K-pop star Hanni, a member of the group NewJeans, made an emotional plea this Tuesday (15) for young artists to be better treated in the multi-billion dollar sector, as she recounted her experience of workplace bullying during a hearing parliamentarian in South Korea.
For years, the K-pop industry has been dogged by complaints of high pressure and bullying, sparking calls for companies to better protect their artists.
“I hope newcomers don’t suffer such incidents and that’s why I decided to come forward,” the 20-year-old Vietnamese Australian singer said during the televised parliamentary audit.
His testimony at South Korea’s Parliament is a rare appearance by a major K-pop star to speak out about bullying in the industry.
“I know this won’t solve all the world’s problems, but if we just respect each other, at least there won’t be any problems with bullying and harassment in the workplace,” Hanni said, at times choking back tears.
The very group Hanni is a part of has been caught in the middle of a conflict between executives at its powerful parent label, HYBE, and the former chief executive of its subsidiary Ador, which runs NewJeans.
The singer, whose full name is Hanni Pham, told Parliament’s Labor committee how she heard a manager tell staff to ignore and pretend not to see the group when she encountered them in a corridor.
A series of workplace actions made the group feel like they were hated by the company, she said.
Ador Chief Executive Kim Ju-young said at the parliamentary hearing that he was looking into the situation but had not yet found evidence to establish Hanni’s allegations.
HYBE has several record labels that manage some of K-pop’s most stellar groups, including BTS.
Earlier this year, Ador’s former chief executive Min Hee-jin, who is credited with creating NewJeans, accused HYBE of sabotaging the girl group. She was later removed from office.
K-pop idols are often held to incredibly high standards of behavior and face expectations of maintaining an impeccable public image, including pressure from some fans not to have partners.
*With reporting by Hyunsu Yim of Reuters
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This content was originally published in K-pop: NewJeans singer calls for better treatment for artists in South Korea on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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