The Korea Entertainment Producer’s Association (KEPA) has expressed its stance on the issue between ADOR and NewJeans over its contract termination.
Kpopping
The KEPA, launched in 1992, and the host of the “Dream Concert” is responsible for the “establishment of infrastructure of pop music industry and the improvement of producers’ rights and interests.”
With this mission, they highlighted the value of having an exclusive contract and how its termination can only be done through a legal process.
“An exclusive contract (…) is a fruit of mutual trust and commitment. The termination of contract can only be done if the side claiming it can provide legitimate reasons.”
On December 6, KEPA then sniped at NewJeans’ “unilateral” claim against ADOR and reprimanded their “irresponsible” move of holding a presscon.
“It is a very irresponsible action as a party to a binding contract, and it ignores both legal standards and industrial practices. Thus, they rightly deserve strong criticism.”
In the lengthy position, KEPA then raised the concern of “tampering,” wherein Dispatch recently accused the team of colluding with a third party (Min Hee Jin) before announcing its contract termination in a press conference.
With these controversies created by the team, the association conveyed their concerns of them setting a “very dangerous precedent that threatens the sustainability of the Korean pop culture and arts industry.”
“NewJeans’ desire to take risks less than half the contract, its related tampering allegations as well as breaking its agency-artist relationship is greatly reducing the industry’s credibility and investment, as a whole.”
As KEPA concluded their letter, they made a call for NewJeans to retract their decisions and continue their schedule under ADOR as they should be.
The association also warned the group:
“If you were planning to pursue schedules at home and abroad independently, we strongly urge you to immediately stop, and find enlightenment by talking with your label. We also wish for a thorough fact-checking regarding the alleged illegal activities such as tampering.”
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