Recently, there has been internal strife within the South Korean entertainment giant - HYBE, management agency. The agency accused the CEO of their subsidiary label, ADOR, "founder of NewJeans" Min Hee-jin, of various offences including leaking company secrets and demanded her immediate resignation. Following this, Min Hee-jin held a press conference to air grievances, exposing the alleged unfair treatment she had endured.
Amidst the conflict between the two sides, netizens began to suspect a connection between HYBE and the South Korean cult organization "Dahn World," calling it terrifying to ponder.
Rumours circulated online alleging that HYBE CEO Bang Si-hyuk is a follower of the Dahn World cult and is using the agency's artists for evangelism. Let's take a look at the associated events dug out by netizens, along with their speculations:
## 1. HYBE = Healing Yoga Brain Education? ##
Dahn World claims to be a yoga and meditation group. Some netizens speculate that HYBE's abbreviation stands for "Healing Yoga Brain Education," possibly indicating a connection to Dahn World.
## 2. GFRIEND's Last Album ##
The girl group GFRIEND was under Source Music before being acquired by HYBE. After joining HYBE, GFRIEND released albums with a "witchy" theme and was unexpectedly disbanded later without prior notice on May 22, 2021. Their last album before disbandment was titled "回:Walpurgis Night," with the lead single "MAGO." Netizens pointed out that Dahn World promotes the idea of unity between humans and gods, with followers worshipping a cosmic goddess named "Mago." At the same time "Walpurgis Night" refers to the day witches were burned.
## 3. GFRIEND's Connection with LE SSERAFIM ##
Followed by GFRIEND's disbandment, Source Music launches LE SSERAFIM on May 2, 2022. According to the European culture, the "Walpurgis Night" is celebrated from the evening of April 30 to May 1. Coincidentally, LE SSERAFIM debuted on the following day. The word "Seraphim," is said to be referring to the six-winged angels. This led netizens to speculate - after burning witches, do angels appear?
Additionally, one of LE SSERAFIM's promotional photos resembles the image of the cosmic goddess "Mago."
## 4. The Coincidence of the 22nd ##
Dahn World was officially named on April 22, 2002, an important day for its followers. Netizens noticed that important announcements and new song releases from HYBE artists often coincided on the 22nd:
TXT announced their fan name on August 22, 2019.
TXT released "Goodbye Now" on February 22, 2023, and "Valley of Lies" on July 22, 2022.
GFRIEND's last group activity was on November 22, 2021, and their disbandment was announced on May 22, 2022.
After Jin Jialan left, LE SSERAFIM performed for the first time as a five-member group on May 22, 2022.
NewJeans debuted on July 22, 2022.
LE SSERAFIM released "ANTIFRAGILE" on September 22, 2022.
ENHYPEN released "Dark Blood" on May 22, 2023.
TWS debuted on January 22, 2024.
## 5. NewJeans' "OMG" ##
In one of the screenshots shared by Min Hee-jin during the press conference, she mentioned being threatened with the "OMG" music video. This sparked curiosity among netizens about whether there were hidden messages in NewJeans' "OMG" MV. Netizens speculated that HYBE's top management might have requested Min Hee-jin to incorporate elements of the Dahn World cult into NewJeans' songs, but Min Hee-jin turned the tables by subtly criticizing the cult in the "OMG" MV's storyline.
The chorus of "OMG" includes the lyrics "Oh my oh my god," with one line being "Dan neoppuniya" (only you). During the recording, Min Hee-jin reportedly instructed the members to emphasize "Dan," leading netizens to associate it with Dahn World. In the MV, when this lyric appears, there is an image of a bear. Dahn World's founder, Lee Seunghon, taught at DanKook University, whose logo is a bear.
## 6. ILLIT's "Magnetic" ##
The debut song of the rookie girl group ILLIT, "Magnetic," was found to share its name with a book written by Dahn World's founder, Lee Seunghon, titled "Magnetic Meditation," which advocates living in a "Magnetic" world. Moreover, even the hand gesture dance in the chorus of "Magnetic" was suspected to be related to the cult.
There are many more details circulating online regarding the alleged connection between HYBE and the cult, with HYBE currently offering no response. Additionally, HYBE is scheduled to hold a shareholder meeting on April 30 to discuss changing the leadership of ADOR (referring to ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin). However, even this date has left netizens terrified, as April 30 is "Walpurgis Night," also known as the "burning of witches" day. Opinions among netizens are polarized, with some believing there are too many coincidences for the connection between a major corporation and a cult to be dismissed, while others think it's all an overactive imagination.
Source: Goody25.com
