To say that the debut of South Korean girl-group Newjeans was monumental would be an understatement. Being the first group under major Korean entertainment company HYBE’s new label, ADOR, there was lots of excitement surrounding their debut, especially since ADOR’s then-CEO and creative director, Min Hee-jin, was well-known for her previous work with SM Entertainment. Thus, it was a surprise when, out of the blue, Newjeans debuted with their first single “Attention” on July 22, 2022, with no prior promotion or teasers. No one knew the names of the members or what their concept was, but as people watched the music video for “Attention” on loop, Newjeans quickly became known and loved worldwide.
Following the release of their second single “Hype Boy” and a controversy over the lyrics of their third single “Cookie,” many were excited for the group’s first comeback, not thinking they could top the fanfare of their surprise debut. That all changed, however, when the group’s comeback single “Ditto” was released in December of that same year. With its unique sound, concept, and music video, “Ditto” set the stage for Newjeans’ future success, not only showing that they were a force to be reckoned with, but also changing the trajectory of K-Pop forever.
Newjeans’ “Ditto” brought a fresh, new concept that hadn’t been seen in K-Pop before. While the group’s previous singles “Attention” and “Hype Boy” followed the trend of making upbeat dance songs with a few unique caveats, “Ditto” was a quiet and laid-back song, with a softer beat that is more reminiscent of an indie song than a K-Pop song. Newjeans’s voices are a major contributor to “Ditto”’s sound; although the members don’t have very powerful voices, per se, they all have very soft, saccharine tones, giving the song a dreamlike quality that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.
While the unique sound was one of the aspects that pulled many fans in, the most groundbreaking aspect of “Ditto” is not the music itself, but the music video. Directed by Shin Woo-seok of Dolphinier’s Films, the music video is split into two parts called “Side A” and “Side B.” Both music videos follow a girl named Ban Heesoo, a friend of Newjeans who is always seen with a 90s-style camcorder covering her face. She constantly films her adventures and memories with Newjeans, and despite taking interest in a boy at her school, her friendship with Newjeans takes precedence over her newfound crush. At the end of “Side A,” however, the viewer learns a shocking piece of information: that Newjeans weren’t real, and that they were Heesoo’s imaginary friends the whole time.
“Side B” continues where “Side A” left off, with Heesoo returning to school the next day. However, instead of finding comfort in her imaginary friends, she begins to spend more time with the boy she’s crushing on. This culminates in Heesoo going to the school rooftop and dropping her camcorder off the edge, metaphorically severing her friendship and memories with Newjeans.
Following the release of “Ditto”’s two music videos, fans began speculating about what the hidden meaning behind them was. Despite many theories coming out—some being more outlandish than others—the most widely accepted theory is that the music videos explored the parasocial relationship between K-Pop idols and their fans. In the music video, Newjeans represent the idols, Heesoo represents the fans, and the boy represents reality. The music video shows that although K-Pop idols may seem like your friends, you, the fan, don’t actually know them personally and that if you spend your entire life obsessing over K-Pop, it will quickly become unhealthy. Heesoo choosing the boy over her friendships with Newjeans emphasizes that choosing to live in the moment is more important than K-Pop, and while you may cherish the memories and comfort K-Pop idols may give you, they cannot replace real, human connection.
“Ditto” became a smash hit not just in Korea, but worldwide as well. Other idols in Korea playfully called camcorders “‘Ditto’ cams,” made references to the song, and the music videos made international fans online begin to question and reevaluate their relationship with K-Pop. Another aspect of “Ditto” that both Korean and international fans enjoyed was the accompanying “Ban Heesoo” YouTube channel. Created by Shin Woo-Seok as sort of a promotion method, the channel uploaded extended videos of the camcorder clips from the music video, though there were some videos that were filmed exclusively for the YouTube channel. Many fans consider the Ban Heesoo YouTube channel to be an integral part of their identity as Newjeans fans, with the name “Ban Heesoo” sounding similar to the name of Newjeans’ fandom, “Bunnies.”
Newjeans’ comeback “Ditto” is one of the most groundbreaking songs in K-Pop, with its unique sound and exploration of the idol’s relationship with their fans through the music video. With the future of the group uncertain amidst an ongoing dispute between HYBE and Min Hee-jin, the milestones that they have achieved in such a short time cannot be understated, and whatever happens to the group, Newjeans will almost certainly go down as one of the most important trailblazers of K-Pop.
