FIFTY FIFTY's Hollywood Debut Halted: 'Barbie' OST Music Video Shoot and Major Ad Campaigns Cancelled Amid Dispute with Agency
K-pop group FIFTY FIFTY's plan to film a music video for the Hollywood film "Barbie" OST has been canceled due to a fall-out with their agency, Attrakt.
According to industry insiders on July 4th, FIFTY FIFTY was expected to both sing "Barbie Dreams," one of the songs on the "Bobby" OST, and shoot a music video for it. However, due to their growing dispute with Attract, the project never made it to the filming stage.
FIFTY FIFTY had raised hopes of increasing their global profile, especially after the long-lasting position on the US Billboard Hot 100 main single chart of their song "Cupid". However, due to a suspension of activities due to the dispute with their agency, the group has missed this significant opportunity. FIFTY FIFTY is currently unable to carry out any scheduled activities following their public conflict with An Sung-il, the CEO of The Givers, who produced "Cupid" and their application for an injunction to suspend the effectiveness of their exclusive contract with Attrakt.
In May, "Bobby" producers shared the list of artists participating in the soundtrack via official social media. FIFTY FIFTY's name was featured alongside globally recognized pop singers like Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, and Lizzo, stirring a lot of excitement.
FIFTY FIFTY's involvement in the "Barbie" OST was made possible because of the partnership between Attract and Warner Records. While the rookie group FIFTY FIFTY is making a splash in North America with "Cupid," their involvement in the OST of Warner Brothers' film "Bobby" was indeed noteworthy.
Warner Records, unlike Universal Music who has partnered with K-pop majors like HYBE and JYP for global strategy, had no K-pop contacts and were thus motivated to promote FIFTY FIFTY. According to this strategy, they planned to shoot the music video for "Bobby Dreams" as part of the movie's promotion.
An Sung-il, the CEO of the outsource company The Givers, who was delegated to produce by Attrakt, tried to proceed with filming "Barbie Dreams" music video, even persuading Arin, a member of FIFTY FIFTY, who was recovering from surgery. However, just before filming, FIFTY FIFTY members sent Attrakt a certificate of contents related to the termination of their exclusive contract. This led the CEO of Attrakt, Jeon Hong-jun, to propose that they should postpone the music video shoot until the problems between the members and the company were sorted out. Subsequently, CEO An threatened to withdraw from the FIFTY FIFTY project if they couldn't proceed with the music video shoot, according to Attrakt.
Due to these circumstances, FIFTY FIFTY not only missed the opportunity to shoot the "Barbie Dreams" music video, but perhaps also the chance to connect with the "Bobby" cast during their promotional visit to Korea.
Last month, Attrakt shocked the industry by announcing that an outside force approached FIFTY FIFTY members and tempted them to violate their exclusive contract. Attrakt later revealed that they had discovered the outsourced company approached Warner Music Korea with an offer to sell FIFTY FIFTY and announced that they had filed a lawsuit against The Givers and CEO An for fraud and embezzlement.
In response, the four FIFTY FIFTY members communicated through a law firm that they had filed an injunction to suspend the effectiveness of their exclusive contract with Attrakt. Their legal representative explained that the members' actions were due to the agency's contract violation and breach of trust. CEO An also announced that his position differed from Attrakt's claims and requested that they should not shift the problems with FIFTY FIFTY members onto him. Attrakt showed a strong stance against these claims by revealing recorded calls with Warner Music Korea.
FIFTY FIFTY is a group that has been dubbed a 'miracle of minor-dols,' as they are an unusual group that has made a name for themselves in the US, having been discovered by a minor agency. It's known that FIFTY FIFTY had plans for a variety of activities including filming a music video for "Barbie Dreams," advertising with a well-known sports star, a global company's commercial, and appearing on a famous entertainment program. Unfortunately, all these plans have been canceled. It's undeniably a regrettable situation.
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