Just a few weeks ago, New Jeans announced their decision to disband amid tensions with HYBE, marking the end of a record-breaking era in the field of K-Pop. New Jeans is a five-member South Korean girl group in the ADOR Label, a subsidiary of the record company HYBE.  This group was in a precarious position due to its turbulent relationship with their record label, leading to frequent disruptions among its members. Debuting in 2022, New Jeans quickly skyrocketed to fame, dominating global charts on Apple Music with three songs in the top 100 and even surpassing BTS’s Jungkook. Fusing the rhythms of modern liquid drum and bass with a visual twist reminiscent of the late ‘90s, New Jeans distinguished themselves from the other contemporary K-Pop groups that prioritize acoustic visibility with emotive vocals and powerful melodies. Their harmonious and atmospheric compositions induced a “mesmerizing” and “dream-like” quality to many, providing a form of “escape” from the stereotypically energetic and loud K-Pop fare.  Breaking from long-set K-Pop norms of all around conspicuousness, New Jeans successfully aimed to captivate its listeners into joining their sonic journey. The group is extremely attuned with the needs of their contemporary audiences, deeply resonating with the Gen Z experiences and wants; they craft their songs instantly catchy among the young audience members. Their success owed much to producer Min Hee Jin; each vocal note was able to capture a sound that seamlessly integrated both tranquility and the pulse of the present. The tensions between New Jeans and HYBE surfaced in April 2024 when HYBE accused Min Jee Jin, the former CEO of ADOR, of corporate espionage, alleging that she created a plan to take control of New Jeans and ADOR with outside investors. Min accused HYBE of retaliation after she criticized them for allowing them to form another group, named ILLIT, to imitate New Jeans’ distinctive “mesmerizing” concept. Despite her defense, Min was removed as ADOR’s CEO in August 2024. Following her departure, the quintet hosted a surprise livestream on YouTube, where they spoke for almost half an hour regarding their dissatisfaction with their record company and their decision to remove the producer, Min Hee-Jin, from her role.