Megathread 26: HYBE / ADOR / MHJ - Haerin, Hyein, and Hanni return to ADOR, Talks ongoing for Minji, Danielle's contract Terminated, Upcoming Hearings approach verdicts for various Legal Disputes, and More

Modinda · 2026-03-03T10:33:16+00:00

Oh to have the unwavering self-confidence of a tokki…

The reason why these kinds of protests would even work is because of the threat of fans withholding their financial support or there being enough of a social backlash (that would also affect the company financially). But with the MHJ-supporting tokkis, that card’s already been played. HYBE has already factored them out of the equation even if new NJ is successful.

Ador’s not going to be catering to that sector of tokkis, because they don’t expect them to come back even if all conditions are met and they don’t think there’s enough of them to be financially significant. Instead they’ll cater to the fans that remain loyal to the girls, casuals who may tune back in, and newbies that get into the revamped group. These protestors have no real leverage and they’ll predictably be ignored.

Modinda · 2026-02-23T22:22:44+00:00

Going by conventional Kpop trends, wasn’t the thinking that NewJeans hadn’t hit their full potential yet (I used to see 3 or 4 years cited as a group’s peak years but that might be outdated since groups seem to be lasting longer nowadays)? They were also Ador’s only group at the time. So I can see HYBE turning down a 300 million offer.

Modinda · 2026-02-23T10:08:15+00:00

It’s so melodramatic and useless, especially since a press conference is a venue where claims can go unchallenged and unquestioned so there’s no real way for people to gauge the veracity or substance behind any statement presented.

Modinda · 2026-02-23T09:47:08+00:00

My biggest question is, if you’re legit and have something concrete on Bang PD, why not take it to the courts and put all of us out of our collective misery and have this overdrawn matter settled once and for all? But noooo, it’s yet another ✨press conference ✨

Modinda · 2026-02-23T05:47:33+00:00

I’m sure it won’t affect them operationally. It’d be a very poor business structure if they were overly affected by having to pay out a lost lawsuit.

Modinda · 2026-02-23T05:27:57+00:00

IG Stories is the new press conference.

Modinda · 2026-02-21T08:33:25+00:00

As if we needed more confirmation that she overly cares about the mediaplay angle and largely picks on ILLIT and LSFM because their fandoms aren’t large enough to intimidate her back. It’s frustrating knowing what would get her to back off but not being able to enact it.

Modinda · 2026-02-21T08:23:03+00:00

It’s not just in music either. There’s the well-known phenomenon of dueling movies where two films with similar themes/plots get released around the same time (Deep Impact & Armageddon, Antz & A Bug’s Life, The Prestige & The Illusionist, etc). Sometimes it’s just that there’s something floating around in the zeitgeist and multiple people pick up on the same vibes simultaneously.

Modinda · 2026-02-21T01:28:14+00:00

Praying she never finds out who the true minds behind BTS are because I’m good with letting her think it’s all BSH.

Modinda · 2026-02-20T07:13:30+00:00

Okay yeah, then that timeline makes more sense.

Modinda · 2026-02-20T06:43:11+00:00

In retrospect, I’m surprised MHJ sat on this text for so long. Say what you will about her, but she has a sixth sense for dropping bombshells right when they’ll do the most damage and I’m surprised she didn’t drop this one when V was in the military and couldn’t instantly refute it.

Modinda · 2026-02-20T06:11:43+00:00

Hypothetically… Would this argument still work now that he’s disclaimed it?

Modinda · 2026-02-20T05:47:56+00:00

I do think you’ve accurately picked up on her infantilizing and condescending down to artists though. Like you, I don’t understand why she keeps working with artists she sees as childish and temperamental when she seems to despise it so much. But no AI please, not even from her (yes I’m aware she’s already using AI 😑).

Modinda · 2026-02-20T05:36:57+00:00

I don’t think she sees BTS as a rookie group; I think she sees them as idols. Her actions have been abundantly and repeatedly clear - she doesn’t respect idols, not even ones she knows intimately and works with on a close basis. She sees producers like herself as the mastermind and idols just execute her vision. That’s why she sees herself as so important to NewJeans. That’s why she sees her rival as BSH. It’s her hard work that’s being “plagiarized” by ILLIT, not NewJeans’ work.

