Twice leader Jihyo has officially parted ways with JYP Entertainment after 21 years, announcing on October 21 via Instagram that she has founded her own independent agency, EMITHAUS, to oversee her solo career.
The announcement marks the end of one of K-pop’s longest artist-agency relationships. Twenty-one years — beginning when Jihyo joined JYP as an eight-year-old trainee — spans virtually her entire life, and her departure underscores a broader shift in the industry as veteran idols seek ownership of their careers after spending their formative years inside the major agency system.
An emotional farewell letter
In a handwritten letter shared with fans, Jihyo wrote: “After 21 years, my journey with JYP Entertainment, which began when I was just a child, has come to an end. From childhood through my teenage years and into adulthood, I’ve spent most of my life at JYP.” She joined the company as a trainee at age eight and debuted with Twice in 2015, per Soompi.
The handwritten format was a deliberate choice — in K-pop fan culture, a personal letter signals sincerity and respect for the supporters who have followed an artist since childhood. Jihyo’s emphasis on having “spent most of my life at JYP” framed the departure not as a rupture but as a graduation, a tone that has helped keep fan reaction largely supportive.
Independence, not goodbye
Jihyo explained that EMITHAUS — from “emit,” meaning to express or release — will be a place to “freely explore and bring to life even the possibilities within me that I have yet to discover.” She stressed the move does not mean leaving Twice: “I will continue to stand on stage with my members and keep building more memories together,” according to Korea Portal.
The distinction matters enormously to fans. In K-pop, agency departures have historically raised fears of group disbandment, and Jihyo moved quickly to close that door. Her framing of EMITHAUS as a vehicle for undiscovered possibilities — rather than a rejection of her past — positions the new agency as an expansion of her artistic identity, with her Twice membership intact.
A growing exodus
She is the third Twice member to leave the agency in 72 days — Jeongyeon departed on August 10 and signed with VARO Entertainment, while Chaeyoung followed on August 13 with a solo project called LIL FANTASY, per Korea Portal. JYP had said in July that Twice was in contract renewal talks and would issue an official statement once finalized.
Three departures in 72 days inevitably invites questions about the state of the renewal talks JYP referenced in July. While each member has framed her move as a personal career decision, the pattern suggests a structural moment for one of K-pop’s defining groups — and the industry will be watching closely to see how the remaining members’ negotiations resolve.
