NewJeans Plagiarism Accusation: ADOR Reviews Track Sourced via Min Hee-jin

NewJeans' agency ADOR is reviewing internal records tied to the group's 2023 single "ETA" after a U.S. copyright infringement lawsuit was filed over the track.

The company said the review will focus on whether music similarity checks were properly carried out at the time of release.

In a statement on July 8(Wednesday), ADOR said the song in question was sourced through BANA (Beasts and Natives Alike), a music company selected by then-CEO Min Hee-jin. "We are reviewing internal materials to determine whether an appropriate similarity check was conducted at the time," the agency said.

Earlier on the same day, a Korean outlet reported that U.S. copyright administrator All Surface Publishing filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against "ETA" on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Released in July 2023, "ETA" is the title track from NewJeans' second EP "Get Up." The song entered the Billboard Hot 100, the U.S. chart's main singles ranking. Its music video, shot on the iPhone 14 Pro through a partnership with Apple, drew wide attention at the time.

All Surface Publishing claims that "ETA" copied its song "Samir's Theme" without permission. The defendants named in the suit include NewJeans, producer 250, lyricist Beenzino (Lim Sung-bin), HYBE, ADOR, BANA, and Apple, which ran the advertising campaign tied to the song.

"Samir's Theme" is a Baltimore club track released in 2005 by music producer DJ Debonair Samir. The plaintiff argues that the horn melody, 16th-note rhythm pattern, and bass drum from the original were used directly in "ETA."

Similarities between the two songs were flagged by some overseas critics when "ETA" first came out. Within South Korea, part of the audience understood the track as one that used sampling. "Samir's Theme" is not listed among the official sampling credits for "ETA."

NewJeans has faced plagiarism claims over other tracks as well, including "Bubble Gum" and "How Sweet." Of these, "How Sweet" and "ETA" are currently subject to copyright lawsuits in the United States. All three songs were overseen by former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin as executive producer.