Allegations regarding choreography plagiarism involving the girl group under Belift Lab, an affiliate of HYBE, have resurfaced. The comments from ADOR performance directors overseeing NewJeans’ choreography hinted at dissatisfaction, with remarks such as “It’s all copy and paste.”
On May. 14t., a post titled “The choreography for ILLIT’s “Lucky Girl Syndrome” bears a resemblance to that featured in the NewJeans McDonald’s commercial” emerged on various online platforms
“Lucky Girl Syndrome” is ILLIT’s new track featuring choreography involving stomping her feet with her hands spread wide and crossed.
Netizens pointed out resemblances between these movements and choreography performed by NewJeans in a McDonald’s commercial last year, even creating a video comparing the two choreography sets.
In terms of the allegations, the choreographers addressed the “choreography plagiarism controversy” on Instagram.
ADOR performance director Kim Eun-ju expressed skepticism, stating, “Huh? Is it real? They are copying choreography from the commercial too? I’ve been so patient, but it’s a bit too much to be a coincidence,” adding, “Yes, it could be similar. Usually, when we reference others’, we modify even a bit because it’s respect for the counterparty, but this is a cut-and-paste job.”
Performance director BLACK.Q also shared thoughts on his Instagram story, saying, “I’ve been holding on with thoughts of ‘Oh, no way,’ but I can’t believe they even copied the work appeared in the commercial,” further noting, “They should have considered that it was not easy for someone’s hard work to show the light.”
Kim is renowned for choreographing many of NewJeans’ hits, including “Attention” and “Hype boy,” while BLACK.Q has contributed to tracks like “Attention,” “Hype boy,” “Cookie,” “Ditto,” and “Super shy.” Given the timing of their posts alongside allegations of ILLIT’s new song choreography allegedly being plagiarized from the NewJeans commercial, netizens speculated that the two were attempting to stir up a “plagiarism controversy.”
This isn’t the first time ILLIT has faced accusations of choreography plagiarism related to NewJeans. Previously, similarities were noted between ILLIT’s “My World” and NewJeans’ “Attention,” as well as ILLIT’s debut track “Magnetic” and NewJeans’ “Ditto.”
Min Hee-jin, CEO of ADORE, has also accused ILLIT of imitating NewJeans. “They are trying to silence me because I raised concerns about the girl group copying NewJeans,” Min asserted on Apr. 23, following allegations of attempted management poaching by HYBE, adding, “ILLIT is copying NewJeans across all aspects of their entertainment activities, including hair, makeup, costumes, choreography, photos, videos, and public appearances.”
