The K-pop girl group FIFTY FIFTY, who made everyone dance and sing along to Cupid, continues their long battle against their managing agency, ATTRAKT. Over the past five months, the girls have faced many allegations, but they have steadily pursued the lawsuit to terminate their contract. Their fans, HUNNIES, have also supported the girls throughout this time by boycotting and protesting the company’s statements.
However, the concerns about whether FIFTY FIFTY will win the lawsuit or disband resurfaced as Korean news agencies announced that the quartet’s member Keena has decided to withdraw her allegations and continue to work with ATTRAKT. To understand what will be the possible outcome of the lawsuit, let’s take a closer look at the dispute of FIFTY FIFTY and ATTRAKT.
Why is FIFTY FIFTY suing their company?
In May 2023, FIFTY FIFTY halted their activities as Aran was advised to take complete rest for two months after undergoing surgery. Soon, many allegations against the group began to trend online, including that they were being poached by other agencies such as Warner Music Bros to terminate their contract with ATTRAKT.
fifty fifty Will win
— jo 🍯 SIO DAY!!! (@lvr_fifi) October 12, 2023
In June 2023, the four group members announced they were filing a lawsuit against ATTRAKT for violating the contract terms. Their legal representative, Barun Law, stated that the members were discussing the agency’s financial transparency and persuasion for the group to promote their music despite the health concerns when ATTRAKT allegedly attempted to share false allegations with the news sites.
- They also emphasized that the members have taken this decision after discussing it within themselves without any influence from third parties.
Did FIFTY FIFTY lose the lawsuit?
Following the filing of the lawsuit, the Seoul District Court advised both parties to find a solution through mediation. However, in August, FIFTY FIFTY returned to court without reaching any result. On the following day, they also filed an additional lawsuit against ATTRAKT’s CEO, Jeon Hong Joon, on the allegations of negligence and embezzlement.
Hunnies United Fact Check Thread pic.twitter.com/y0jjbgWbCW
— HunniesUnited (@hunniesunited) September 28, 2023
They alleged that the CEO used the group’s revenue to repay the debt of his other company, StarCrew Entertainment. He also managed the funds under the name of FIFTY FIFTY’s agency, resulting in accounting fraud and severe harm to their trust in the label.
The court rejected the preliminary injunction to nullify the contracts of FIFTY FIFTY. The reason cited was that although the company didn’t share information regarding the profit distribution, they haven’t conducted any other acts sufficient for immediate suspension of the contract. The members decided to continue with their lawsuit.
What is ATTRAKT’s stand on the dispute?
Since the group announced a halt of their activities, ATTRAKT has actively disclosed various progress of their private investigation with the media. The company accused The Givers CEO Ahn Sung Il (former in charge of producing FIFTY FIFTY’s music) of suggesting FIFTY FIFTY to violate their contracts illegally.
FIFTY FIFTY’s label ATTRAKT sues The Givers CEO SIAHN, alleging fraud, sabotage, and secretly buying copyright for “CUPID”: The story around supposed attempts to poach FIFTY FIFTY from their label ATTRAKT has continued to develop slowly, but now ATTRAKT… https://t.co/A17oeq5G5U pic.twitter.com/i7UdadKMlq
— Ganok Y (@Ganoklive) June 28, 2023
ATTRAKT also filed criminal charges covering fraud, breach of duty, and obstruction of business against Ahn Sung Il and the employees of The Givers. Moreover, the label accused Warner Music Korea of trying to scout the group amid their ongoing contract with a recording of the WMK executive director asking about the 20 billion won ($15.3 million approximately) buyout discussed with Ahn Sung Il.
However, throughout this time, ATTRAKT has remained steady on their stand of wanting to reconcile with FIFTY FIFTY and continue to work with the group. The company’s CEO, Jeon Hong Joon, also shared this emotion while discussing feeling vindicated by the court’s decision about the preliminary injunction.
Latest updates about the case
As per the recent updates, FIFTY FIFTY’s member Keena has withdrawn her appeal from the court and decided to continue working with ATTRAKT. The update was shared by StarNews, citing an unnamed legal representative of the girl group as a source.
According to Herald POP, FIFTY FIFTY’s Keena has returned to ATTRAKT after dropping legal appeal.
An official from ATTRAKT said: “Keena met with CEO Jeon Hong-joon yesterday, she will self-reflect for the time being and gradually talk about her future”.
CEO Jeon Hong-joon… pic.twitter.com/mF5DQAmgQM
— Kpop Charts (@kchartsmaster) October 17, 2023
- ATTRAKT’s CEO has also confirmed that Keena has expressed her wishes to reconcile with the company in a phone interview, but the details of her future activities remain unannounced.
- In the meantime, the rest of the members, Sio, Aran, and Saena, have disclosed details of the mistreatment they faced under the label through Instagram posts. They are also debunking all the statements made by ATTRAKT’s CEO regarding the management of finances.
Saena revealed that she has been relying on medicines even since her debut. She was diagnosed with symptoms of anorexia and bulimia and faced severe hormonal changes from the harsh work environment and constant diet. However, the company continued to put the diet and promotional schedules above the health of the members and didn’t provide necessary care to them.
Sio shared that she faced severe panic disorder and social phobia, further adding that she was advised to take better care of her diet and eat healthy meals if she didn’t want her kidneys to go into dialysis. The company was their guardian at that time, but they didn’t offer any sympathy and continued to express concerns over any weight gain of the members.
Essentially, these were the drastic experiences of FIFTY FIFTY under ATTRAKT. How can you as a company fail to prioritize their overall health and cause more damage cos of the lawsuit and the public against them. Nothing but hell for these people.#BOYCOTT_ATTRAKT #FreeFiftyFifty https://t.co/dArGD80who pic.twitter.com/VQz2cZYUS6
— cloud 🌟 (@cloudysjiho) October 13, 2023
Lastly, Aran shared that she had to undergo surgery to remove her gall bladder at the age of 19. Following this, she was very stressed, but ATTRAKT asked her when she would be ready to return to work within a week of the surgery. She had already pushed back her treatment while recording for their debut, because of which her health had deteriorated.
She also shared that the rumors and allegations that the group faced after announcing their lawsuit to terminate the contract caused stress and negatively affected their health. Due to this, their family also suffered.
Can FIFTY FIFTY win the lawsuit?
Currently, FIFTY FIFTY has two lawsuits, one against ATTRAKT for violating contract terms and another against CEO Jeon Hong Joon for negligence and embezzlement. To terminate their contract, members will have to show evidence supporting their claim that ATTRAKT has violated the contract terms.
I really fifty fifty wins, they've been through so much 🙁
— em 🇵🇸 🌱 (@snoopy_soups) October 16, 2023
As per their latest statements, the members frequently received diagnoses of their deteriorating health, which wasn’t taken into consideration by the company. If the members provide substantial evidence in court, then they have a chance of winning the lawsuit.
Meanwhile, ATTRAKT has repeatedly expressed their wishes to reconcile with FIFTY FIFTY and continue working with them. So, if the evidence supporting the claims of FIFTY FIFTY isn’t substantial, the court might ask them to continue the contract with minor changes.
