BLACKPINK

**Blackpink** (Hangul: 블랙핑크; commonly stylized as **BLACKPINK** or **BLΛƆKPIИK**) are a South Korean girl group formed by YG Entertainment, consisting of members Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa. They debuted in August 2016 with their single album *Square One*, which spawned "Whistle" and "Boombayah", their first number-one hits in South Korea and on the *Billboard* World Digital Song Sales chart, respectively.

Blackpink are the highest-charting female Korean act on the *Billboard* Hot 100 (peaking at number 33 with their 2020 singles "How You Like That" and "Sour Candy") and the *Billboard* 200 (peaking at number 24 with their 2019 extended play *Kill This Love*). They were the first Korean girl group to enter and top *Billboard*'s Emerging Artists chart and to have three number-one singles on *Billboard*'s World Digital Song Sales chart.

Blackpink became the first female Korean act to receive a certification from the Recording Industry Association of America for their 2018 hit single "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du", which has the most-viewed Korean group music video on YouTube. The group has the most top 40 hits in the United Kingdom among all Korean artists, with "Kiss and Make Up" being the first-ever song by a Korean group to receive a certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The single was also the first-ever song by a Korean group to be certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association.

The group has broken numerous online records throughout their career; the music videos for "Kill This Love" (2019) and "How You Like That" each set a record for the most-viewed music video within the first 24 hours of release, with the latter setting four other Guinness World Records. The single also became the fastest Korean track to reach double platinum on QQ Music, China's biggest music streaming platform.

Blackpink's accolades include the New Artist of the Year Awards at the 31st Golden Disc Awards and the 26th Seoul Music Awards and the recognition as the most powerful celebrities in South Korea by *Forbes* Korea in 2019. The group was also the first female Korean group to be included in *Forbes*' 30 Under 30 Asia.

Blackpink is currently the most-followed female group on Spotify as well as the most-subscribed music group, female act, and K-pop act on YouTube.

## History

### 2016–2017: Debut, rising popularity, and commercial success

YG Entertainment revealed the final lineup and name of the group on June 29, 2016. Promotions for their debut began in the first week of August 2016 with the release of teaser images, videos, and advertisements. The first girl group to debut under YG Entertainment in six years, Blackpink released their debut single album, *Square One*, on August 8, 2016, consisting of tracks "Boombayah" and "Whistle". The two tracks charted at number one and two on the *Billboard* World Digital Song Sales chart, which made Blackpink the fastest act to achieve such feat and the third Korean artist to hold the top two positions simultaneously, after label mates Psy and Big Bang. "Whistle" quickly topped the digital, download, streaming, and mobile charts on Gaon. The group also reached number one on the weekly, popularity, music video, and K-pop music video charts of China's biggest music-streaming service, QQ Music. Blackpink's first music show performance was aired on August 14, 2016, on SBS's *Inkigayo*. They won first place on *Inkigayo* 13 days after their debut, breaking the record for the shortest time for a girl group to win on a music program after debut. They wrapped up their promotions for *Square One* on September 11, 2016, with another win on *Inkigayo*.

Blackpink released their second single album, *Square Two*, consisting of tracks "Playing with Fire" and "Stay", on November 1, 2016. The group began their promotions on *Inkigayo* on November 6 and on Mnet's *M Countdown* on November 10. "Playing with Fire" was Blackpink's second single to reach number one on the *Billboard* World Digital Song Sales chart and first K-pop girl group song to chart on the Canadian Hot 100. In South Korea, "Playing with Fire" peaked at number three while "Stay" placed in the top ten. Blackpink's commercial success in their first five months earned them several rookie awards at major Korean year-end music award shows, including the Asia Artist Awards, Melon Music Awards, Golden Disc Awards, Seoul Music Awards, and Gaon Chart Music Awards. Additionally, *Billboard* named them one of the best new K-pop groups of 2016.

On January 17, 2017, Blackpink revealed the name of their fan club—"Blink", a portmanteau of "black" and "pink." On June 22, the group released their first standalone digital single, "As If It's Your Last". It was described as a "mixed genre of music" and a change of sound from their previous releases. The song debuted at number one on *Billboard*'s World Digital Song Sales chart one day after release, making it their third number-one hit on the chart. The music video for the song later went on to break the record for the most-liked music video by a Korean girl group on YouTube as well as the most-viewed K-pop group music video in the first 24 hours of release. On July 20, 2017, Blackpink held a showcase at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, which was attended by more than 14,000 people, with as many as 200,000 people attempting to purchase tickets. The group made their Japanese debut on August 30, 2017, with the release of a self-titled Japanese extended play that included Japanese versions of their previous singles. The EP debuted and peaked at the top of the Oricon Albums Chart. Blackpink ranked among YouTube's Global Top 25 Songs of the Summer for 2017 with "As If It's Your Last".

