On May 31, Wang Ziyi ‘s contract termination issue was addressed by Simply Joy Music on their Weibo page. The label revealed that the former Nine Percent member had filed a lawsuit against them as early as 2018. The court had ruled Wang Ziyi’s termination attempt invalid.
Simply Joy Music Issues Statement Affirming Wang Ziyi Is Still Under Their Label
In the statement, it was revealed that Wang Ziyi had proposed to terminate the contract with Simply Joy Music from about two years ago, in December 2018 on grounds of a breach. However, after two years of court trials, the judge ruled that basis of the contractual breach was invalid and that both parties ought to continue performing the contract.
The court ruling indicated that any third party, including Wang Ziyi himself will not have the right to sign any contract related to the performing arts and entertainment sector. Wang Ziyi will have to seek the consent of his label should he decide to take up any new contracts. At the moment, any invitation made to Wang Ziyi from December 2, 2017 to date without seeking consent from his label is deemed ‘abnormal.’ The statement also urged for organizers to take initiative to contact the label should engage Wang Ziyi to prevent legal repercussions.
The full statement by Simply Joy Music is as follows:
Our company Simply Joy Music’s artist, Mr. Wang Ziyi, and signed the “Contract” with our company on January 5, 2017. On December 10, 2018, Wang Ziyi sent a letter to the company requesting the termination of the “Contract” on grounds of a breach. Teh Beijing Chaoyang District Court made a judgment on May 27, 2021. The court is not in favor of Mr. Wang Ziyi’s unilateral termination of the contract, and both parties should continue to perform their obligations under the contract. Simply Joy Music has issued such a statement to show to the public that although Wang Ziyi had sued for the termination of his contract with [us], the court has decided that the contract signed by both parties must continue to be performed.
Simply Joy Music’s Official Statement
Wang Ziyi’s Studio Issues Statement: This Is Only The First Court Hearing
In response, Wang Ziyi’s Studio has responded with their own statement. The studio also posted the legal response with the caption, “Believe in the law and move forward without regrets.”
Wang Ziyi’s Studio also wrote, “During the period of cooperation, Simply Joy Music repeatedly defaulted on the contractual terms and deducted the artiste’s performance renumeration without any reason. After repeated negotiations to no avail, the artist felt helpless and thus sent a notice to cancel the “contract” with Simply Joy Music, subsequently filing a lawsuit in court.”
At the same time, it should be noted that the current ruling is not a final judgment, and the court did affirm that [Simply Joy Music] had indeed failed to perform its contractual obligations, and that it had defaulted and deducted from the artist’s performance remuneration. Therefore, Wang Ziyi’s legal representatives will continue in their appeal against the judgement in another court.
Fans Express Outrage At the The Star’s Label
Fans of Wang Ziyi were enraged when they saw that their idol’s agency had publicly released such a statement Weibo. Even more so, many were offended that the topic of Wang Ziyi’s failed attempt to terminate became a subject on the Weibo hot search. Many fans could no longer hold in their anger.
The comment section became bombarded with comments such as,“You guys are so shameless! How much resources did you guys even provide Wang Ziyi with?”
“Why does he want to cancel the contract, you don’t have any points in your heart?”
“Are you sick? What did you give him? What resources did you even give him? How many times have you caused troubel? Still not letting him go?”
Some of his fans even drew up an unofficial timeline of the events where Wang Ziyi ought to have attended since 2018, but was allegedly “forced” to back out last minute due to the label’s “objections.”
In June of 2018, the organizer of an event had officially announced that the idol would participate in the “Dancing Forest Convention”, but this was allegedly rejected by Simply Joy Music. In August of 2018, Wang Ziyi’s announced on Weibo that he would be collaborating on a single with Gali. But up till date, this has not been released.
Many felt that he had been “suppressed” by his label. In October of 2018, the former Nine Percent member was also allegedly invited to participate in a TV series, but his opportunity was turned down by Simply Joy Music and others were recommended for the series instead.
Wang Ziyi’s personal image and talents are well-known to netizens. However, since the disbandment of the Nine Percent group, the idol had made only a few appearances in the media. As compared to the likes of his former bandmates, his appearances in variety shows are much rarer.
Many netizens have expressed their sympathies for the former Nine Percent member, as he has not seen luck with terminating his contract. Some are also worried that the prolonged lawsuit in future may also cause the idol to be less focussed on more important things such as his career progression.
For fans of Wang Ziyi, they can be reassured that the star is not fading out of the limelight for sure. Fortunately, he is still kept busy filming for his upcoming drama, “We Are Not In Love.”
What do you think will happen to Wang Ziyi now that he is unable to terminate his contract with his agency? Share your thoughts with us below.
