Netizens Raise Concerns Over Recent Plagiarism Issues In K-pop Industry
Questions arose due to recent plagiarism controversies of famous artists like NewJeans and BLACKPINK’s Lisa
Recently, Wise Music Group, representing the UK band Shakatak, sent Letter of Claim to HYBE and its label ADOR claiming the unauthorized use of composition and music elements from Shakatak’s “Easier Said Than Done” in “Bubble Gum” by the girl group NewJeans, sparking plagiarism controversy to arise.
Later, ADOR released their statement denying the plagiarism accusation and requesting evidence with credible analysis reports from Shakatak. In response, Shakatak announced that they had employed a musicologist to handle this case, showing their determination to prove their plagiarism accusation until the end.
NewJeans’s “Bubble Gum” is not the only K-pop song that was involved in plagiarism suspicions. Recently, BLACKPINK member Lisa also faced a similar plagiarism issue. In particular, Gabriel Moses, who directed Travis Scott’s “FE!N” music video, accused Lisa’s “Rockstar” music video of copying a scene from “FE!N”.
On July 4th, the director shared a screenshot of a report he received via email on SNS and later said on his X account, “They reached out to my editor to work on this btw & FE!N was the reference. He said nah & they did it anyway”.
Aside from plagiarism issues related to overseas artists, this issue is also discussed among K-pop agencies and artists. Not long ago, ADOR’s CEO Min Hee-jin claimed that ILLIT, a rookie girl group from another HYBE’s label Belif Lab, copied NewJeans in their concepts. In response, Belift Lab sued Min Hee-jin for defamation and obstruction of business.
Regarding the increase in plagiarism issues in K-pop industry recently, music critic Lim Hee-yun believed that it was due to the expansion of K-pop’s popularity and market overseas. The critic added, “As the K-pop market is enlarging, some foreign artists begin to raise issues over plagiarism due to financial interests”.
Lim Hee-yun pointed out that NewJeans’s “Bubble Gum” had been said to resemble other songs aside from “Easier Said Than Done” due to the recent music trends. According to the critic, “Bubble Gum” melody is universal and easy listening, so many songs with a simple structure like that may also face plagiarism issues.
The Korea Music Copyright Association also asked people to wait for judgment from the court.
