Amidst the plagiarism controversy surrounding the OST “What Are We” from Jung Hae-in and Jung So-min’s K-drama “Love Next Door”, Ha Sung-woon, the singer of the song, has quickly drawn a line.
In particular, his agency, Big Planet Made Entertainment, stated that Ha Sung-woon has nothing to do with this issue.
In their official statement published on October 4, the agency stated, “Regarding the plagiarism suspicions raised by singer Baek Yerin on SNS today regarding Ha Sung Woon’s drama OST ‘What Are We’, we would like to convey Ha Sung Woon’s position that he has nothing to do with this controversy.”
According to the agency, Ha Sung-woon and Big Planet Made Entertainment participated only as simple singers at the request of the drama OST production company and were not involved in the production process of the song, including writing lyrics, composing, and arranging.
“We are sorry for causing concern to fans as the OST sung by Ha Sung-woon is embroiled in a plagiarism controversy,” the company also said, adding, “We would like to emphasize once again that Ha Sung-woon has absolutely nothing to do with this plagiarism controversy.”
Meanwhile, earlier on the same day, posts on online communities like Theqoo raised concerns that the OST for tvN’s drama “Love Next Door“, starring Jung Hae-in, bears a strong resemblance to Baek Yerin‘s song “0310”.
The song in question is “What Are We” by Ha Sung-woon, which is featured in the OST for “Love Next Door”.
Netizens are pointing out that this track sounds very similar to Baek Yerin’s “0310”, which was included in her 2019 album “Every Letter I Sent You”. “0310” is an original song composed and written by Baek Yerin herself.
The netizen who raised the issue on Theqoo stated, “If you listen to it without the lyrics, it’s just Baek Yerin’s ‘0310’. It sounds even more identical in the instrumental version.“
Baek Yerin also expressed her displeasure regarding the plagiarism allegations through her Instagram, stating, “It must you to suck copying. Feel bad. If you want a song like mine, please ask me so.“
She further shared reactions from netizens who remarked that “What Are We” immediately reminded them of Baek Yerin’s track.
Netizens have been reacting with comments like, “Why do I hear ‘0310’?“, “If you copy the guitar line from ‘0310’ almost exactly… This isn’t right” and “Is it okay to release a remake without the original artist knowing?“
“Love Next Door” is set to air its final episode this weekend.
