YouTuber Free Zia's agency has released a statement regarding various allegations and controversies.

Kim Hyo Jin, CEO of Hyowon CNC, the agency of Free Zia, said in an official press release on January 19th, “We are here to convey the company’s position as there are malicious rumors about FreeZia spreading around.”

The CEO said, “It is also the company’s job to check the creator’s fashion on the show, but we didn’t check properly because we thought that respecting Ji-ah’s own styling was a way to communicate more closely with her subscribers. Co-founder, actor Kang Ye-won, who I trusted everything and entrusted management to, is also ashamed of what what they did.”

The CEO then calmly expressed their position on malicious rumors related to FreeZia. “First of all, regarding the allegations that Hyowon CNC was made of overseas capital from sponsors, Hyowon CNC is a startup company that I and actor Kang Ye-won started with small capital, and all employees (including ex-employees) have worked together day and night for four years since its foundation. We have never received any form of investment, including corporate M&A investment"

Regarding the claim that the company gave Freesia the Trimaze apartment and created a “rich family’s daughter” character, they said, “I have never added even just 1 won to her house. There was no economic support from us at all. We do nothing other than supporting the creators, cheering for and creating their dreams together in the normal management category. That is a monthly rent house that Freesia signed with her own money.”

Regarding the allegations of fake fashion items, they explained, “The reason why the luxury haul video was set to private on FreeZia’s YouTube channel was not because of the luxury goods, but because the accessories she was wearing when she introduced them were fake.”

Finally, the agency said, “In the future, we will actively take legal action against any personal damage and defamation due to malicious postings containing malicious swear words, slander, malicious rumors and groundless false facts.”

Previously, Free Zia was caught up in suspicions that the luxury clothes and jewelry she wore on YouTube and broadcast on the 16th were fakes. Accordingly, on January 17th, the next day, Free Zia partially acknowledged the 'fake' controversy and posted an apology.

Source[1]

The battle between NewJeans (NJZ) and HYBE just got more intense! During a court hearing, NewJeans presented evidence claiming that ILLIT’s concept, styling, and choreography are too similar to theirs!

On March 7, the Seoul Central District Court held a hearing on ADOR’s injunction request to stop NewJeans (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein) from operating independently and signing advertising contracts without ADOR’s approval.

NewJeans’ legal team didn’t hold back, stating, “HYBE launched ILLIT as a copy of NewJeans. They tried to damage NewJeans’ brand and replace them.”

They added, “Even HYBE employees noticed it. NewJeans debuted three years earlier, but their project plans look shockingly similar. The structure, documents, and content are nearly identical.”

NewJeans’ side even compared hanbok photoshoots of both groups, saying, “At first glance, you can’t tell which one is NewJeans and which one is ILLIT.”

They added, “Why did they have to copy the same colors, styles, and textures? Even fans were the first to point this out, saying, ‘This is too much.’”

They also accused ILLIT of copying NewJeans’ iconic choreography. They presented a side-by-side comparison video of NewJeans’ “Attention” dance move, claiming that ILLIT directly copied it.

“Some people said ILLIT was just paying homage to their seniors, but NewJeans never gave permission for that,” they stated. “This is an unauthorized and almost identical copy of our signature moves.”

Instead of responding to these accusations, NewJeans’ side claimed that HYBE launched an internal audit against Min Hee-jin and engaged in media play. They added, “HYBE simply said, ‘We can’t determine if this is plagiarism, so let’s wait for the court’s ruling.’”

NewJeans members are fighting to leave ADOR, claiming their exclusive contract ended on November 28, 2023.

They even announced their new group name, ‘NJZ’, and have started independent promotions, including a song release at ComplexCon Hong Kong on March 23.

However, ADOR insists that NewJeans is under contract until July 31, 2029. The agency has filed lawsuits to prove the contract is still valid and to stop NewJeans from signing solo advertisement deals.

As the legal battle continues, fans are left wondering—is this just the beginning of an even bigger fight?

Source (1)