The last song from a Hybe act, any flavor, to have reached Melon Daily #1 is , I have to say, Magnetic.
It is unlikely that Le Sserafim's song about pasta will reach Daily #1 since ADP's song is stronger.
That means Hybe will NOT have a Melon daily #1 in 2025.
Whether you like it or not, Illit has shot its bolt in Korea. It has some future in Japan, but no longer so in Korea. None of its songs not named Magnetic reached the top 10 in Melon.
That might be because its chance to set up a fandom back home was denied because of a certain fandom, but what is done is done.
New Jeans, marketed correctly, still retains the ability to create a thunder in the world , even if MHJ is no longer involved . Foreigners do not understand or give a crap about NJ's domestic difficulty, and they will swoon to NJ's hit numbers and potentially more.
And, since the 3 rebelling members do include the 2 members who can speak English, getting rid of them will be quite hard for NJ's future. Illit's future in the West was sealed when Youngseo, now with ADP, left. She was the only member who could speak English.
The current director of Ador is not the one insulted in the Korean congress by Pham Ngoc Han. The current director, Lee Dokyung, is quite ambitious and wants to grow Ador, although she appears to be loyal enough to not rebel against Bang.
That is called utilitarianism. Like forgiving those who created the 2008 financial crisis, because punishing the culprits would have depressed the economy more.
New Jeans, other than BTS, is the only act which can get universal attention (pun intended). It will anger fearnots and gllits, but their numbers , even combined, are smaller than that of bunnies.
A simple question will be enough to explain why all of the NJ members will be welcomed back, without apology, without remorse and without regrets - which of these have a potential to hold a concert at Sofi Stadium? Le S? Illit?
Or New Jeans?
Business is business. Bang goes with the one with the greatest potential. The contract will be extended by the time they were absent and MHJ will be dealt in some way.
Too much capital has been built around NJ, and it is unlikely for Hybe to have another act which is able to create great hits like NJ. So , since the other Hybe acts have proven to be not up to speed , NJ will be accepted back with no strings.
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