Jihyo, a member of the South Korean girl group Twice, announced on October 21 that she has left JYP Entertainment after 21 years and has launched her own agency, Emithaus. She said she intends to continue her activities with Twice despite the agency change.

The news confirms earlier reports from July indicating that Jihyo was preparing to depart from JYP Entertainment, the company where she trained and debuted as Twice’s leader in 2015. In a handwritten letter shared on Instagram, Jihyo described her departure as a personal decision about how she wants to live going forward rather than a conclusion on her past. She explained the name of her new agency, Emithaus, referencing the word “emit,” meaning “to express or release,” with the hope it will serve as a platform to explore her untapped creative potential.

Jihyo expressed gratitude to Twice’s fanbase, known as Once, for their ongoing support throughout the group’s 11-year career. She acknowledged the significance of having fans who witness and encourage an artist’s growth over time and vowed to continue making choices that remain true to herself while evolving artistically.

Emithaus is set to manage Jihyo’s solo projects initially, with plans to broaden its scope to music and content production involving additional artists in the future.

During her time with JYP Entertainment, Jihyo made her solo debut in 2023 with the EP *Zone*, which achieved record-breaking sales by moving 534,565 copies in its first week. This made it the best-selling K-pop female solo EP in first-week sales at the time and the first to surpass the half-million mark. The album also reached number 14 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Jihyo’s departure comes amid a wider trend of Twice members pursuing individual management following contract renewals with JYP. Earlier this year, member Chaeyoung announced she would continue her solo career independently through Lini Fantasy, a personal creative project name, while Jeongyeon signed with Varo Entertainment.