On March 9, 2025, a social media storm erupted surrounding BLACKPINK’s Jennie and Lisa, triggered by Pitchfork’s evaluation of their solo albums. The incident drew heightened scrutiny after Jennie’s manager, Jeremy Erlich, shared a tweet that many perceived to undermine Lisa’s recent work.
Jeremy Erlich, who previously held the role of Spotify’s Global Head of Music for five years before taking on Jennie’s management, retweeted a message from music critic Joshua Minsoo Kim. This action set off a wave of speculation among fans eager to interpret its implications.
In his tweet, Kim praised Jennie’s debut solo album, Ruby, lauding it as “not just the best album from a BLACKPINK soloist, but one of the best K-pop solo albums ever,”especially given its release on a non-Big 4 label. His enthusiastic remarks included:
“It’s actually crazy how good JENNIE’s Ruby is. It’s not just the best album from a BLACKPINK soloist, but one of the best albums from a K-pop soloist ever (esp on a non-Big 4 label). It makes sense though—production from Dem Jointz, Mike Will Made It, El Guincho… like c’mon.”
Although Kim’s commentary did not directly mention Lisa, fans swiftly interpreted it as a veiled critique regarding her album, Alter Ego, particularly considering Pitchfork rated it with a 5.2 out of 10. This led to intensified discussions surrounding perceived favoritism and rivalry within the group.
The situation escalated further as fans uncovered previous posts from Joshua Minsoo Kim that seemed to downplay Lisa’s contributions. Erlich’s retweet of Kim’s favorable opinion on Jennie, contrasting with Kim’s earlier comments on Lisa’s work, raised eyebrows and heightened the speculation regarding potential friction among BLACKPINK’s members.
Many fans took to social media to voice their concerns, with one user commenting on X:
“Don’t trust this man, he is a hypocritical Korean man,”a fan stated.
This led to sharp criticism directed at Joshua Minsoo Kim, with fans accusing him of casting ‘shade’ upon Lisa.
“Yeah, we know it’s good, but you only said this to fix your nonexistent career,”a comment read.
“This is Lisa shade,”another user expressed.
“Truly a clever tactic—striking indirectly. Manipulating the emotions of both fandoms while trying to wash your hands of it completely,”observed another fan.
On the flip side, some fans celebrated the merits of Ruby for its artistic versatility, opting not to criticize Alter Ego in the process of doing so.
“While I’m the biggest fan, I’m also the biggest critic of my favs. Ruby is really good. It’s cohesive, it has that spark. I felt we could’ve ended the album at FTS as the last few didn’t really appeal to me, but you can’t deny Jennie’s artistry & how this album is the embodiment of her soul,”shared a fan.
“Yes. I love Ruby. This album is so good. When you listen to this album you’ll know Jennie Ruby Jane,”wrote another supporter.
“I’m still listening to the whole album, nice work, I’m so proud of Jennie,”remarked a fan.
BLACKPINK’s Solo Successes: Alter Ego and Ruby
Both Jennie and Lisa made significant strides in their solo careers with the releases of Alter Ego and Ruby, respectively. Released on February 28, 2025, Alter Ego is a bold project in which Lisa delves into various aspects of her identity through 13 diverse tracks. Each song illustrates a different ‘alter ego’ of Lisa, named Sunni, Vixi, Roxi, Kiki, and Speedi.
Collaborating with prominent artists such as Grammy-winner Doja Cat, RAYE, Meghan Thee Stallion, Future, and Tyla, Alter Ego showcases Lisa’s ambition and versatility. The album was launched under her label, LLOUD, in partnership with RCA Records.
**Alter Ego** Tracklist:
- Born Again ft. Doja Cat & Raye
- ROCKSTAR
- elastigirl
- thunder
- NEW WOMAN ft. Rosalía
- FXCK UP THE WORLD ft. Future
- Rapunzel ft. Megan Thee Stallion
- Moonlit Floor
- when i’m with you ft. Tyla
- BADGRRRL
- lifestyle
- chill
- dream
- FXCK UP THE WORLD (vixi solo version)
- Rapunzel (kiki solo version)
On the other hand, Jennie’s album Ruby debuted on March 7, 2025, under her independent label, ODDATELIER, in collaboration with Columbia Records. This 15-track album features a range of collaborations with internationally celebrated artists, further showcasing Jennie’s artistic range.
Ruby Complete Tracklist:
- Intro: JANE (featuring FKJ)
- Like JENNIE
- Start a War
- Handlebars (featuring Dua Lipa)
- With the JE (Way Up)
- ExtraL (featuring Doechii)
- ZEN
- Damn Right
- F.T.S.
- Filter
- Seoul City
- Starlight
- Mantra
- Love Hangover (featuring Dominic Fike)
- Euphoria (featuring Kali Uchis)
Jennie’s collaborations with artists such as FKJ, Dua Lipa, Doechii, Dominic Fike, Childish Gambino, and Kali Uchis further enrich the album’s diversity.
In parallel, BLACKPINK has officially announced their second world tour, which is set to commence in mid-2025. This tour will reunite all four members—Jennie, Lisa, Jisoo, and Rosé—for the first time in over two years, following their last performance during the Born Pink world tour that concluded in September 2023.
The series of concerts will kick off on July 5 and 6, 2025, at Goyang Stadium in South Korea, before continuing to major venues such as SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, Soldier Field in Chicago, Rogers Stadium in Toronto, CitiField in New York, Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Ippodromo Snai La Maura in Milan, Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona, and culminating at Wembley Stadium in London.