BLΛƆKPIИK is the recent rookie group and large hit from YG Entertainment, a popular South Korean entertainment industry. BLACKPINK debuted on August 8, 2016 with their single album Square One featuring two popular songs that we all know and love today: "Boombayah" and "Whistle"/"Whistle Acoustic". Recently, they came out with Square Two featuring the songs "Playing with Fire" and "Stay" and releasing two more in the month of December.
(From left to right: Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie, Rosé)
There are four girls in the group completing BLACKPINK’s image. Jisoo, the eldest, is from Seoul, South Korea. The other three girls are from outside of South Korea, namely New Zealand, Australia, and Thailand. Jennie was raised and studied in New Zealand before joining YG. Rosé lived in Australia before nailing auditions for YG in 2012. Lisa lived in Thailand before also winning the auditions for YG and being the only person accepted into YG during her audition.
(From left to right: Lisa, Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé)
After listening to "Boombayah" once and "Whistle" twice, I fell in love. These girls have so much talent in singing and dancing and are cute in their own way. "Boombayah" is a more of a dance song but has so much emotion and makes you want to dance along. Many famous dancers on YouTube such as Koreos UCLA and BLACK QUEEN have already covered them! Let’s not forget about "Whistle". "Whistle" has such a unique sound from the whistling in the background to Lisa and Jennie’s awesome rap to Rosé’s soothing voice and Jisoo’s husky voice. It’s not surprising that these songs rose to fame so quickly. Personally, I love all the songs they have released. Each person gets their own fair portion of the song, and each song features a unique feeling to it. Their two newest songs, "Playing with Fire" and "Stay", are more toned down versions of their first album, Square One. "Playing with Fire" talks about how love is passionate and fiery hot but difficult to maintain. "Stay" is innocent and features acoustic sounds added onto the nostalgia woven within the lyrics. It asks of the lover to stay, despite the struggles they face in the relationship.
(From left to right: Rosé, Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa)
Some rumors compare BLACKPINK to 2NE1, a previous girl group from YG Entertainment that has since disbanded. However, the members have commented saying, “We don’t purposely try to be different from 2NE1. It’s actually a big part of us that we’re compared to 2NE1.” and to show off themselves in a similar light to being as charismatic as 2NE1 but also highlighting their own unique styles. But of course, they already are. I cannot begin to describe how many times I’ve tried to dance to Boombayah because of how fun and playful it is.
(From left to right: Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa, Rosé)
Its times like these that we should support BLACKPINK. 2NE1 was a great band and I also miss them dearly but we must also encourage BLACKPINK on their progression as they remedy the missing girl group from YG and create their own style. I’m definitely excited for the release of their December album, even though they just released November’s "Playing with Fire" and "Stay". I mean, have you seen how cute they are?! (Those accents, though.)
(From left to right: Lisa, Jennie, Jisoo, Rosé)
