SEOUL, Jan 6 — South Korean pop music, or K-pop, has long been the domain of groups rather than solo artists. But this trend seems to be over with stars of the genre like Jisoo from Blackpink and RM from BTS who are now going solo.
Twenty-eight-year-old Jisoo is one of the most influential K-pop singers in the world. The numbers speak for themselves: The South Korean artist is followed by some 67 million users on Instagram, more than the Blackpink band, of which she has been part since 2016. And Jisoo shares this global fame with the three other members of the girl band, Jennie, Lisa and Rosé.
Together, the four young women have established themselves as South Korean pop superstars with songs like As If It’s Your Last, Ddu-Du Ddu-Du and Shut Down. Their music videos are also racking up record views. In 2018, the video for Kill This Love notched up 57 million views on YouTube in less than 24 hours, scoring the best debut in history on the platform. Four years later, Pink Venom, the first single from the band’s second album, Born Pink, did even better, with 90.4 million views. It now has almost 500 million views.
It’s no surprise that Time magazine named Blackpink its Entertainer of the Year for 2022. Now, Jisoo plans to build on this phenomenal success by pursuing a solo career. She is currently recording several tracks for her debut album, according to The Korea Herald. She has reportedly already finished the album sleeve and is making the most of the current Blackpink world tour to make progress on the project.
Going Seoul-o
Jisoo is, in fact, the last member of the hit girl band to consider the idea of breaking through as a solo act — alongside Blackpink’s activities, of course. Jennie released Solo in 2018, while Rosé and Lisa waited until 2021 to unveil R and LaLisa to their fans. Unsurprisingly, all three releases were commercially successful. Lisa even became the first female artist to top the Billboard Hot Trending Songs chart, which compiles the most mentioned songs on Twitter worldwide, with her solo single LaLisa” (from the album of the same name).
The four girls from Blackpink are not the only artists in the K-pop universe trying to stand on their own two feet. Several members of the band BTS are doing the same. Jungkook released Lft and Right” in July as a duet with American singer Charlie Puth, before collaborating with Qatari producer Fahad Al Kubaisi to compose one of the official songs for the 2022 World Cup. His bandmate RM has already released his first solo album, Indigo. The ten tracks on the record span rap and pop, allowing the frontman of the South Korean boy band to take stock of his 20s.
And this is a particularly good time for introspection, since RM, who turns 29 in December, will soon have to fulfil his military obligations. In South Korea, military service is mandatory for all men between the ages of 18 and 28 and lasts between 18 and 21 months. Failure to do so can lead to a prison sentence, although a “BTS amendment” granted the septet an exceptional deferral of their military service until the age of 30. Jin is the first member of BTS to be drafted. His six other cohorts will serve stints in the army between now and 2027. The prospect of military service prompted BTS to announce a career break on June 14. This leaves each of its members free to focus on their solo projects, as stated by their label, Big Hit Entertainment. “This is the perfect time and the members of BTS are honoured to serve” their country, the agency said in a statement.
Exposure issues
Several South Korean boy bands are facing the same problem as BTS, which leads their respective record companies, or “talent agencies” in K-pop jargon, to anticipate the military service requirements of their young protégés. They are increasingly encouraging them to embark on solo careers to make up for the absence of their conscripted bandmates. “The exponential growth of K-pop’s global fandom has extended the life span of most K-pop groups over the last few years. Surviving for more than seven or eight years was a daunting mission for them in the past, but today, the majority of them can enjoy popularity for more than a decade,” the music critic Jung Min-jae told The Korea Times. “So K-pop management companies, which often put more emphasis on group activities, seek to make the most of this.”
But striking out alone is not easy for artists who are used to being part of a band. Especially since there is no guarantee that their fans will support them in their solo careers. J-hope, one of the members of BTS, has experienced this firsthand. His first solo album, Jack in the Box, was better received internationally than in his home country. He only managed to reach the ninth place in the monthly best-selling albums of the Circle Digital Chart, the leading music chart in South Korea, when it was released on July 15. In comparison, it topped the iTunes charts in many countries, including France, the UK and Brazil.
This mixed reception is far from being an exception in the K-pop world. “[K-pop] groups are popular, but solo artists aren’t getting the same exposure right now. However, this could change as we look to the next phase of K-pop,” explained Shin Cho, head of K-pop for Warner Music Asia, speaking to Variety in 2021.
Blackpink’s Jisoo might fare better than J-hope, however, given that her label, YG Entertainment, has been working for years to make each of the members of the hit quartet into idols in their own right. And this mission appears to be accomplished: Lisa is followed by 86 million users on Instagram, Jennie by 73 million, Jisoo by 67 million and Rosé by 66 million. All of which should help boost their chances of success in their respective solo careers. — ETX Studio
