NewJeans contracts reportedly left out minors' right to rest

This week, The New York Times published contracts signed by K-pop group NewJeans with their record label ADOR.

The members were aged 14 to 17 when they signed, and two of them, Danielle Marsh and Hanni Pham, are Australian.

According to the Times, the contracts left out protections for minors recommended by the South Korean Government, including the rights to education and rest.

Here’s what else we learned.

K-pop

K-pop is a genre of music from South Korea.

Performers, known as “idols”, are often managed by one company.

Music labels recruit children and teenagers as trainees who spend years learning singing, dancing and performing.

The company then picks which trainees will form a group, and signs each member to an exclusive contract.

Many trainees owe the company money for their training and other costs, which they work off by performing.

Background

NewJeans debuted in 2022 under the label ADOR, which falls under South Korean media giant HYBE.

HYBE is the label behind globally successful groups BTS and KATSEYE.

NewJeans quickly became one of the biggest girl groups in the world, with their album ‘Get Up’ debuting at No. 1 on the U.S. charts.

Their song ‘Super Shy’ made it to No. 14 on the ARIA singles chart.

The group began with five members: Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein and Minji.

Hanni was born in Melbourne to Vietnamese parents, and Danielle was born and partly raised in Newcastle.

Lawsuits

In April 2024, HYBE carried out an audit of ADOR and asked its CEO Min Hee-jin – also NewJeans’ mentor – to step down.

Min refused, but in August, ADOR’s board replaced her as CEO.

Min said the decision was made without her consent.

The following month, NewJeans demanded Min be reinstated, but the label declined.

The members then publicly spoke out against the label, with one member, Hanni, alleging she faced workplace harassment.

Then, in November 2024, NewJeans held a press conference announcing they were terminating their contract with ADOR.

The group said the company lacked the “willingness and ability to protect” them, and there was “nothing to gain” by staying.

In December that year, ADOR sued NewJeans, seeking to prove their contract couldn’t be terminated.

It also asked the court to stop NewJeans from working independently.

This request was granted, and NewJeans announced a hiatus in March 2025.

In October 2025, a South Korean court ruled the group’s contract with ADOR is valid.

In December, ADOR terminated Danielle’s contract and sued her, a member of her family and Min for 43.1 billion won ($AU46 million).

The label has since reduced its claim by about $AU10 million.

K-pop labels can demand exit fees even when the company ends the relationship.

The group now has four remaining members who haven’t performed or released music in over a year, despite being under contract until 2029.

Contracts

South Korea’s Government provides a standard contract for K-pop stars which says minors should have the right to education, to sleep, and to physical and mental health.

Dr Sarah Keith, senior lecturer in media at Macquarie University, told TDA that while the Government recommends these basic human rights, “there’s no way of ensuring that the agency actually does act in that way”.

This week, the Times reported the NewJeans contracts had intentionally omitted that language.

NewJeans’ contracts banned behaviour like an “insincere attitude” and “inappropriate romantic relationships”.

They also barred members from publicly stating “true or false facts” that could harm the label’s reputation.

Dr Keith said rules about public image are fairly standard in K-pop.

Labels want artists “putting on a good face for the public as much as possible,” she explained.

Trainees spend years in training before they debut.

Dr Keith says the restrictions are “kind of like the agency’s protecting their investment”.

AI image

After NewJeans’ contracts end, the label can keep using and licensing the members’ names, faces and voices, according to the Times.

That includes AI voice clones and chatbots.

Dr Keith says control over an artist’s likeness isn’t unique to K-pop, pointing to similar arrangements in Western music.

What’s newer is a clause giving the agency rights to AI versions of an artist’s voice and appearance.

She says that’s “probably becoming more and more standard in contracts across the world now”.

Response

HYBE told the Times that NewJeans’ contracts are legal and were negotiated in good faith, with terms to protect artists and the company.

It also said the Government template is a non-binding guideline.

In a statement this week, ADOR said the members also signed a separate agreement with protections for minors, including rights to education and rest.

It also noted the contracts were signed while Min was CEO.

HYBE also told the Times that the exit penalties ADOR is seeking from Danielle are in line with industry standards.

Bigger picture

NewJeans’ leaked contracts come at a time of increased scrutiny of the K-pop industry.

Separately, HYBE’s global girl group KATSEYE has been forced to postpone a run of shows this week while a group member recovers from a concussion.

It comes as the six-person group already has two members on hiatus for their “health and wellbeing”.

New K-pop group A2O LITE debuted last month.

All nine members are minors, and three are 13.

Their debut single ‘NEON’ reached No. 8 on the Billboard Global 200, but the members’ ages have reignited questions about how South Korea protects child performers.

Dr Keith said that the scrutiny is unlikely to deter young people hoping to break into the industry.

“I don’t think there’s ever going to be a supply problem with K-pop artists,” she said.