It's been a long road for NewJeans, from the halcyon days of their chart-topping Get Up EP, to a yearslong legal dispute tied to allegations of workplace mistreatment and copyright infringement, to a failed attempt to rebrand as NJZ.The K-pop group officially announced a hiatus in 2025, and there has been little news since then—until today (July 21), when their label, HYBE imprint ADOR, released a series of short videos featuring the group’s four remaining members, Hyein, Haerin, Hanni, and Minji.
(A fifth member, Danielle, acrimoniously parted ways with ADOR late last year.) ADOR introduced the clips’ “commemorative content” to mark the fourth anniversary of NewJeans’ debut, adding, “We plan to announce NewJeans' specific activity plans and methods after discussions are completely finalized.” It’s still unclear what, exactly, that new activity will look like, but in the meantime, it’s worth revisiting the thorny history behind one of the most successful K-pop acts of the 2020s.The DebutNewJeans officially launched in 2022 as a five-piece, made up of singers Hyein, Haerin, Minji, Hanni, and Danielle.They emerged under the supervision and support of mentor and lead producer Min-Hee Jin, a former SME Entertainment creative director who helped shape Girls Generation, Exo, Red Velvet, and more.
(Min became ADOR’s CEO in 2021.) NewJeans’ first three songs—“Attention,” “Hype Boy,” and “Cookie”—found immediate success, with “Hype Boy” becoming the longest-running song on the Billboard Global 200 by a K-pop girl group in history.All three tracks appeared on their eponymous debut EP, which landed in August 2022.The (Even Bigger) HitsBy 2023, NewJeans had established themselves beyond the Korean market.
The Get Up EP, which featured the hits “Super Shy” (co-written by Erika de Casier) and “ETA,” topped the Billboard 200.That same year, they became the first K-pop girl group to perform at Lollapalooza, a set that also ma...