It has been months after the controversy around Kpop girl group LOONA, and their agency, BlockBerry Creative. Here came the result of the lawsuit of LOONA against BlockBerry Creative: four members won, but five lost. What about LOONA’s upcoming schedule and activities?
LOONA versus BlockBerry Creative – Who Win, Who Lose?
Following the case of Chuu, nine LOONA members filed a lawsuit against the agency. Meanwhile, Vivi and Hyunjin decided not to file a lawsuit against BlockBerry.
The four winning members – Heejin, Kim Lip, Jinsoul, and Choerry – will have their contracts suspended and will now be able to carry out their own creative activities of their free will. In addition, they will no longer be bound by the agency’s rules or clauses. Some winning members then launched their personal SNS accounts and started communicating with fans.
However, the other five members – Haseul, Yeojin, Yves, Olivia Hye, and Gowon – who lost their lawsuit against BlockBerry Creative will continue to be artists under the agency. As reported, some changes done to their own exclusive contracts in the past couple of years led to them losing the case. The court said that “the changed clauses were not unfair enough to terminate the contract.”
Bad Blood Between LOONA and BlockBerry Creative
The bad blood between LOONA and the agency started when Chuu alleged years of mistreatment. According to Chuu’s original contract signed in 2017, she would earn 30 percent of profits from all of her activities, and the rest 70 percent would go to the agency. At the same time, the expenses were divided fifty-fifty.
There was a post-settlement clause that if the expenses were bigger than the earnings, it would be added to the girl’s debt. However, Chuu had the court ruling in her favor in 2022, and she took all profits from her solo activities and 70 percent of the earnings from her participation in the group.
Nevertheless, in November 2022, BlockBerry Creative released a statement that they removed Chuu from the group due to power abuse and improper language.
LOONA to postpone their activities
Earlier in January, LOONA planned to make a comeback as an 11-piece girl group. However, it didn’t go smoothly. Furthermore, as the four members have had their contracts suspended, they must postpone all activities indefinitely.
On the other hand, Heejin and Olivia Hye actively participated in a virtual reality survival show, GIRL’S RE:VERSE, as Rien and Chonky Cat. However, GIRL’S RE:VERSE unexpectedly announced that Chonky Cat (Olivia Hye) would leave the show for health reasons.
“Hello. This is RE:VERSE. Unfortunately, due to health reasons, Chonky Cat will be halting her challenges at W and returning to her hometown on the Cat Star. We would like to thank Chonky Cat for trying her best up until now, and we ask everyone to continue cheering for Chonky Cat’s future.”
Girl’s Re:verse official Twitter.
Fans assume that the reason is untrue and afraid that this is because the agency didn’t handle the situation directly. Fans also raise concern for Olivia Hye since they haven’t heard anything from the idol recently. They believe that BlockBerry Creative won’t doubt penalize the remaining members for filing a lawsuit.
Update from Haseul and Yeojin
While Haseul, Yeojin, Yves, Olivia Hye, and Gowon didn’t win the lawsuit, they can still use the fan community platform, Fab. On the platform, Haseul and Yeojin update Orbits (LOONA fans).
They asked for support from their fans as they will still have a long journey and tough fights ahead. In addition, Yeojin also hints at the seven girls’ decision to pursue the case further.
Keep you tab open for more Kpop updates and follow our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Telegram channel.
More to read about Kpop & Kdrama:
- 8 FACTS About the Taeyang and Jimin VIBE – Thanks to Teddy Oppa
- Singer-Actor Lee Jun Young Canceled All His Schedule – What Happened?
- XG SHOOTING STAR Embodies The Group’s Motto, “Trust URSELF & Be what U want to be.”
- Watch Yoon Shi Yoon Makes Seol In Ah Fall for Him in New Korean Rom-Com Movie LOVE MY SCENT
- NewJeans Reigns Over the Kpop Idol Group Brand Reputation Rankings in January 2023
🙁