### 2018–2019: International breakthrough, *Square Up*, *Kill This Love*, and first worldwide tour

In January 2018, it was announced that the group's debut Japanese EP would be re-released under the name *Re:Blackpink*. The digital version included the same songs as the original release, while the physical version included a DVD containing all music videos and six songs in the Korean language.

On June 15, 2018, the group released their first Korean-language EP, titled *Square Up*. The lead single, "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du", debuted at number 17 on the Official Trending Chart in the United Kingdom, making them the first female K-pop group to enter the chart since its launch in 2016. The single also debuted at number 55 on the *Billboard* Hot 100, with 12.4 million U.S. streams and 7,000 downloads in the tracking week ending June 21, 2018, making Blackpink the highest-charting Korean girl group on the chart. The single also debuted at number 39 on the U.S. Streaming Songs chart, making Blackpink became the first K-pop girl group to enter the chart. *Square Up* also brought the group their first entry and the highest-charting album by an all-female K-pop group at the time of its release on the *Billboard* 200, debuting at number 40 with 14,000 equivalent units. The EP also topped the *Billboard* World Albums chart. In South Korea, *Square Up* debuted at number one on Gaon Albums Chart. "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" peaked at number one on the digital, download, streaming, and mobile charts on Gaon in its second week, while "Forever Young" peaked at number two. YouTube's official tally saw the music video for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" garner a total of 36.2 million views within 24 hours after its release, making it the most-viewed online video in the first 24 hours by a Korean act and the second most-watched music video of all time in first 24 hours of release at that time.

On July 7, the final stop of the tour was added for December 24 at Kyocera Dome Osaka as a Christmas gift for fans. They embarked on their first Japan tour, "Blackpink Arena Tour 2018", in Osaka from July 24 to 25. On September 12, it was announced that the group would hold their first concert in Seoul titled "Blackpink 2018 Tour [In Your Area] Seoul x BC Card" at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena. The concert led to the In Your Area World Tour, which continued through 2019 and early 2020. The tour ultimately became the highest-grossing tour by a Korean girl group by the end of its run.

On October 19, English singer Dua Lipa released "Kiss and Make Up" with Blackpink, a new track for the re-released edition of her self-titled debut album. "Kiss and Make Up" debuted at number 93 at the *Billboard* Hot 100, marking Blackpink's second entry in the chart and making them the only Korean girl group to score at least two entries on the chart. The song also became their second entry in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 36, and their first top 40 entry. They were the first female Korean group and third Korean act overall to reach the top 40.

In October 2018, the group signed with Interscope Records in a global partnership with YG Entertainment; they were to be represented by Interscope and Universal Music Group outside of Asia. In November 2018, Blackpink announced additional tour dates for their "In Your Area World Tour", which covered thirteen dates across Asia from January to March 2019. Jennie debuted with her single, "Solo", at Blackpink's Seoul concert on November 11; both the song and its official music video were released the following day. Their first Japanese studio album, *Blackpink in Your Area*, was made available digitally on November 23 and physically on December 5. The album included Japanese versions of all of their previous releases and debuted at number 9 on the Oricon Albums Chart, selling an estimated 13,000 copies in its first week.

Blackpink made their American debut at the Universal Music Group's 2019 Grammy Artist Showcase, an invite-only event at the ROW in Downtown Los Angeles on February 9, 2019. The group appeared on several American television shows following their debut performance, including *The Late Show with Stephen Colbert* and *Good Morning America*. In March of the same year, they became the first-ever K-pop girl group to cover *Billboard* magazine.

Blackpink's third extended play, *Kill This Love*, led by a single of the same name, was released on April 5, 2019. *Kill This Love* debuted at number 24 on the *Billboard* 200, while the lead single reached number 41 on the Hot 100, becoming the highest-charting releases by a female Korean act on the two major *Billboard* charts. "Kill This Love" was included on *Billboard*'s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2019. The song "Forever Young", released as a B-side from the EP *Square Up* (2018), surpassed 2.5 million downloads in December 2019, making it the group's fifth song overall and their second to achieve a platinum certification for downloads from the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA), after "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du". The group performed at the 2019 Coachella Festival on April 12 and 19, 2019, making them the first female K-pop group to do so.

