[Seoul = Newsis] Reporter Jaehoon Lee = There are no boundaries for the group ‘Blackpink’. Although it may seem like they radiate a charisma that is close to black, looking back, there is no team like this that possesses a lyricism that resembles pink. Where does this sturdy confidence come from?

 

“The essence of BLACKPINK is ‘Born to Be’ BLACKPINK.”

It may seem like a Zen question, but the power of Jennie of the group ‘BLACKPINK’ is to make you feel the directness of sincerity here. At a meeting held on YouTube on the morning of the 19th, Jenny firmly said with a meek face, “Blackpink’s identity is ‘reversal’.”

It is a pre-release song from Blackpink’s 2nd full-length album ‘BORN PINK’, which will be released on the 16th of next month, and the single ‘Pink Venom’, released at 1 PM (Korean time) on this day, best captures its identity. there is. Therefore, it was selected as a signal for ‘Born Pink’, a long-term project that will continue until next year.

 

The song composition of ‘Pink Venom’, a hip-hop genre song with a large number of YG Entertainment producers such as Danny Jeong, 24, R.T., and Lee Do, centered around Blackpink’s main producer Teddy, is full of twists and turns. 

 

Intense beats and the sounds of Korean traditional instruments come out from the intro. The point is the powerful, agile rap and seductive vocals. The minimal beat drop part that follows is followed by YG’s unique, addictive melody.

The same goes for the ‘Pink Venom’ music video, which was announced to have the highest production cost in YG’s history. Korean beauty, such as the harp and sundial, is incorporated into the sophisticated costumes, and the dark yet beautiful contrasting images of ‘pink’ and ‘venom’ come together.

 

In fact, the title ‘Pink Venom’ itself is strange. It’s a combination of pink and venom that doesn’t seem to go together at first glance. To borrow the expression ‘poisoned chalice’, it feels like a pink cup filled with poison. Jenny said, “I wanted to express a lovely, or pretty, dog.”

 

Rosé also added, “There are lyrics that say ‘so beautiful that it’s cruel.’ These are two words with conflicting images, but this song fully captures the two conflicting charms of Blackpink.”

The choreography also predicted a lovely poison. The fact that Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa, who have gorgeous looks, make fangs with their fingers is like that. There would be no intuitive expression of ‘Pink Venom’ like this.

Blackpink is, in name and reality, the current K-pop representative girl group. They have the highest ranking among K-pop girl groups on the US Billboard main single chart ‘Hot 100’. It ranks 13th with ‘Ice Cream’, a song included in the first full-length album ‘The Album’ and co-written with American pop star Selena Gomez. There are expectations that ‘Pink Venom’ will become the first Korean female singer to enter the top 10 of ‘Hot 100’.

It is expected that they will also break the 2nd place on the Billboard main album chart ‘Billboard 200’, the highest ranking for a K-pop girl group, with ‘The Album’. ‘Born Pink’, which is expected to have pre-orders of close to 3 million copies, is expected to reach the top of the Billboard 200. 

However, Blackpink members did not dwell on records. Rosé hoped, “Rather than breaking a record, I hope that fans will enjoy the song as much as we worked harder than ever to prepare it.” If you set a brilliant record, it’s like a bonus. In addition, Rosé also affirmed, saying, “It means that the fans like it that much.”

 

Accordingly, Blackpink’s sincerity is, “Rather than setting grandiose and special goals, I hope we can have fun together with BLINKs (Blackpink fandom) for a long time” (Jisoo).

 

On the 28th (local time), Blackpink will perform a special stage at the ‘MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs)’, one of the four major music awards ceremonies in the United States. Previously, BTS, a global super group representing K-pop along with Blackpink, appeared on the program, and Blackpink is the first K-pop girl group to appear on this stage.

Lisa pledged, “I’m excited. I’m nervous as it’s a new stage for all of us, but my expectations are even higher. I’ll do my best to put on a good performance just like I’ve done before.”

It has been 1 year and 10 months since BLACKPINK’s comeback as a full 4-member group. Meanwhile, Rosé and Lisa achieved good results through their solo activities. On Billboard’s ‘Hot 100’, Rosé’s ‘On the Ground’ ranked 70th and Lisa’s ‘Larissa’ ranked 84th. Blackpink is the only K-pop singer to enter the ‘Hot 100’ not only as a team but also as a solo artist. Jisoo also received favorable reviews for her acting as the lead in the JTBC drama ‘Snowdrop’. Jennie, who shot fashion pictorials, etc., was the first to pursue a solo career with ‘Solo’ before her first full-length album.

로제는 “솔로 활동하면서 멤버들의 빈자리가 느껴졌어요. 함께 고민하고 결정하고 또 친구가 있다는 것이 좋다는 걸 느꼈죠. 그래서 이번에 더 재밌고 파이팅 넘치게 작업하고 있다”고 즐거워했다.

제니도 “이번에 마음을 맞추면서 다 같이 성장했어요. 의견을 조율하고 발전시키면서 더 좋게 만들 수 있어 감사했죠. 멈춰있을 땐, 뇌 4개가 멀티플레이가 된다는 게 좋았어요. 더 좋은 그림을 꺼낼 수 있는 기회가 됐다”고 흡족해했다.

 

이와 함께 블랙핑크는 약 150만 명 규모의 월드투어도 돈다. 오는 10월15일 서울 공연을 시작으로, 11월 미국을 거쳐 연말엔 유럽, 내년 6월엔 동남아시아 등을 순회한다. 8개월에 걸쳐 26개 도시에서 36회 공연한다. 이는 1차 투어 스케줄로 공연 일정은 계속 추가된다. 방탄소년단을 제외하면 K팝 최대 규모의 월드 투어다. 리사는 “저희가 모든 걸 다 쏟아낼 각오로 열심히 준비하고 있다”고 귀띔했다.

 

점차 세상에 영향력을 끼치는 블랙핑크의 외침이나 약속은 얄팍해 보이지 않는다. 진정성이 빤할 수 있는 수식을 독처럼 다 삼켜 버리고, 당연한 각오를 절박한 서정성으로 선포하게 한다. 그건 매 태도가 당당하고 자신감이 넘쳐서다.

그래서 제니가 설명하는 팀의 정체성에 고개가 끄덕여진다. “한 단어로 표현하기엔 너무 어려워요. 다만 여러 장르의 곡을 통해 다양한 메시지를 표현하려고 노력하면서 되새긴 건 ‘늘 당당하고 자신감 넘치는 모습’이죠. 새로운 콘셉트에 도전하면서도 블랙핑크 본질에 멀어지지 않기 위해 뚜렷하고 선명하게 표현을 하려고 했어요. 그걸 멋있게 표현한 게 ‘본 핑크죠.”

블랙핑크는 이날 오후 12시 유튜브 공식 채널에서 ‘핑크베놈’ 발매를 기념하는 ‘카운트다운 라이브스트림’을 연다.

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