JBJ95: The trial is coming to an end

Shawn 12 September 2022 2 min read

A lawsuit over the exclusive contract between project duo JBJ95 formed by KIM SANG KYUN and TAKADA KENTA, former members of Mnet’s “Produce 101” Season 2, and Star Road Entertainment is set to end in October.

According to the legal community, Seoul Western District Court’s 12th Civil Affairs Department will issue a sentence on October 14 in a civil lawsuit against Star Road to confirm the absence of an exclusive contract.

KIM SANG KYUN and TAKADA KENTA filed a lawsuit worth 100 million won against Star Road Entertainment on April 9, 2021. They also sent evidence including a request to terminate the contract to Star Road as well as to Hunus Entertainment, who was awarded the terms of the contract.

Since the first trial in July 2021, the two sides have continued their legal battles through a total of eight court dates.

JBJ95 is a group from the JBJ project, formed by members of “Produce 101 S2”. The duo worked by releasing their mini album “HOME” in October 2018.

Regarding the lawsuit, JBJ95 said, “We are sorry to have caused you difficulties after COVID-19. We sincerely thank the fans, staff and officials, and hope to welcome you with a more mature appearance.”

JBJ95 pointed out Star Road Entertainment’s lack of management work through this complaint, saying it was based on the members’ direct activities without managers and the details of the settlement were unclear. On the other hand, Star Road Entertainment refuted their claims, saying that various costs had been incurred to support JBJ95’s activities, which were not even listed in the mandatory provisions, and that they would seek compensation for the damages.

On top of that, the situation appears to be bad as the CEO of Star Road Entertainment is also charged with fraud, embezzlement, breach of trust and back pay for all employees following a production unpaid performance. Star Road Entertainment explained, “There was no profit during the performance, and the business situation was difficult due to COVID-19,” adding, “There was profit, but there was no profit. It’s not true that it was used for personal gain by the CEO.”