aespa breaks silence on HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk’s remark to ‘crush’ them

SM Entertainment’s popular K-pop girl group aespa pose for a photo during a press conference for their first studio album “Armageddon” held in Seoul. Image: Yonhap via The Korea Herald

SM Entertainment girl group aespa broke its silence about HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk’s recent controversial remark targeting them, saying they were not taking it seriously.

“We know about the issue and people around us have been telling us about it. But because we had our first full-length studio album coming up, we were so focused on preparing for the album only,” Karina, one of the aespa members, said during a press conference held in Seoul on Monday.

Last month, ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin revealed the phone messages she shared with Bang, who told Min to create a girl band that can “crush” aespa few years ago.

It was before Min established ADOR under HYBE’s multi-label system. HYBEe had produced several successful boy bands like K-pop phenomenon BTS, but it failed to make a prominent girl group. Min later debuted NewJeans, which is seen as a main rival of aespa.

Aespa, who unveiled their new single “Supernova” on May 13, is currently competing with NewJeans, which released “How Sweet” on May 24. Coincidentally or not, the two bands have also released new albums this month just three days apart. NewJeans released theirs on May 24, followed by Aespa on May 27.

Aespa said they have a good relationship with NewJeans, despite what others may think due to Bang’s remark.

“NewJeans and we are good companions. We recently met them at one of the television music show’s waiting rooms. We showed (hand) hearts to each other. There is nothing to worry about,” Karina said.

Aespa’s new single Supernova is ranked at No. 1 on both the Melon Top 100 Chart and Hanteo Digital Chart as of Monday. NewJeans’ How Sweet is positioned at No. 2.

Meanwhile, aespa released their first studio album “Armageddon” on Tuesday. The album includes 10 tracks, including “Supernova.” Its title track is a retro track with hip-hop style added.

“It has strong beats and an addictive hook that many refer to as the SM style of music. We wanted to show our true color of aespa music in this new album, which is what we are good at and what defines us,” aespa member Winter said.

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