“HYBE artists have no musical identity…”
Koreaboo
1 hour ago
ENHYPEN recently made their comeback with the album THE SIN: VANISH, led by the title track “Knife.”
| BeLift Lab
While the release drew strong attention from fans, it also quickly became the center of controversy as many turned critical of the group’s new sound.
Shortly after the album dropped, netizens began comparing “Knife” to CORTIS‘s sound, a newly debuted boy group under BIGHIT MUSIC.
| BIGHIT MUSIC
Although ENHYPEN is managed by BELIFT LAB and CORTIS by BIGHIT MUSIC, both labels operate under HYBE. As a result, the connection intensified the backlash even more.
Some framed the issue as part of a broader problem in K-Pop, claiming originality is becoming rare and that HYBE artists, in particular, lack a clear musical identity.
Hybe artist really have no musical identity they just copy whatever artist they think is cool https://t.co/Ppf2IMxU2J
— sultryfilm (@Katwiiaa) January 15, 2026
cortis the blueprint you are https://t.co/KDmorxbkmo pic.twitter.com/gfacjvd09d
— ᥬᩤ (@ourianton) January 15, 2026
Will kpop ever beat the plagiarism accusation? It’s like nothing is original anymore.
— Vile X Medusa X Luna (@XxlululunaxX) January 15, 2026
However, ENHYPEN’s fans strongly pushed back against the plagiarism claims. Many argued that the group has explored similar sounds long before CORTIS debuted, pointing to multiple past tracks that align with the style heard in “Knife.” Others even claimed rumors that ENHYPEN had received the demo for “Knife” months before CORTIS officially debuted.
Enhypen has blessed cursed, ptm, daydream and outside all before this group even debuted btw https://t.co/9Zi953sHoB
— zeelkya (@kpop_criticccc) January 15, 2026
this is funny to read some quotes when you know when fashion was released ppl compared it to pass the mic and now knife is compared to fashion jsjsjs https://t.co/LVQcD3kzG5
— nira:vanish ♱ (@nikiseom) January 15, 2026
fun fact: enhypen received the demo for knife 3 months before cortis debuted https://t.co/fOfEjiILt0
— ً (@WONFAlRY) January 17, 2026
As the debate continues, ENHYPEN’s “Knife” and HYBE artists’ recent concepts and sound remain a polarizing release.