It’s been an eventful couple of months for Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa and Rosé of BLACKPINK. The quartet collaborated with PUBG Mobile for a virtual in-game concert, released their new single "Pink Venom" (accompanied by a music video and dance practice), announced a new album and world tour, and slayed their debut at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, where they performed and won an award for Best Metaverse Performance. Lisa took home the Best K-pop award for her debut solo single "LALISA," making her the first K-pop soloist to win the coveted trophy.
Six years after their debut, BLACKPINK’s star power is stronger than ever. The quartet’s hip-hop and EDM–infused pop songs have charted around the globe, while their videos have racked up billions of views on YouTube. But it took years of training to prepare the talented foursome for worldwide success. The group’s journey to superstardom began in the early 2010s when they were invited to join YG Entertainment’s K-pop trainee program, where they developed and refined the moves and sounds that would help them become household names.
After taking a hiatus to pursue other creative projects, the members of BLACKPINK have reunited to release their long-awaited sophomore effort, Born Pink, due Sept. 16. Ahead of the record’s release, here are seven facts to know about the foursome dubbed "the biggest girl group in the world."
What Does "BLACKPINK" Mean?
The group’s name may seem simple on the surface, but it holds a deeper message. The pairing of the contrasting colors encapsulates the group’s attitude, aesthetic, and sound — bold and confident with an underlying sweetness.
Initially named Pink Punk, the group touched on the evolution of their moniker in a 2017 radio interview, where they credited Yang Hyun Suk — YG Entertainment’s CEO at the time — with facilitating the name change.
"We kind of felt like there's two colors that represented us the most ‘cause we're very girly but at the same time we're very savage too," Rosé explained on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
How Many Members Were Originally In BLACKPINK?
It’s hard to imagine an iteration of BLACKPINK with twice as many members, but YG Entertainment initially set out to create a substantially larger girl group. After 2NE1’s successful debut in 2009, the label wanted to create an international girl group with cross-cultural appeal — and nine members — known as Aphrodite 9. The original line-up featured the four current members of BLACKPINK as well as five other YG trainees — including Moon Sua from Billlie and Jang Hanna (Jisoo’s Snowdrop co-star) — who wound up leaving for various reasons.
In June 2016, YG announced the final BLACKPINK line-up, which had been whittled down to four core members. Shortly after their introduction to the world, Lisa, Jisoo, Jennie, and Rosé released a pre-debut dance practice followed by their first single album Square One, featuring the hits "Boombayah" and "Whistle."
Where Is BLACKPINK From?
Though the girl group originated in South Korea, only Jisoo and Jennie claim the country as their place of birth. The quartet’s lead dancer/main vocalist Rosé was born in Auckland, New Zealand, while lead rapper/main dancer Lisa hails from Thailand.
The foursome is also multilingual — Jisoo, Rose, Jennie, and Lisa speak Korean, Chinese, Japanese and English. (Lisa, who is also fluent in Thai, learned Korean after joining the group.)
Who Has BLACKPINK Collaborated With?
During their short tenure, BLACKPINK has worked with major pop stars including Cardi B, Dua Lipa, Selena Gomez and Lady Gaga. And there’s a lot of speculation over who the group will collab with on their forthcoming album, Born Pink. Since the tracklist has yet to be revealed, it’s unclear if there are any features on the album, but OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder recently mentioned collaborating with the Pinks on a couple of tracks. (Though there’s no confirmation that the songs made the album’s final cut.)
Meanwhile, Blinks — the group’s loyal fan base — believe a potential collab with Taylor Swift is on the horizon. There’s a nod to Swift in the group’s new single, "Pink Venom," which features the lyric "look what you made us do." Adding fuel to the rumor mill, Swift danced and sang along to "Pink Venom" during the group’s VMA performance and even posted a TikTok set to the song.
Who Was The First Member Of BLACKPINK To Go Solo?
In late 2018, Jennie became the first member of BLACKPINK to release a solo record, aptly titled Solo, produced and written by Teddy Park. A little over a year later, Rosé made her solo debut with the single album R, which featured hit songs "On The Ground" and "Gone." She discussed the direction of her solo work with Variety: "I’m constantly exploring new ideas and sounds. It differs from BLACKPINK’s [music] in the sense that it is still in the process of defining itself."
Following the 2020 release of BLACKPINK's debut The Album, the foursome took time off to pursue different creative endeavors. Lisa became the group’s third soloist with the release of her highly anticipated single album LALISA, featuring the title track and "Money." The songs simultaneously held the top two spots on Billboard’s Hot Trending Songs chart, while the single album topped South Korea’s Circle Album Chart. The music video for "LALISA" currently has a half-billion views on YouTube.
Jisoo fans have speculated about the release of her solo work, but the singer remains on the fence about setting off on her own and has opted to focus on acting instead.
What Social Cases Does BLACKPINK Believe In?
In 2021, the quartet used its star power to address one of the biggest issues of our time. After being appointed ambassadors for the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, BLACKPINK briefly returned from hiatus to record a special message encouraging world leaders to take meaningful action to prevent further destruction.
"Climate change is an established fact. We have learned of the devastating changes to nature, to the global weather, and the air we breathe," the group says in the video. "And the changes that we feared are already beginning to transform our planet. We have learned that we must act now. Urgently, to prevent much, much, worse."
What Is BLACKPINK’s Biggest Song?
Though the group’s songs perform well across domestic and international music charts, there’s one track that reigns supreme: "Ice Cream." The catchy second single from their debut album, which features an appearance from Selena Gomez, is their highest charting song to date. (Their recently released single, "Pink Venom," is already breaking records on YouTube and could become their first Billboard chart-topper.)
There is some major star power behind the lyrics of the bubblegum pop hit: Pop superstar Ariana Grande and singer-songwriter Victoria Monét, who has penned hits for Chloe x Halle, Nas, and Fifth Harmony, helped write the track.