Jennie, a member of four-member K-pop girl group Blackpink, will release her first solo studio album in 2025.
The 28-year-old made the announcement in a 4½-minute video which went live on YouTube on Dec 23, and was linked to her website on Dec 25.
In the video, the South Korea-born star shared that she hopes listeners will feel a little closer to her. The singer-rapper-actress added candidly about the album: “I would not be mad even if you hate it.”
Dressed in a patterned black-and-white top paired with black pants, the star shared that 2024 has been “a lot” for her, and it was her first year with her own label Odd Atelier, or OA for short. “A lot has happened,” she said.
For example, on Oct 11, her latest song Mantra was released. The dance-pop and R&B number, a feminist anthem about standing up for other women, will be her album’s lead single.
Jennie added that she worked hard on Mantra, but it was also “a lot of fun”.
However, she qualified, the rest of the album will sound “very different”.
There will be a little bit of everything for everyone, she said. “It is like a buffet for you guys.”
Fingers crossed, fans might be able to hear her rapping on the new work.
She said: “I feel like the more confident I become in the studio, the more comfortable I become with myself, there will be more rapping. Definitely.”
Deciding on the order of the songs was difficult, she continued. “It is really my own perspective to the music.”
In all, it took about 11 months to get to a point where she felt the work was ready.
“I have never done this before,” she conceded. “People kind of assume that this has been in my life, which is kind of true. But I have never really done it on my own. I have always had the girls by my side, and I was always (in) a safe environment.”
Depending on the work’s eventual release date, Jennie is set to be the second or third Blackpink member to release a studio album.
Rose is the first, having put out Rosie on Dec 6. Lisa’s Alter Ego is set to become available on Feb 28, 2025, leaving Jisoo the remaining member yet to announce plans for a studio album. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
