What Min Hee Jin Was Looking For When She Cast The NewJeans Members

Record label ADOR was founded as a subsidiary label of HYBE in 2021, and it was officially announced that the then-Chief Brand Officer for HYBE, Min Hee Jin, would become ADOR’s CEO.

Min Hee Jin joined SM Entertainment in 2002 and acted as their creative director in her last held position with them before departing in 2019.

Her creative eye and fresh ideas have earned praise from netizens for over a decade, which led to high hopes when it was announced that she would be forming ADOR’s first girl group, which later became NewJeans.

NewJeans made an undeniable splash with their surprise debut in July 2022, and the five members, whose names were revealed the day after their first music video was released, became beloved for their charming personalities and fun group dynamics.

In a recent interview with NHK, Min Hee Jin opened up about the strategy behind the group’s debut, their creative direction, what sets the group apart from “conventional K-Pop,” and how she decided which K-Pop idol trainees would be debuting in the global girl group.

Min Hee Jin agreed that the “mood of all five members is matching.” When deciding who would debut in the group, it was important to the ADOR team that they had similar values.

Min Hee Jin revealed that she chose the members based on their potential and placed importance on “budding qualities.”

She shared that it wasn’t the typical or “mechanical process” of choosing an idol solely on the basis of their visuals or singing. Instead, she focused on the “subtle, nuanced aspects.”

Check out more from Min Hee Jin’s recent interview in the article below!

NewJeans’ Surprise Debut Wasn’t Always The Plan, According To ADOR’s CEO Min Hee Jin