28 Facts About Min Hee-jin

Min Hee-jin is a South Korean music producer, art director, and graphic designer.

Min Hee-jin is the former CEO of ADOR, a subsidiary of entertainment company Hybe Corporation, and the former executive producer of K-pop girl group NewJeans.

Min Hee-jin was formerly a creative director at SM Entertainment, where she was responsible for the branding of groups such as Girls' Generation, Shinee, f, Exo, and Red Velvet.

Min Hee-jin attended Seoul Women's University, where she received a degree in visual design.

Min Hee-jin joined SM Entertainment in 2002 as a graphic designer.

Min Hee-jin was later promoted to creative director and led the visual branding of groups such as Girls' Generation, Shinee, f, Exo and Red Velvet.

Min Hee-jin's role involved overseeing the planning and production of album artwork, costumes and music videos, as well as building the artist's brand identity through non-visual means.

Min Hee-jin is credited with shifting the visual direction of the K-pop industry to become more concept-driven, and is particularly noted for her work on f's 2013 album Pink Tape.

Min Hee-jin joined SM's board of directors in 2017, but left the company at the end of 2018 due to burnout.

Min Hee-jin joined Hybe Corporation in 2019 as chief brand officer and oversaw the company's rebranding, including the design of the new logo and the new work space in Yongsan.

Min Hee-jin was appointed CEO of Hybe's new subsidiary ADOR in November 2021.

In 2023, Min Hee-jin was awarded the Seoul City Culture Award by the Seoul Metropolitan Government for her work with NewJeans.

Min Hee-jin retained her position in the company's board of directors and as a producer of the group.

Min Hee-jin has opposed the decision, stating that the dismissal is a "grave violation of the shareholders' agreement".

On November 20,2024, Min Hee-jin resigned from her director position at ADOR.

Min Hee-jin was seen sharing pictures of her apartment on Instagram which showcased images that refer to the 1974 film I'll Take Her Like a Father, among others.

Min Hee-jin claimed that she was asked to resign because of her complaints towards the creative similarities in artistic direction between NewJeans and Illit, a girl group that had debuted under Hybe's subsidiary label Belift Lab.

Min Hee-jin blamed Hybe chairman Bang Si-hyuk, who oversaw the production of Illit's debut, for failing to address the creative similarities between the two groups.

Hybe subsequently released the findings of their investigations to support the claims made against Min Hee-jin, including messages exchanged on KakaoTalk between Min Hee-jin and ADOR's vice president, where the latter listed methods to take control of NewJeans' activities.

Min Hee-jin addressed the allegations on April 25,2024, at an emergency press conference, accompanied by her two lawyers.

Min Hee-jin stated that there was no concrete plan to leave Hybe, and that tensions with Hybe executives started when Le Sserafim's debut was prioritized over NewJeans'.

That same day, Min Hee-jin's alleged KakaoTalk chats were leaked, showing Min Hee-jin making disparaging remarks about NewJeans, as well as their fans, with a colleague.

Min Hee-jin disagreed, stating that it was a "grave violation of the shareholders' agreement".

Min Hee-jin's representatives claimed in a statement that Park and Cho "not only failed to fulfil their obligations but caused significant damage to NewJeans and ADOR by downplaying the group's achievements", while adding that they hope "appropriate criminal penalties are imposed".

On January 9,2025, Chairman Park Jung-kyu of the tech company Davolink alleged in an interview that Min Hee-jin had made efforts to "poach" NewJeans.

Min Hee-jin mentioned that there had been previous discussions between him and Min regarding potential investment and the possibility of NewJeans leaving ADOR to sign exclusive contracts with another company.

On that same day when Min Hee-jin released her statement, the former employee reiterated her claims .

On March 24,2025, Min Hee-jin was issued a fine by the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office, after the agency acknowledged that some of Min Hee-jin's actions were equivalent to workplace harassment and accepted some of the allegations submitted by the ex-employee.