? Even before Min Heejin pointed out, people already said that ILLIT reminded them of NewJeans.
-The public isn't stupid and you're too old to be throwing tantrums. I hope I age properly unlike them.
-No matter how much they fought, celebrities are all about image. There's no need to target another label's CEO. Besides, entertainment companies are profit-driven; even if they fight internally, they should pretend to be besties or at least act like nothing happened to minimize the damage they could receive. This is very regrettable. They should've just quietly taken this case to the court.
-Ugh... I got so annoyed that I stopped watching the video halfway.
-BELIFT Lab should've stayed quiet...
-Why so emotional??
-What's wrong with them??
-Why are they messing with Min Heejin again??
-If they had just released a new album with a different concept, this issue would've calmed down and people would forget about it...
Seo PD said in an interview, ""After finishing domestic auditions, we are preparing for second auditions in Southeast Asia. We plan to visit Thailand first, then Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and more." She added, "After going through all the locations, the outline of the program is expected to be revealed by the end of August."
'Under 15' is a K-audition program that will feature children aged 3 to 15 from over 70 countries worldwide, much younger than the average of NewJeans members' ages at their debut which is 16.4 years old. Regardless of race, nationality, or genre, the program aims to produce a 5th Gen vocal girl group to promote globally.
The challenge lies in how to make this program different from previous similar programs. Global audition programs have already been widely broadcasted by major TV stations. Companies like HYBE and JYP Ent. have also created multinational girl groups through global auditions.
Seo PD stated, "Conventional girl group auditions select singers according to the company's intentions. Broadcasters act as platforms." She continued, "CreA Studios' first goal is to cultivate talent. Based on the experience gained from numerous audition programs, we aim to select vocal geniuses. This is what makes our program different from previous audition shows."
-NewJeans became popular because of their good member composition and planning, not just because they're young.
-If you can't take proper responsibility, please don't create new groups.
-Send kids to school. Don't think of making money off them.
-If they're young, they should be in school. This can be considered child abuse.
-Leave NewJeans alone...
-Why is NewJeans being mentioned everywhere?
-NewJeans didn't become popular because they were young. It was due to good planning, songs, and the charm of the members. Focusing too much on age is strange. The audition program aiming for excessively young kids is too much.
-It seems like everyone wants to create another NewJeans, huh?
-NewJeans didn't become popular because they were young, though...
-Who is this person anyway?
-Stop making young kids suffer.
-Stop exploiting young kids.
-I really don't like this person.
-Seeing articles like this makes me realize just how popular NewJeans are...
-A person who knows nothing about the idol industry running an idol audition...
-That's child abuse.
-Why is everyone so angry? Who is this person?
-Are you crazy?
-She's lost her mind.
-I think liking idols under 15 would make me feel guilty...
-There was this one time when I only drank water for 2 days because I was sick. I felt dizzy when I got up, I almost fell backward. If I had to exercise in that condition, I probably would collapse.
-She should go to the hospital at this point...
-I've gone for 3 days only drinking water without eating anything. I ended up collapsing and had to be rushed to the emergency room. Please don't starve yourselfㅠㅠ
-Seriously, this is madness...
-She keeps calling it a detox diet as she pretends that everything's fine... But to me, it's just like pre-anorexia.
-This could easily lead to developing eating disorders... Take it easy...
-She's sacrificing her health for this...
-This looks like the typical pattern of an eating disorder...
-At this point, she seems to be really obsessive with her weight. It looks like she should visit a psychiatrist.
-Her mental strength is really impressive.
-This is an eating disorder.
-If anything goes wrong, you'll end up like me... Getting gallstones...
ㄴDo you get gallstones if you starve yourself??
-Seeing things like this, I'm worried that young kids might see it and think, "If I starve, I'll lose weight," and blindly starve themselves...
-I know because I'm seeing a psychiatrist for an eating disorder, but this person already has a serious eating disorder. She alternates between binge eating and fasting to extremes...
-If you starve yourself to lose weight, you'll suffer from heart failure...
-That's not dieting; it's just destroying your health... She didn't lose fat from all those diets, all she lost was just her muscle
-Losing 5kg in one day is really bad for your health.
-Losing 0.5kg per week is the most effective way to lose weight without harming your health in the long term.
