Did Jungkook from BTS just support the girl group New Jeans against HYBE?

The dispute between K-pop giant HYBE and Min Hee Jin, the CEO of its subsidiary ADOR, has now taken a new turn. Days after Hee Jin’s girl group New Jeans gave HYBE an ultimatum to reinstate her as CEO of ADOR by September 25, BTS’ Jungkook sent shockwaves through the K-pop community when he seemingly spoke out in support of the girl group. The “Standing Next To You” hitmaker shared an update via the Instagram handle @bowwow_bam, which is dedicated to his dog Bam.

Jungkook posted a new picture of his Doberman puppy and captioned it, “Artists are not guilty.” His words alone sparked a whirlwind of excitement online, causing uncontrollable excitement among netizens who were likely intrigued by the symbolic elements in his post. Jungkook’s Instagram caption included five heart emojis next to a flexed bicep symbol, adding to the excitement.

His statement sparked a storm of excitement among netizens, who seemingly couldn’t ignore the subtle hints in the post. Jungkook’s Instagram caption featured five heart emojis paired with a symbol of a tense arm. The colorful hearts, arranged in a strikingly sequential order, are often used as self-images by the NewJeans members. Naturally, fans were quick to conclude that the “Golden” album creator was symbolically siding with the aspiring young artists who, like him, are part of the ADOR label under HYBE.

A few hours later, another photo of Bam appeared on the same account, with the caption “Don’t use her,” apparently referring to NewJeans’ involvement in the ongoing conflict between the South Korean entertainment giant and Min Hee Jin. Min Hee Jin had been forced to step down from her position as CEO of ADOR following a heated legal battle with HYBE.

Some BTS fans claimed that Jungkook’s account was hacked, while others countered that the singer could not express his support for the girl group on Weverse because HYBE staff regularly monitors the platform and can delete any post without his consent. One user elaborated further, explaining that Jungkook likely used Bam’s Instagram account to make these remarks because HYBE staff has no direct control over it. “If his account was hacked, he would have taken care of it by now – it’s been five hours. Respect Jungkook; he has every right to express his own opinion!” the fan argued.

HYBE answers

In response to Jungkook’s Instagram post, HYBE issued a statement saying they are “currently investigating the artist’s true intentions.”

Tensions between HYBE and Min Hee Jin escalated in late August when ADOR announced that Min Hee Jin would step down as CEO, although she would continue to be involved in producing content for NewJeans. This decision sparked discontent among NewJeans members and prompted them to take decisive action.

On September 11, the group surprised their fans with an unannounced YouTube livestream, where they publicly asked for Min Hee Jin to be reinstated by September 25. In the broadcast, they expressed their frustration and stressed that their relationship with Min Hee Jin was essential to their music and creativity. They expressed that her departure from the CEO role caused a feeling of unease and alienation in their work environment.