China’s mainland girl group “SNH48” member Ju Jingyi and management company, Shanghai Silk Culture Media Group Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Silk Group”) have once again escalated their contract dispute, with both sides sticking to their own words. Recently, Silk Group issued another statement stating that if Ju Jingyi does not back down, the company will report her publicly. In addition, former “SNH48” member Zeng Yanfen voiced her support for Ju Jingyi and revealed that members had been asked to accompany alcohol entertainment.
In recent days, the lawsuit filed by Silk Group stating that Ju Jingyi’s contract is valid until August 2033 has garnered attention. On December 15, Ju Jingyi’s side claimed that the contract between the two parties ended in June 2024 and accused Silk Group of “forging artist signatures and authorization.”
On the 16th, Silk Group provided handwriting analysis reports denying the accusations of “forgery of artist signatures and authorization.” On the same day, Ju Jingyi’s side also issued a lawyer’s statement claiming that the supplementary contract was forged and that Silk Group withheld and embezzled her performance income through a “double contract.”
Silk Group responded by stating that they had invested 160 million yuan in Ju Jingyi’s development and had already paid her approximately 139 million yuan before tax, in addition to providing various benefits, refuting the claim of being “exploited.” On the 17th, Silk Group questioned Ju Jingyi’s termination of the contract.
On the 18th, Silk Group released a “final notice to artist Ju Jingyi,” stating that Ju Jingyi and her associated individuals are suspected of serious economic crimes, and they will publicly and accurately report this information on a scheduled date.
In response, Lin Xiaoming, a partner at a law firm in Sichuan, stated that income is private information that individuals do not wish to be disclosed, protected by relevant laws. He criticized Silk Group’s public actions as infringing on Ju Jingyi’s personal and privacy rights.
Regarding the accusation that Ju Jingyi is “suspected of serious economic crimes,” Lin Xiaoming noted that whether economic crimes are involved should be determined by the police through receipt, investigation, and finally, court judgment.
This contract dispute between Ju Jingyi and the management company has attracted widespread attention. A hairstylist who collaborated with them supported Ju Jingyi, saying, “A company that can’t even pay the service fees properly, can it be trusted at all?” “How much has she contributed to the company over the years, why is it not being acknowledged?”
Former “SNH48” member Zeng Yanfen has also written multiple articles in support of Ju Jingyi, accusing Silk Group of owing her wages, commissions, and other monetary contract disputes. She also revealed the dark side of members being required to attend alcohol-related events.
According to the news from “Cover News,” it was found that a former SNH48 member revealed in an interview that there are small groups within the girl group, new members need to pass certain criteria to receive support from popular members, face high training pressure, and are required to attend alcohol-related events where there is physical interaction with the girls, and these issues were widely reported after the interviews were consolidated into articles.
In April 2018, Silk Group sued the interviewing unit for infringing on their reputation, demanding the removal of the article, a public apology, and a compensation claim of 1 million yuan for economic losses. The court document showed that the defendant argued that the events were real and pointed out that journalists in the article had verified the claims with third parties and had videos of these events to prove the “obscene jokes” content. The court ultimately dismissed all of Silk Group’s claims, ruling that the existing evidence could not prove that the defendant had infringed on Silk Group’s reputation and ordered Silk Media to bear the 300 yuan case handling fee.
Recently, Zeng Yanfen said in a post, “I’ve been in the group for over four years, I’ve performed in all the shows, won the ‘Theatre Goddess’ and full attendance reward every year, even in the general elections, I ranked at least fourth, with votes from fans reaching tens of millions. But my income in over four years was just over 700,000 yuan, and the termination fee was 600,000 yuan; it’s painful to think about the money my fans voted for me. They voted for me hoping the company would treat me better, but the company did not treat me well, punishing me wrongfully, not intervening in internal conflicts, only blaming and accusing me, trying to suppress my personality, making me obedient, withholding my salary and prize money from the general elections, and changing my Weibo password without notification. In the end, out of past friendship, I went to help the company shoot the last MV for free. Do I have to live like this for 20 years just because I signed an eight-year contract, not a contract to sell my soul?”
On December 18, Silk Group responded to recent statements made by Zeng Yanfen and released a statement along with relevant police report receipts. Subsequently, Zeng Yanfen responded by saying, “Please send the subpoena to my WeChat.”
On December 19, Zeng Yanfen posted again, sharing chat records with Silk Group’s General Manager Ye, stating that she has all chat records from when she left the group; if the company has forgotten, she can remind them.
One netizen commented, “Don’t make it worse, it doesn’t benefit you at all, why bother.” Zeng Yanfen replied, “Indeed, it doesn’t benefit me, and I don’t need it. I just hope Ju can be free.”
On December 19, Ju Jingyi departed from Shanghai airport to attend the Starlight Awards ceremony in Haikou, walking the red carpet and attending the ceremony, smiling and waving to fans throughout, seemingly unaffected by the turmoil.
Established in 2010, Silk Group once had 17 idol groups at its peak. Ju Jingyi officially debuted as a member of the female idol group “SNH48” in November 2013. Over the past ten years, more than twenty “SNH48” members have taken legal action against Silk Group for contract terminations.
Public records show that from 2014 to 2019, “SNH48” brought Silk Group over 400 million yuan in revenue solely through annual general elections voting.
Ju Jingyi is one of the most commercially valuable artists at Silk Group. In 2018, her starring role in “The Legend of Yunxi” became popular, not only solidifying her individual position but also bringing substantial income from film and television projects and brand endorsements to Silk Group.
Now, the operation of Silk Group is declining. Public information shows that in 2025, Silk Group and its chairman Wang Jing became subject to multiple enforcement cases, and the accumulated amount of frozen equity reached nearly 130 million yuan, with a freeze period of up to three years. On December 18, the topic of Silk Group’s nearly 130 million frozen shares became a trending topic on Weibo.
Source: New Tang Dynasty.