On October 16, 2019, a Japanese version of *Kill This Love* was released to the Japanese market, peaking at number 17 on the Oricon Albums Chart. The group embarked to Japan for a variety of promotional activities, including appearances on Japanese music television programs TV Asahi's *Music Station* and Fuji TV's *Love Music*.

### 2020–present: *The Album*

On April 22, it was confirmed the group would be featured in Lady Gaga's sixth studio album, *Chromatica*, on the track titled "Sour Candy", which was released as a promotional single on May 28, 2020. On the *Billboard* Hot 100 chart, the song debuted at number 33, giving Gaga her 25th top 40 hit and Blackpink their first, becoming their highest-charting song in the United States to date as well as the highest charting song by a K-pop girl group. In Australia, the song debuted at number 8, becoming Blackpink's highest-charting hit in the country. It also became their first top-twenty single in the United Kingdom, debuting at number 17.

On May 18, YG Entertainment announced the group would release a pre-release single in June, followed by an additional single release between July and August, to promote their first Korean full-length album in September. On June 2, YG Entertainment confirmed that following the release of the group's first full-length album, members Rosé, Lisa, and Jisoo will release their individual projects, with Rosé’s solo album releasing first. Their single "How You Like That" was heavily teased on social media leading up to its digital release on June 26. The song debuted at number 12 on the Gaon Digital Chart with just 1 day and 16 hours of tracking and peaked at number one on the Gaon digital, download, and streaming charts in its second week. "How You Like That" became Blackpink's fifth song to chart on the *Billboard* Hot 100 (peaking at no. 33) and its music video broke five Guinness World Records.

In the midst of the group's comeback preparations, YG Entertainment released a prologue of Blackpink's newest reality show, *24/365 with Blackpink*, on June 13 ahead of its launch on YouTube. The show documents their 2020 comeback alongside sharing their daily lives through vlogs. On July 23, YG Entertainment released a teaser poster for a new collaboration single between the group and an unnamed artist, set to be released in August. On July 28, the band announced their debut Korean studio album, *The Album*, would be released on October 2, 2020.

## Awards and achievements

Blackpink's accolades include three People's Choice Awards, a Teen Choice Award, five Gaon Chart Music Awards, four Golden Disc Awards, three Melon Music Awards, four Mnet Asian Music Awards, two Seoul Music Awards, and five Guinness World Records.

In January 2019, the music video for "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" became the most-watched music video by a South Korean group, surpassing BTS' "DNA". In November 2019, the video surpassed one billion views. In September 2019, Blackpink overtook One Direction as the music group with the highest number of subscribers on YouTube. In November 2019, Blackpink surpassed Fifth Harmony and Little Mix to became the most-followed girl group on Spotify. Following the release of "How You Like That" and its music video on June 26, 2020, Blackpink broke five Guinness World Records, including those for the most-viewed YouTube video in the first 24 hours of release and the most viewers for a video premiere on YouTube.

In November 2019, Blackpink were listed in *Time Magazine*'s inaugural "Time 100 Next", a list of 100 rising stars in the world. *Forbes* Korea Power Celebrity named Blackpink the most influential celebrities in South Korea in 2019 and the third most influential in 2020.

As of March 2020, Blackpink's members are the most-followed Korean idols on Instagram, with the top four most-followed idols being Lisa, Jennie, Rosé and Jisoo, in that order.

## Members

* Jisoo (지수)
* Jennie (제니)
* Rosé (로제)
* Lisa (리사)

## Other ventures

### Philanthropy

In December 2018, Blackpink donated their prize money from the Elle Style Awards 2018 worth ₩20 million (around $16,630) to low-income, single-parent households in South Korea.

In April 2019, Blackpink made a donation of ₩40 million (around $33,300) to the Hope Bridge Association of the National Disaster Relief for the victims of the Goseong wildfire in South Korea.

In September 2019, member Lisa donated ฿100,000 (around $3,200) to help the victims of monsoon floods in her hometown Buriram, Thailand.

### Endorsements

In May 2017, Blackpink became ambassadors for Incheon Main Customs. The group has endorsed and collaborated with several high-end brands including Puma, Reebok, Louis Vuitton, Adidas, Dior Cosmetics, Moonshot, St. Scott London, Shibuya 109, Tokyo Girls Collection x CECIL McBEE, and Sprite Korea. In July 2018, the group ranked first in brand reputation based on an analysis by The Korea Reputation Research Institute. In November 2018, Blackpink became brand ambassadors for a Singaporean e-commerce platform, Shopee.