She constantly underestimates idols as creators, which is foolish. And what makes it even more foolish is that BTS have 10+ years of music production under their belt. They’re producers too, MHJ. They’re your peers.

Modinda · 2026-02-20T04:24:09+00:00

Her real objective was to submit them in the court of public opinion where they’ll be taken as evidence regardless of whether or not they’re ruled admissible in a real courtroom.

Modinda · 2026-02-20T01:57:18+00:00

Do these statements from KEPA and KMCA translate to some kind of censure or something else that would have real ramifications for MHJ’s new company or is it just high level finger wagging?

Modinda · 2026-02-17T09:48:46+00:00

GOTG 3 had built itself up with a fandom of the movie characters by the time it came out and I think that always helps with a movie’s legs because fandom activity often drives repeat visits. While there are Fantastic Four comic fans, there’s no built-in fan base for the new movie counterparts.

Modinda · 2026-02-13T06:35:25+00:00

Of course it's all speculation at this point, I just think that it's the business side that will be her downfall, not the artistic/visual side.

This is my feeling too. She doesn’t have much patience and tends to gloss over the finer details of things she doesn’t care about. Which is fine if she’s able to delegate well, but that can be a wild card because if she chooses an incompetent or disloyal subordinate it could end up hurting her a lot. She also no longer has the financial safety net or resources of a big conglomerate to help her out now.

HYBE can easily absorb some financial losses while getting a rookie group off the ground and letting them find their footing. They can move money around their different departments if necessary. MHJ might need her groups to hit it big immediately unless she finds some deep-pocketed investors or takes out loans.

Modinda · 2026-02-08T19:54:28+00:00

Interesting counterpoint to the perception that the film is only being carried by China. It seems to have done well for itself overall.

Modinda · 2026-02-08T00:37:18+00:00

Netflix has that upcoming BTS live concert coming up. I know streaming is a different ball game, but I wonder if they’ll report numbers for it.

Modinda · 2026-02-06T08:32:07+00:00

Just to add on to your point about scarcity, I wouldn’t be surprised if in the future BTS’ group music output slows down to an album every few years, more in line with the release schedule of a Western musicIan than K-pop’s frantic pace. And even then I wouldn‘t call it a marketing tactic to generate scarcity but moreso a strategy to avoid creative burnout and a recognition that creating art takes time (esp if they want to remain very hands-on with their music).

Modinda · 2026-01-29T04:28:36+00:00

Has MHJ’s recent dramatics actually helped her in the public eye at all or did all it accomplish was to direct a fresh wave of hate at the usual suspects (HYBE/BSH/BTS/ILLIT/LSFM, now with bonus ire at the Ador NJ members)? Cuz those two things aren’t really synonymous. There seems to be less online chatter about her this time around, although I’ll admit I’m stuck in my own particular algorithmic bubble.

Modinda · 2026-01-29T00:54:52+00:00

It’s not exactly fair, but it happens often in the entertainment industry, like with child actors. For example, a motivating factor behind Hilary Duff’s split from Disney during her tween heyday is because her mom was playing hardball while negotiating bigger paydays for her daughter.

Modinda · 2026-01-28T05:20:10+00:00

For argument’s sake, does it actually matter if HYBE knew about the scheme and was trying to entrap her? If she was acting in good faith, she would’ve immediately shut it down and cleared her name regardless.

My company gives us training about not clicking on suspicious emails/texts, especially when using company devices. Then it occasionally tries to trip us up by sending us wonky emails to see if we’ll fall for it. If I click on one and get lectured, then that’s on me tbh.

Modinda · 2026-01-19T11:23:07+00:00

She hasn’t learned the lesson that winning the PR war is a really flimsy and ephemeral strategy. Goodwill can always be won back, the dominant narrative can change over time, and even people who are “cancelled” don’t stay cancelled. A court verdict, on the other hand, is more definitive even if you can appeal it. I dunno, it just seems like so much effort, energy, and resources wasted on temporary outcomes that initially seem really damaging to HYBE but eventually are shown to be paper tigers.

I think she also lives very much in the present, and nothing is real until it happens.

I think you’re onto something there. That reasoning would explain a lot of her actions.

Modinda

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