After the HYBE-ADOR conflict began, Min Hee Jin accused HYBE of breaking their promise and postponing the debut of NewJeans, only to make LE SSERAFIM HYBE’s first girl group.
On July 23, Dispatch revealed a detailed report about NewJeans’ members being SOURCE MUSIC trainees and how Min Hee Jin intentionally delayed the group’s debut after consulting with the shaman.
Along with the details, Dispatch released a performance video of Attention, where SOURCE MUSIC trainees including NewJeans members are seen performing the song.
SOURCE MUSIC began preparing a new girl group, ‘N Team’, in 2018, aiming for a Q3 2021 debut. Min Hee Jin joined the project in 2019 as a creator, responsible for visuals and concepts. Initially, her role was limited to branding leadership, but she sought more control, wanting to oversee music, performance, and A&R.
So Sung-jin, the decision maker and CEO of SOURCE MUSIC accepted the offer, and on March 4, 2021, Bang Si Hyuk stepped down as music leader.
As reported by Dispatch, Min Hee Jin requested and received approval from Bang Si-hyuk and So Sung Jin to expand her role in managing the trainees (now NewJeans members) four times.
So Sung Jin, CEO of Source Music, assembled a team of talented individuals:
- Kim Minji (2018) – current leader
- Pham Hanni (2019) – selected through the ‘Plus Global Audition’
- Kang Haerin (2019) – discovered on the street and signed in February 2020
- Danielle (2020) – former YG trainee, joined in July
- Lee Hyein (2021) – personally recruited by So Sung-jin, signed in January
The group of 10 trainees was formed between 2018 and 2021, with a planned debut in Q3 2021. However, the N Team Council, led by Min, delayed the debut.
In March 2021, Team N (now NewJeans) was ready to debut with Attention after practicing singing, choreography, and language. However, the branding proposal, which was Min Hee Jin’s responsibility, was delayed despite repeated assurances.
As per the chats leaked by Dispatch, Source Music CEO So Sung Jin requested meeting schedules throughout April 2021 but Min Hee Jin repeatedly pushed back the deadline, saying ‘next week’ four times.
According to SOURCE MUSIC’s initial plans, N-Team (now NewJeans) was slated to debut in Q3 2021, followed by S-Team (now Le Seraphim) in Q1 2022. However, by June 2021, the N-Team Council, led by Min Hee Jin, had only progressed to coordinating R&R, delaying the debut.
Internal meeting minutes from June 18, 2021, obtained by Dispatch, reveal that Source Music had prioritized Team N’s debut.
Dispatch leaked multiple conversations with Shaman and it was revealed that the debut was delayed after consultation with the shaman.
Responding to the allegations, CEO Min Hee-jin denied the claims in a statement to YTN, announcing that they intend to pursue legal action to address the matter.