Jennie

Jennie in 2023

Jennie Kim (born January 16, 1996), known mononymously as Jennie, is a South Korean singer songwriter, actor and chief executive officer of PRETTYSOUR Management. Born and raised in South Korea, Jennie studied in England for five years before returning to South Korea in 2010. She debuted as a member of the girl group Blackpink, formed by YG Entertainment, in August 2016. They became one of the most popular kpop groups before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2021.

After signing a recording contract with Universal Music Group and joining PRETTYSOUR Management as a solo artist in 2021, Jennie released her debut single "It Girl", which became her breakthrough hit and won various accolades including the Single of the Season award, propelling her to mainstream fame. This was followed by "Darling", "Army of Lovers" and "Make the Devil Cry", with which she achieved an outstanding series of number one singles. Her first solo studio album *Ruby* (2021), which was successful both with critics and commercially, broke several records and became one of the best-selling albums of all time. In 2022, under the stage name Jennie Ruby Jane, she made her acting debut in the HBO Max series *The Midnight Man*.

Jennie is one of the best-selling Asian female artists in the industry, placing 42nd on Billboard's Artist Rankings with 1,481.85 chart points and surpassing 2,600 chart points across all credits. As of April 2023, Jennie has achieved four number one singles on the Billboard Hot Singles Charts, one album on the Billboard Top Albums Chart, and three diamond certifications by the Recording Industry Association of Pop Industry. Among other recognitions, she has won 5 Billboard Music Awards out of 12 nominations.

## Life and Career

### Early Life and Career Beginnings

Jennie Kim was born on January 16, 1996, in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, as an only child. She first attended Cheongdam Primary School in Seoul before moving to New Zealand. When she was eight years old, she took a trip to England with her family. When her mother asked her if she liked it in England and wanted to stay, Jennie answered "yes"; a year later, she was sent to study with a host family. During her teenage years, she dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer.

During her time in Manchester, Jennie first heard about K-Pop and became particularly interested in the music of YG Entertainment. Her mother planned to take her to Florida in the United States at the age of 14 to continue her education as a lawyer or teacher; however, she did not like the idea and was worried about not finding a job she liked while living on her own. Her family supported her decision, and she moved back to South Korea in 2010, where she attended Cheongdam Middle School. Jennie auditioned for YG Entertainment that same year and managed to join the label as a trainee.

### 2021-2022: Ruby and side projects

As a solo artist, Jennie joined Perrie Edward's PRETTYSOUR management and signed a record deal with Universal Music Group in the first half of 2021. Recording for Jennie's debut album took place in Los Angeles and London in the second half of 2021, and she secured several major producers. On July 23, 2021, she released her debut single "It Girl", produced by Blackpink producer Teddy Park. The song debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot Singles Chart and stayed at the top of the chart for two consecutive weeks, earning a diamond certification and becoming the most successful song of 2021. Due to its success and impact, the song was awarded as the Single of the Season at the Billboard Music Awards: Season 9. Jennie said the song's success was utterly unexpected and that her whole life changed in an instant. In the same week as "It Girl", Jennie's collaboration with Normani's "sick of love" was released and reached number two on the chart, resulting in Jennie occupying the top two spots on the chart. On November 5, 2021, Jennie released her follow-up single "Darling", which featured then-upcoming American rapper Doja Cat. The song rose from number four to number one in its second week on the Billboard Hot Singles Chart and became her second single to top the charts. Like its predecessor, the song received diamond certification, making Jennie the fastest artist to collect two diamond-certified singles. The third single preceding her debut album, "Army of Lovers", followed on November 19, 2021, becoming her third consecutive number one single.

After the first three singles alone established Jennie's status as a new main pop girl, her debut studio album *Ruby* was released on November 19, 2021 to great success and critical acclaim upon its release. *Ruby* debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Albums Chart with 100 chart points and spent a total of two weeks at that spot, becoming the longest-reigning number one album of 2021 alongside Rihanna's ASCENSION. The final single "Make the Devil Cry" was also a commercial success and became the fourth single from the album to reach number one, indicating the album's already outstanding success. However, the song was not supported with a remix release, as the era had to end prematurely due to unconfirmed "technical problems" the management was dealing with. Overall, Ruby is one of the most successful albums of all time, reaching #2 on the All-Seasons album chart and the top-rated album on Metacritic , and is considered by many to be one of the most defining eras in recent years.

