Former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin has established a new entertainment agency, ‘ooak’ (Only One Always Known), approximately 11 months after her departure from ADOR.
The Kyunghyang Shinmun confirmed on the 24th from the Certified Copy of Register that ‘ooak’ was established on the 16th, and Min is registered as the sole inside director of the corporation.
The registered business objectives for ‘ooak’ include: ‘Entertainment management agency services (for entertainers, singers, composers, classical musicians, actors, models, etc.)’, ‘Music production, album production, music and album distribution’, ‘Concert and event planning and production’, ‘Brand management agency services’, and ‘Advertising agency services’.
On the same day, former CEO Min posted memos on her Instagram hinting at the establishment of the new company. The memos she uploaded contained phrases such as ‘ooak’, ‘ooak records’, and ‘only one always known’.
This marks Min’s first public activity since leaving ADOR, a sub-label under HYBE. Min, who previously worked at SM Entertainment, joined Big Hit Entertainment (predecessor of HYBE) in 2019 as Chief Brand Officer (CBO) and oversaw the production of the group NewJeans.
The conflict between HYBE and Min Hee-jin began last April when HYBE initiated an audit of Min. Min was dismissed as CEO of ADOR in August of last year, and stepped down as an inside director in November of the same year. In her resignation statement as an inside director at the time, Min had hinted at her continued activity in the music industry, saying, “I hope you will show great interest in the new K-pop journey I will unfold in the future.”
The group NewJeans, which Min produced, has currently suspended activities and is involved in a legal dispute with ADOR. The court is scheduled to deliver the first ruling on October 30th regarding the ‘Lawsuit for Confirmation of Exclusive Contract Validity’ filed by ADOR against the five members of NewJeans.
