ILLIT Apple Music Page Lists NewJeans as Similar Artist Amid Ongoing Controversy

Apple Music’s artist page for ILLIT identifies the group as a K-pop act under BELIFT LAB, a HYBE label, and states that ILLIT debuted in March 2024 with the mini album “SUPER REAL ME.” The same Apple Music page also shows NewJeans in its “Similar Artists” section, a platform listing that has drawn attention because the two groups have been connected in public debate and litigation since 2024.¹

The Apple Music display is a recommendation or artist-discovery item on a music platform. It is not a court finding, a statement from Apple Music about plagiarism claims, or an official position from HYBE, BELIFT LAB, ADOR, ILLIT, or NewJeans. The listing is significant mainly because it appears against the background of the broader ILLIT NewJeans Controversy, which has included public allegations, denials, and damages lawsuits.

Apple Music Listing Places ILLIT and NewJeans in the Same Discovery Context

The confirmed platform information is limited but clear. Apple Music’s ILLIT page describes the group’s label affiliation and debut, and NewJeans appears among the similar artists shown on that page.¹ The source material does not state why Apple Music groups the artists together, and it does not identify whether the section is generated by algorithmic recommendation, editorial classification, listener behavior, genre similarity, label context, or another factor.

That distinction is important because the Apple Music listing is separate from the allegations that have surrounded ILLIT and NewJeans. A similar-artist placement can show how a platform surfaces music for discovery, but it does not prove copying, intent, legal liability, or any relationship between the acts beyond the platform’s display.

The public controversy began taking clearer shape in 2024, after conflict between HYBE and ADOR became public. SPOTV News reported that Min Hee-jin, then ADOR’s chief executive, addressed claims on April 25, 2024, that ILLIT had copied NewJeans. The report said Min presented the matter as an issue involving production decision-makers rather than criticism directed at ILLIT’s members.²

BELIFT LAB has rejected the plagiarism allegation. Sports Seoul reported in November 2024 that BELIFT LAB had filed a damages lawsuit against Min, and quoted BELIFT LAB chief Kim Tae-ho at a National Assembly audit as saying, “It is not true that ILLIT plagiarized NewJeans.”³

Legal Proceedings Have Produced Separate Outcomes

The most concrete reported legal outcome concerns a damages case involving a YouTuber identified as A. Star News reported on April 7, 2026, that the Seoul Western District Court partly ruled in favor of HYBE and related plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the YouTuber. The report said A had uploaded videos criticizing HYBE for about six months after the 2024 dispute involving HYBE and Min Hee-jin, and that some videos included claims that ILLIT had plagiarized NewJeans choreography.⁴

The court did not award the full 300 million won sought by HYBE’s side. Instead, it recognized 15 million won in damages.⁴ Star News also reported the court’s finding that A posted the videos “without properly verifying the truth or falsity” of the claims.⁴

Sports Kyunghyang reported the same day that HYBE received a 15 million won damages judgment in the 300 million won lawsuit against A, and that the ruling became final because neither side appealed. The outlet also reported that the court viewed A’s claims about ILLIT-related NewJeans choreography plagiarism as false, and that news articles merely reporting the existence of a controversy could not by themselves serve as proof of plagiarism.⁵

That ruling applies to the YouTuber case described in the reports. It should not be treated as a complete resolution of every dispute connected to the ILLIT and NewJeans allegations. However, it is one of the clearest reported legal results so far because it includes a final damages amount and a judicial assessment of specific online claims.

BELIFT LAB and Min Hee-jin Case Remains a Separate Dispute

A separate lawsuit involving BELIFT LAB and Min Hee-jin has continued on its own track. Maeil Business Newspaper reported that on February 9, 2026, the Seoul Western District Court held the fifth hearing in BELIFT LAB’s damages suit against Min. The report described the case as a 2 billion won damages claim filed by BELIFT LAB in June 2024.⁶

In that proceeding, BELIFT LAB argued that the plagiarism allegation was part of a planned public-opinion campaign, while Min’s side argued that she had not made a definitive plagiarism judgment but had expressed an opinion as a producer.⁶ Sports Seoul had earlier reported that the first hearing in the 2 billion won case was scheduled for January 10, 2025, after BELIFT LAB brought the claim against Min.³

These proceedings show why the Apple Music listing has attracted attention beyond ordinary platform categorization. ILLIT and NewJeans are not merely two K-pop acts appearing near each other in a recommendation field; they have also been named together in public allegations and court-reported disputes. At the same time, the available source material supports a careful distinction between a platform display, online claims, public statements, and legal rulings.

ILLIT NewJeans similar artist controversy Apple Music page trend

The current verified point is narrow: Apple Music lists NewJeans among similar artists on ILLIT’s artist page, while separate court and media reports document the wider dispute over plagiarism allegations, denials, and damages claims. The platform listing may explain why the issue is being revisited, but the legal and factual questions remain tied to the specific statements and lawsuits reported in the cited sources.