After months of arduous hearings of the legal battle between the K-pop group Fifty Fifty and their entertainment company, Attrakt, one of the group's members, Keena, said she wants to return to the agency! We also break down Fifty Fifty's letters to their fans and how Korean netizens responded! Read on to find out what happened!
The 21-year-old, real name Song Ja Kyoung, dropped her lawsuit against her agency to end her current contract becoming the only member to end her lawsuit. The three remaining members, Aran, Saena, and Sio are still fighting for their exclusive contracts.
Seoul court denied the group's appeal to suspend its current contract with its agency on August 28, 2023. The group challenged the ruling, but Keena withdrew her appeal on Monday.
The group has suspended all activities since June.
The remaining three members have no intention of dropping the suit as indicated on their Instagram accounts. Korean netizens are getting antsy as they would like to see evidence claims instead of letters of empty promises. They have voiced their opinions of the group saying to "return to the agency (Attrakt) and apologize". The group has created a new Instagram account and changed its name to "FiFi".
Decoding the Fifty Fifty letters
After analyzing all of the letters, we've noticed how immature and inexperienced the girls really are! We've broken down the above-mentioned post line-by-line from the members' viewpoint with a picture of the investment meeting. Make your own decision.
저희는 진정성 있게 활동하고 싶었습니다.
We wanted to be sincere.
사전고지 없는 투자설명회와 멤버들 상황(4월 28일)The post above is from an investment briefing without prior notice and members' situation (April 28, 2023)
A. H사 USA와의 미팅
Meeting with Company H from the United States.
B. 멤버들에게 어떤 사전고지 없이 저희를 부르셨습니다.
간단한 인사 자리라는 말만 듣고 급하게 방문장소로 이동함.
They called us without any prior notice.
I heard it was a simple greeting, so I hurriedly moved to the meeting location.
C. 멤버 아란은 수술을 일주일 앞 둔 시기(회복기간 2개월 약속받은 상황.
Member Aran was promised a two-month recovery period a week before the surgery.
D. 멤버들 ㅎ휴가일정 직전
Members, right before the vacation schedule
E. 동종업계에선 가장 영향력 있다는 매니지먼트 레이블 H사USA에게 J대표님은 충분한 준비자료나 분석없이 오직 의식의 흐름으로 답변하시는듯 했음. 또한 모든 답변은 사전에 피프티피프티의 동의를 받은 바가 없음.
CEO J seemed to answer for Fifty Fifty members without sufficient preparation data or analysis to Company H, which is the most influential in the same industry. In addition, all answers have not been agreed upon by Fifi Fifi beforehand.
2. J대표님의 발언
CEO J's remarks
A. 발언전개
A speech development
H사 USA측의 질문들에 소속사 J대표님은 무조건적인 긍정적인 답변을 하셨습니다. 멤버들은 당황스러운 질의와 응답 내용에 머리 속이 복잡해졌습니다. 대표님, 가능한 것들만 약속하고 답해야 하는 자리가 아니었나요?
CEO J gave unconditional positive answers to questions from Company H. Members are confused by embarrassing questions and responses. Boss, wasn't this the place to promise and answer only what's possible?
B. 피프티피프티가 느낀 모욕감
The insult felt by Fifi Fifi
대표님이 저희들의 능력치에 대한 질의에 거짓된 대답을 할 것을 종용하는 분위기였기에 저희는 면목이 없어 투자자분들의 얼굴을 마주하고 있기 힘들었습니다. 쥐구멍에라도 숨고 싶은 심정이었습니다.
It was difficult for us to face investors because we had no face because the CEO urged us to give false answers to questions about our abilities. I wanted to hide in a rat hole.
급기야 H사 USA측에서 오신 분들이 멤버들의 눈치를 보시기 시작하는 듯했고, 몇몇 분들은 허탈함을 내비치는 듯도 하셨습니다. 통역하시는 분이 곤란한 부분은 제외하고 통역을 하시기도 했습니다. 이날의 충격과 불신감은 아직도 고스란히 기억납니다.
Eventually, people from Company H seemed to be beginning to notice the members, and some seemed to express their disappointment. The interpreter interpreted except for the difficult parts. I still remember the shock and distrust of this day.
C. 사실과 다른 발언
An untrue remark.
첫째, "피프티피프티는 이미 4곡 모두 영어버전이 녹음되어 있다."
대표님의 발언에 멤버들이 그 자리에서 사실이 아니라고 답변 정정했으며, 이에 대표님께서 그럼 영어버전 준비된 것이 무엇이 있냐고 물으시기에 텔미말고는 없다고 대답했습니다.
둘째, "멤버별로 커버곡 15곡씩 준비되어 있다."
셋째, "피프티피프티는 7월에 해외 나갈 수 있다."
넷째, "피프티피프티는 앞으로 한국어는 안 쓰고 영어만 쓰게 할 것이다."
다섯째, "다른건 중요하지 않고, 활동을 무조건 진행하실 생각이다."
First, "Fifty Pifty has already recorded an English version of all four songs."
The members responded that it was not true on the spot to the CEO's remarks, and when the CEO asked what English version was prepared, he answered that there was nothing but "Tell Me".
Second, "We have 15 cover songs prepared for each member."
Third, "Fifty Fifty can go abroad in July."
Fourth, "Fifity Fifty will not use Korean but only English from now on."
Fifth, "Nothing else matters, and I intend to proceed with the activities unconditionally."
3. 투자유치와 수익이 멤버들의 건강과 진정성보다 우선일까요?
Do investment attraction and profits take precedence over the health and authenticity of the members?
4. 대표님, 저희들과 마주 앉아 식사 한끼라도 해보셨습니까?
CEO, have you ever had a meal sitting face-to-face with us?
5. 저희는 진정성 있게 투명하게 활동하고 싶었습니다.
We wanted to be sincere and transparent.
Our take
We want to address the overall feeling that we got after reading these conversations and letters for the investment meeting. After reading and decoding the conversations, we can agree with Korean netizens that these girls have not worked at a regular company before because of their answers. One point we would like to enforce is that Attrakt gave ample time for the surgery member to recover since the meeting took place in April and performances wouldn't start until July, therefore stating that Attrakt "didn't care about the members' health" is null and void.
Another point we would like to focus on is the "CEO, have you ever had a meal sitting face-to-face with us?" How many times have you asked your boss to sit down and have a meal with you? This just isn't the right attitude to have as an employee of a company. We felt that the members were selfish and lacked adequate working experience therefore the Seoul court did not rule in their favor.
Let us know your thoughts on this situation below! Do you agree with the Seoul court ruling? Or do you agree with the group?