Former NewJeans member Danielle drops self-written track 'Stay' on Bunnies Day

Danielle, whose exclusive contract with NewJeans’ agency ADOR was terminated last December, surprised fans with a self-written song on Bunnies Day, the anniversary of the day the group’s fandom got its official name.

Danielle posted a 1-minute-34-second video of the song, “Stay,” on a personal YouTube channel at midnight Thursday. Danielle wrote both the lyrics and the music, according to the credits.

NewJeans announced Bunnies as its official fandom name on Oct. 29, 2022, 100 days after the group's debut. The group has celebrated the date as Bunnies Day ever since.

“Stay” is a folk-pop song that sets Danielle’s understated vocals over acoustic guitar. The lyrics, written entirely in English, center on longing and on doubt that what was lost can ever be won back.

Jeong Seok-hun played guitar, and producer Z handled the mixing. The video was edited by director Dee Shin, who directed the music videos for NewJeans’ “Hype Boy” (2022), “Cookie” (2022) and “Supernatural” (2024).

Danielle remains locked in a legal battle with ADOR, which is seeking 33.1 billion won ($24.7 million) in damages and contractual penalties from Danielle, a relative and former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin.

The NewJeans members declared their exclusive contracts with ADOR terminated in November 2024, accusing the agency of breaching them. A court ruled in October last year that the contracts remain valid. After the ruling became final, ADOR notified Danielle in December that her contract was terminated, then filed the suit.

Because the song came out after the termination, the release does not appear to raise any legal problems. Danielle currently has no agency.

BY CHOI MIN-JI [[email protected]]