That being said, Min’s success shouldn’t really be as much of a surprise – some might even call it an inevitability.
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Hotshot beginnings
Before NewJeans, Ador and Hybe, Min had already played a key role with Big Hit’s rival SM Entertainment for 15 years. Joining the entertainment agency in 2002 as a graphic designer, she went on to lead the visual branding for its flagship K-pop groups including Girls’ Generation (who recently reunited for their 15th anniversary and first release in five years), Shinee, F(x), Exo and Red Velvet.
During her time at SM Entertainment, Min’s notable achievements included winning best visual and art director at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2016 for “[maximising] the artist’s image and [contributing] to the progress of ‘visual music’”.
She also oversaw visual and artistic direction from the ground up for sister groups Shinee and F(x) – which debuted in 2008 and 2009 respectively – as well as girl group phenomenon Red Velvet and more.Some of her key credits were on SNSD’s 2010 viral hit Genie; F(x) albums “Pink Tape” and “4 Walls” released in 2013 and 2015, and her 2016 releases, Shinee’s “1of1” album, Jonghyun’s She Is (both of which were the late Kim Jong-hyun’s last releases) and Red Velvet’s Russian Roulette.
However, despite joining SM Entertainment’s board of directors in 2017, Min had left the company entirely by the end of 2018. In a December 2021 episode of You Quiz on the Block, Min said that at one point, she was releasing four to five albums a month with all the artistic, promotional and video work that came with it, and felt burnt out.
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The next big hit
Not long after her departure, BTS’ record label Big Hit Entertainment announced that Min would join as chief branding officer charged with what we now know was the rebranding work necessary for Big Hit to become entertainment company Hybe Corporation, which launched in May 2021.
Hybe’s success is now largely attributed to its flagship boy group, as well its moves to acquire small rising labels such as Pledis Entertainment (Fromis 9, Seventeen), Source Music (Le Sserafim, GFriend) and KOZ Entertainment (Zico, DVWN); and partnering with CJ E&M to manage Belift Lab (Enhypen).
Min’s success as CBO clearly helped her nab her new role as the CEO of Hybe’s first original sub-label Ador (All Doors One Room) in November last year, which now manages NewJeans, Hybe’s first original girl group.
In a statement, Min said: “I’m fully prepared to give rise to another change in the music industry through the launch of this new label. Without any fear of taking on new challenges, we will present new artistic IP and content that will showcase Ador’s unique philosophy.”
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Getting in to hot water
Given her rise through the ranks at Hybe and stellar track record with other groups, then, NewJeans’ successful launch might well have seemed like a foregone conclusion. But not everyone is happy with her branding of the five girls in her charge.
K-pop news outlet AllKpop reported in July that netizens were raising concerns over Min’s recent Instagram posts, several of which are mood board-style photos of “underaged girls who are seen half-naked with older men and also the photos of a teenage Brooke Shields”.
The article also claims that F(x) idol Krystal had sent the photo of a young Shields to Min “as an idea proposal, and [Min] really liked it”. The problem? Brooke Shields was just 15 in 1980 when she was featured in a Calvin Klein advert and asked to say the controversial line, “Do you know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing.” The subsequent backlash even got the advert banned in several countries.Netizens’ chief concerns appear to be that Min may be glamorising underaged women, with many pointing to the youthful NewJeans’ pre-debut photos that show the girls wearing shirts with slogans like “Pimp is Yours” on the front.
In early August, AllKpop shared details of JoongAng Ilbo’s interview with Min in which she responded to the controversy. On the backlash against the “Pimp is Yours” T-shirt, Min said: “The word started as a slang word in the 70s and 80s and is still used in the United States, in the same way, to mean ‘to decorate gorgeously’ and has a great cultural value.”
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KBizoom’s translation of Min’s comments showed her anger at feeling misrepresented by the criticism: “When people take screenshots of things they like, do they all research where they come from before posting? I didn’t think much of those pictures either. I just posted what I like, but people thought I was up to something.”“Defaming me like this is very serious. I have decided to file a criminal complaint,” she added. “To prevent this problem in the future and protect the members, we have decided to set up a dedicated organisation in Ador to deal with similar issues.”
It seems that Min intends to stand her ground too, as she’s not yet taken down the February 2022 and November 2021 Instagram posts in question.
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