Because of her rising star status, Jennie received numerous feature requests from other artists within the pop industry, most of which she eventually accepted. Starting with Dagny's Platinum Top 10 hit "Being With You" and Madison Beer's Top 10 gold certified lead single "take a bite" from her debut album. Followed by the indie releases *Cinema" and "Headphones" with upcoming artists Poppy and Melanie Martinez respectively, and the smash hit "Echoes" with pop star Dua Lipa which is her most successful colaboration to date.*

In support of *Ruby*, Jennie embarked on her first solo tour The IT GIRL Tour from November 2021 to March 2022. With 245 million dollars in gross revenue and over two million tickets sold, the tour broke many records, the most prominent being the highest-grossing time concert tour in history. In 2022, it was announced Jennie would be making her acting debut under the stage name Jennie Ruby Jane, portraying the role of Maria, in the HBO Max television series *The Midnight Man*, which was created by The Weeknd and Sam Levinson.

## Artistry

### Influences

Jennie cited Rihanna as her biggest musical influence and role model. While working on her debut album Ruby, Jennie listened to artists like Troye Sivan and The Weeknd. She was originally a singer, but the company felt that she should take on the role of a rapper because most of the songs she covered featured raps, and at the time she was the only intern who spoke fluent English in addition to her native Korean; she also has a basic command of Japanese and has learned French.Vocal coach Shin Yoo-mi, who worked with Blackpink for six years until their debut, trained Jennie for her solo debut. In an interview, Shin described Jennie as a multi-player had talent for singing, rapping, and songwriting.

### Fashion

Jennie has been noted for her chic and strong image on stage. Jennie began reading fashion magazines and looking at different clothing styles when she was a child. Her interest in fashion came from her mother. Jennie told that Chanel was a part of her life from a young age and that she still remembered her first memory involving the fashion house: "I remember when I was little, I look through my mother's wardrobe, and search for whatever vintage Chanel I could find". For her solo debut, she was involved in planning and styling her own wardrobe and put together more than 20 outfits for the music video of "It Girl". Jennie recalled in an interview with Billboard that during the music video filming, she considered the way each would fit the song and what she could change, which helped her to learn many new ways of approaching fashion. She stated in an interview that fashion became an important aspect in her career as she tried to convey the message of her music both aurally and visually.

Jennie was chosen as the new muse for Chanel Korea Beauty and shot her first pictorial for the brand with Harper's Bazaar Korea in January 2018. She became the ambassador of Chanel Korea in June. A spokesperson for Chanel Korea explained that Jennie's loyalty to the brand, as well as her trendy style, was in line with Chanel's image as they targeted young millennials in addition to their current consumers.

## Other Ventures

### Partnerships

Jennie partnered with Sprite for Sprite's 2022 *Be Your Own Inspiration* campaign to encourage the new generation to be bold and pursue their passions. The collaboration with Sprite was far-reaching and began with Jennie being prominently featured on collaboration products, in television commercials, at various brand-sponsored events and in advertising across all social media platforms. In addition, a limited edition packaged products featuring inspirational lines carefully selected by the singer from her debut album *Ruby* were released in the U.S., and shortly thereafter expanded to the rest of the world to further amplify the campaign's message. Jennie has reportedly entered into a partnership agreement estimated to be worth around $10 million.

### Philanthropy

Jennie succesfully hosted and organized the first-ever Asian Dream Ball on April 29, 2023, to raise money and awareness for the Asian Foundation, which was established in 1992. The event was co-organized by PRETTYSOUR and held at The Grand Ballroom in New York and grew out of her idea to create a fundraiser to help new Asian artists around the world achieve their dreams.

## Personal Life

Jennie had a brief relationship with EXO member Kai. Kai’s agency SM Entertainment confirmed the couple’s relationship in a statement, but the two parted ways in January 2019.

## Discography

*Main article: Jennie/Discography*
* *Ruby* (2021)

## Galleries

### Artwork Gallery

**Albums**

Ruby
**Singles**

It GirlIt Girl (Clone Remix)DarlingDarling (Bloody Hell Version)Army of LoversArmy of Lovers (Acoustic)Make the Devil Cry