Industry Professionals Comment On ILLIT’s Alleged Plagiarism Of NewJeans
Plagiarism accusations have been rife against ILLIT, as many feel that their formula was an exact copy of NewJeans. Of course, most blame the company rather than the group itself.
Similarities such as similar poses and vibes for concept photos…
…as well as similar promotional methods such as 3-D LED advertisements brought up suspicions.
More recently, many have been comparing the two groups’ albums. NewJeans’ iconic style seemed to have been replicated in ILLIT’s albums.
This was also recognized in their similar font, which mixed normal font with pixelated ones.
As allegations continue, Sports Kyunghyang invited industry professionals to give their opinion. These professionals come from a variety of backgrounds, such as entertainment company CEOs, brand marketing managers and more.
One such professional acknowledged the similarities between the two. A CEO of an entertainment company commented that “an idol’s core is their concept. Although the details can be different, just having a similar concept overall is already a clear violation.”
Another CEO voiced out that “the similarities aside, for the same company to release a group with the same concept during the same period with one group debuting in March and promoting in April, while the other makes a comeback in May, is just an error in scheduling, all intentions aside.”
Indeed, HYBE’s cannibalism has been consistently pointed out with ILLIT’s debut. This is one of the main problems ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin also brought up in her accusations of plagiarism. She took problem with how HYBE allowed BELIFT LAB to copy NewJeans.
A famous creative director also agreed, claiming that while parodies, homages, and tributes can always be allowed, the industry has to call out pure plagiarism. They have pointed out the similar album fonts and other work as a violation of creative work.
Lastly, a brand marketing manager claimed that the controversy did not stem simply from having similar concepts. They claim that ILLIT is “tracing” NewJeans’ formula to success, calling it a “copy and paste.” They cannot shake the feeling that ILLIT copied NewJeans’ formula, from their Y2K concept, to their youthful teen vibes, dreamy pastel-tone visuals, and even their marketing strategies.
For many professionals, this has gone beyond “referencing,” and moved on to a complete copy.
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