BLACKPINK’s sophomore album stays true to the group’s hip-hop-infused sound while showcasing each member’s range. Here are five insights about their latest release, ‘Born Pink.’

After dropping two hit pre-release singles, a record-breaking music video and a red-hot VMA performance, BLACKPINK’s summer takeover culminates with the arrival of their new full-length album, Born Pink.

With their signature black-and-pink lightsticks in hand, the best-selling foursome ushered their latest release into the world with an official countdown party on YouTube. During the party, they previewed their new music video for “Shut Down,” displayed photos from the Light Up The Pink Campaign — the promotional campaign lit major landmarks across the globe in the group’s signature pink color — and showed off their newest merch.

As the countdown party drew to a close, Lisa, Rosé, Jisoo and Jennie read letters of gratitude to Blinks — their dedicated fanbase — before wrapping things up with the release of the music video for “Shut Down,” which coincided with the arrival of Born Pink on all major streaming platforms.

The long-awaited eight-track LP doubles down on the group’s distinct hip-hop and EDM-infused sound while experimenting with bubblegum pop, disco, and punk elements. “If The Album focused solely on music, we tried to express BLACKPINK’s true nature through [Born Pink],” Rosé told XSportsNews.

From Jisoo’s rap verse to Rosé’s surprise solo, here are five takeaways from BLACKPINK’s new album, Born Pink.

‘Born Pink’ Doesn’t Feature Any Guest Appearances

BLACKPINK has previously collaborated with pop heavy-hitters like Selena Gomez, Lady Gaga, and Cardi B, so there was rampant speculation about the guest appearances on Born Pink. However, Blinks hoping for a Taylor Swift collab — after her response to the group’s breakout VMA performance — were discouraged when the album’s track list was released, and Swift’s name was nowhere to be found. Although there are no collabs, the quartet more than holds their own and highlight their individual talents.

The melancholy ballad “The Happiest Girl” showcases Lisa’s vocals and vulnerability while Jisoo steps into her rap moment with a blistering verse on “Shut Down.” Rosé’s soaring vocals shine on “Hard to Love” and “Yeah Yeah Yeah,” while Jennie’s rapid-fire flows on “Pink Venom” and “Shut Down” exhilarate thanks to her braggadocious delivery.

Rosé Takes The Lead On “Hard To Love”

The first few tracks on the album showcase BLACKPINK’s standard hip-hop heavy sound, but halfway through the album, the group flips the script by treating listeners to an unexpected Rosé solo called “Hard to Love,” a guitar-pop anthem that channels Taylor Swift. This isn’t Rosé’s first solo outing — in 2021, the singer released her first single album, R, featuring the singles “Gone” and “On The Ground.”

“Hard to Love” was well-received on social media, but many Blinks were hoping for a Jisoo solo moment. The singer is the only group member who hasn’t released a single album, and there was heavy speculation that she’d take the lead on one of Born Pink’s tracks. However, she has been on the fence about setting off on her own.

Last May, Jisoo told Rolling Stone that she wasn’t sure which direction to take her sound. “I love songs with lots of instruments. I love different bands and rock music. What do people want from me? There’s a chaos of conflicting questions. So I’m still tilting my head in confusion. I’m not sure what will happen with my solo plans this year.”

“Shut Down” Captures The Essence of BLACKPINK’s Sound

BLACKPINK’s signature swagger is on full display in this drippy hip-hop track, which features a familiar classical sample — “La Campanella,” by the Italian composer Niccolo Paganini. On the audacious track, the Pinks address their detractors — or antis, as the Blinks call them — with in-your-face lines like, “Praying for my downfall, many have tried, baby” and “Bunch of wannabes that wanna be me, me three if I was you.”

After hearing the demo for the first time, the quartet fell in love with the bass-thumping song and decided to make it the album’s title track. (In K-pop, a title track refers to a lead single accompanied by a music video.) “We gathered in the recording studio altogether and listened to the demo. When the intro came out, I think all the members were speechless and just looked at each other,” Lisa said to XSportsNews. “Through just our eyes, we were telling each other, ‘this is the title track!’ While listening, I naturally started to imagine the performance. That’s how well BLACKPINK was captured, and I was confident that it was a song BLACKPINK could express well.”

There Are Some Familiar Names In Born Pink’s Writing Credits, Including Jisoo and Rosé

BLACKPINK typically employ the same stable of writers to craft their tracks. Their frequent collaborators include Teddy Park, who is responsible for producing and writing some of the group’s biggest tracks like “Kill This Love” and “Lovesick Girls,” and Bekuh Boom, who penned the high-charting hits “Pretty Savage” and “Ice Cream.” On Born Pink, Park’s work can be heard on the hip-hop forward tracks “Pink Venom” and “Shut Down” as well as “Ready For Love,” while Boom lent her pen to the sassy track “Typa Girl.”

Some new collaborators have entered the mix in the Born Pink era: Teddy Sinclair, formerly known as Natalia Kills, composed and co-wrote “The Happiest Girl” with her husband, Willy Moon. (Sinclair also co-wrote Rihanna’s “Kiss It Better.”) Jisoo and Rosé lent their vocals and writing skills to Born Pink — each has a writing credit on “Yeah Yeah Yeah,” a standout track on the album.

The Album Is Under 25 Minutes Long

With a runtime of a little over 24 minutes, Born Pink is notably shorter than many standard LPs, much to the chagrin of Blinks, who were hoping for more after waiting nearly two years for new music from the group.

It’s likely that their next release will be a live album recorded during one of the stops on their upcoming world tour, though there is a possibility that the group will release a deluxe version of Born Pink featuring additional tracks. (Somewhere in the BLACKPINK vaults are a couple of unreleased collaborations with OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder, which fans are eager to hear after the veteran songwriter mentioned working with the Pinks in a recent interview.)

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