K-pop group NewJeans is starting a new chapter. After leaving their agency, ADOR, the members registered a trademark for a new group name: “NJZ“.
They revealed their new stage name on February 7 along with the announcement of their performance at CompexCon Hong Kong under the new name. They terminated their contract with HYBE’s subsidiary ADOR on November 29, however, the label asserts that the contract remains valid. The court battle is currently ongoing and it has been nearly a year since the dispute started.
In the latest development, an intellectual property information search service Kipris revealed that members Minji, Danielle, Hyein, Haerin, and Hanni filed a trademark application for “NJZ” through Sejong Law Firm on February 6.
Former NewJeans members have registered trademark applications for “NJZ” across 10 industries, including advertising and merchandise sales. The trademark registration application is currently under review.
NewJeans parted ways with ADOR on November 29, 2023, and later revealed their new group name, “NJZ”, in a CNN interview on February 7. Notably, the members clarified that they did not entirely abandon their original name, instead opted for “NJZ” to preserve the essence of “NewJeans”.
Their scheduled activities with ADOR wrapped with their final appearance at the 39th Golden Disc Awards in early January. Since then, they launched their Instagram account “jeanzforfree” and held a contest to choose a new activity name. When they revealed their new stage name last month, the group created more social media accounts.
Notably, their parents have also created an Instagram account and share their position on the ongoing dispute with ADOR from time to time.
On the other hand, ADOR claims their contract with NewJeans is valid until July 2029 and has taken two legal steps. They filed a lawsuit in December 2024 to confirm the contract’s validity. Additionally, in January, ADOR applied for an injunction to maintain its role as NewJeans’ management company and block the members from signing advertising deals without their approval. This is to preserve the status quo until the lawsuit is resolved.
The first court hearing for injunction application was held on March 7, and all five members arrived at court, dressed in black. Another court hearing for the lawsuit for their contract’s validity is scheduled for April 3.
Meanwhile, NewJeans, now performing as NJZ, will debut their new song live on stage at ComplexCon, taking place from March 21-23 at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong. They Have been teasing new music through various teasers for a few weeks now. It is expected that they will perform five songs at the ComplexCon Hong Kong this week. After rebranding to NJZ, member Hanni teased that the group’s new concept will be “bold and sharp”.