The members of K-pop girl group NJZ, formerly known as NewJeans, have spoken out about their decision to suspend activities under the independent label “NJZ,” following a court injunction that curtailed their ability to operate separately.

On Mar. 26, BBC News Korea released a video titled “NJZ Members Explain Why They Suspended Activities” on its official YouTube channel, featuring candid remarks from the group.

In the video, Hani said, “Every decision we’ve made over the past year came after extensive internal discussions. To be honest, it’s uncomfortable to keep revisiting this topic. It involves another team, and we don’t want to impact them in any way. There’s no reason or need to do that. But if we don’t speak openly about our thoughts and emotions, people won’t know. I think many believed only what was reported in the media.”

Minji added, “Whenever we had to raise our voices, our story would be picked up by numerous outlets. That was naturally frightening, and it’s something I’ve had to seriously think about in terms of how it could affect my life moving forward.”

When asked by the producers whether adults behind the scenes were influencing their actions and how seriously they weighed the legal implications, Hani responded, “I think people tend to dismiss the fact that we’ve been taking concrete steps to resolve this issue just because we’re young. It’s easy for them to say, ‘They’re just kids,’ or, ‘There’s no way they made these decisions on their own.’ But that doesn’t mean we’ve taken this situation any less seriously. We’ve always told each other, ‘If even one of us doesn’t want to go through with something, we won’t do it.’ Every decision had to be unanimous among the five of us.”

Reflecting on her personal experience, Danielle said, “In 2024, as I went through this situation myself, I tried to keep everything quiet. I suppressed my emotions and tried to ignore everything that was happening around me because we were in the middle of preparing for a comeback when all of this started. But eventually, I got to a point where it felt like everything was going to explode. And it broke my heart.”

After the court granted the injunction, all five members returned to the public eye. Danielle recalled, “I genuinely expected a different outcome. I remember how shocked everyone was when the news broke.”

Hyein noted, “I’m sure there are people who think we’re incredibly famous, that we can do whatever we want and say whatever we want. But the reality is, we held back for a long time. It was only recently that we finally spoke up about the unfairness we experienced. And honestly, looking at how things are unfolding in society right now, I don’t think they’re going in our favor. But I believe that fact speaks for itself. It took immense courage for us to say what we did.”

Danielle emphasized, “We just want to keep doing our work. We want to continue doing what we love, without being hindered by lies and misunderstandings.”

Hani added, “The biggest fear we have is the possibility that we may not be able to continue doing this. That’s why we keep pushing forward. But that fear is always in the back of our minds. Anything could happen. Just two years ago, we never imagined we’d be facing something like this. We don’t know what the future holds. It’s entirely possible that a day could come when we’re no longer able to perform, and we want to avoid that at all costs.”

On Mar. 21, the Seoul Central District Court granted a provisional injunction filed by the group’s agency, ADOR, barring the five NJZ members from signing new advertising contracts or continuing independent label activities without the agency’s approval. In response, the group’s legal representatives have filed an objection.

They also announced plans to take strong legal action against individuals spreading false information and posting malicious or defamatory content online, calling the situation “serious.”