SEOUL, Feb 7 —The five members of the K-pop group NewJeans have announced that they will now be known as NJZ — marking a new chapter in their careers as they move away from their previous agency, ADOR.
The rebranding comes after legal challenges over the use of the name NewJeans, which remains under the ownership of the agency.
NJZ’s first public event under the new moniker will be their performance at the Complex Live concert, part of the ComplexCon Hong Kong festival, as confirmed by the organisers, reported Korea JoongAng Daily.
The event is scheduled to take place from March 21 to 23 at the Hong Kong Asia World-Expo, though the exact date of NJZ’s appearance has yet to be disclosed. Other notable Korean artists such as Zico, B.I, Sik-K, Changmo, and Lil Moshpit will also be taking part in the concert.
In a statement, Minji, one of the members of NJZ, expressed excitement about the upcoming performance.
“We are so excited to be able to go on stage and show a new side of ourselves.
“This performance will be so important for us. We hope this will be the chance to let the fans from around the world hear the music that we’ve been dying to show so far.”
The name change comes amid a complex battle between the members of NewJeans and ADOR over the NewJeans trademark.
As the group’s contract with ADOR officially ended, the members are no longer able to legally use the name NewJeans at public events or performances — a situation that could result in litigation if the name is used without proper permission.
This marks a significant development in the ongoing dispute, with the five singers seeking to negotiate with ADOR over the rights to the NewJeans name.
While the members of NJZ have been seen introducing themselves under their individual names at recent events, such as during their guest appearance at a Yoasobi concert in December, they are still working to resolve the legal issues surrounding the NewJeans name.
The singers are not currently permitted to perform the group’s songs, as the rights to those tracks remain with ADOR and the songwriters, typically represented by the Korea Music Copyright Association (Komca).
