Jennie is one of those artists who could not need less of an introduction from me, official random girl on the internet, if she actually tried. She doesn’t even need me to say her last name. But, just in case, Jennie Kim debuted as one of four members of BLACKPINK with Rosé, Lisa, and Jisoo in 2016. Since then, she’s made her acting debut, become the face of a dozen brands, and of course, debuted as a soloist. And she’s not even 30 yet.

Here are my credentials: So, if you’ve been around on this blog for a while, you’ll know that my kpop journey started with BLACKPINK, all the way back in 2019. So, despite my interest in their music having waned over the years as I discovered other groups that fit my style better (read about that here), the girls themselves still have—and likely always will have—a special place in my heart. I started covering their solo work with a review of Rosé when her album came out in 2024 and then Lisa, so now I figured it was Jennie’s turn. Let’s get into it!

Single #1: SOLO

As mentioned, I became a BLACKPINK fan in 2019, when this song had basically just come out, and was still utterly inescapable. I didn’t think I’d feel so nostalgic at a song that’s not really that old in the grand scheme of things, but the moment I heard the whistling hook, all the words came back to me. Looking back, so much of its structure—the instrumental chorus, the anti-drop, the I’m-so-cool lyrics, etc—is of its time, the beginning of Kpop’s girl crush era.

But, putting aside my nostalgia—and please, do not show up at my door with pitchforks—I’d be lying if I said that the song wasn’t overhyped. Like, it’s fine. It’s not a bad song at all, and trust me when I say I can and will call a song bad when it is. But so much of it is carried on the strength of Jennie’s performance, and that’s always a shaky balance. That being said, I’ll always sing along when it comes up.

Single #2: One Of The Girls

Let me preface this paragraph by saying, yes, The Idol, which One Of The Girls was recorded for, is terrible. I watched (pirated because Abel Tesfeye will not be getting any of my money) half of one episode and was so disgusted that I considered not listening to his music again. The only reason I’m covering it is because it was promoted so heavily and is one of only two music releases made by Jennie between 2018 and 2024. She has a total of less than twenty songs; if I wanted to make this long enough, I didn’t have much of a choice.

So, onto the song itself. Jennie’s voice in One Of The Girls feels a bit otherworldly, like you’re listening to it through a screen, or like she’s singing hazily on purpose. With the added context of the show, the lyrics make me incredibly uncomfortable (“I love when you’re submissive // you love it when I break skin” vs “Tear me down, snuff me out // and I’m screamin’ out.”) No. Just no. Especially given that It’d be one thing if Jennie wrote this song herself, but she didn’t; The Weeknd did. This whole thing gives me a terrible taste in my mouth, and I will never be listening to it again. Next!

Single #3: You & Me

There’s really nowhere to go but up after One Of The Girls, and You & Me is definitely a better song. And that’s about all I can say. The song is…fine. Aggressively fine. The beat are alright and the hook is good, but the song just doesn’t pull me in. I think my biggest issue is that You & Me carries itself like it’s making some big statement, in the way that Solo does, and it just isn’t. Nothing drives me crazier than laziness, and laziness is written all over this song. (Quite literally, I have never seen more basic lyrics in my life). The best part, I think, is the final bridge / dance breakdown in the Coachella version, which manages to bring some interest in, but it comes a bit too late.

Single #4: MANTRA

I admit it: Mantra is catchy as all hell. I too am guilty of shaking my shoulders to the main hook. I too am guilty of mumbling “this that pretty girl mantra” to myself at random parts of my day. But let’s be honest with ourselves here. The song is a who’s who of buzzwords that make absolutely no sense together. (“My clothes are pajamas, straight from the cold plunge, daytime baddie use her mind”) and the vague girl power that doesn’t go anyway. Great that you “defend her” and “don’t let her catch no strays” and “swerve off all of the creeps”; where was that energy when you were part of The Idol? Great that you’re apparently accepting of queerness when it’s sexy (“Make you wanna swing both ways”) but say nothing more substantive. Great.

And the whole thing makes me even more annoyed because it had the potential to be really good. With a good writer and an even better editor, I think it could be a genuine girl power anthem. But it’s not.

Single #5: Love Hangover

Love Hangover is a return back to the hazy, almost-drunk sound of One Of The Girls, but the longer the song went on, though, the more it wormed its way into my heart. It not only has better lyrics, but also a solid underlying beat. I have no idea why Dominic Fike had to be here; just to call his lover a bitch and talk about how he likes seeing her naked but thinks her jokes are terrible? Seriously? This song has some genuinely strong, solid parts. The call me back repetition at the end is good, and would’ve made a solid hook, the vocalizations are great, and the music video is hilarious. It’s shot like an honest-to-god movie, with pitch-perfect comedic timing, and even made me like the song more. But the song itself is just…eh.

Single #6: ExtraL

ExtraL marks Jennie’s first collab with a woman, so I was excited. I’m not personally a fan of Doechii’s music, but I think she’s very talented. It’s much more like Mantra than Love Hangover, with a chugging beat and an EDM sound underlying it, which I think work pretty well. And despite the lyrics being a bit lackluster, the chorus is my favorite of her songs so far.

Yet again, though, we’re vaguely signaling at girl power with nothing to back it up. It’s all well and good to say “fuck the rules” but the truth is that Jennie isn’t. She’s very much playing by them. ExtraL may claim it’s encouraging women to embrace their power but the only women this song talks about are the ones singing it. I never understand how songs about their singers / performers being singular and one of a kind and better than everyone else are supposed to empower other women. Compare this to EVERGLOW’s Salute (“girls, all over the world, come and dance with me tonight”), or, for a more recent example, XG’s Mascara (“Baby girl, don’t you ever be wasting your good energy…he ain’t even worth it. You better fix your crown.”). I have mixed thoughts on both of those groups but these songs are good examples of how to make this sound work. This song is not.

Album #1: Ruby

I know we, the kpop reviewer community, complain a lot about how short songs are, but Like Jennie is truly on another level. 2:07 is not a song. It’s a TikTok sound. Many kpop groups have intros longer than this. Dreamcatcher. The Kingdom. ATEEZ. Etc. Like Jennie is Mantra the sequel, basically, so I’ll spare you my ramblings. We get it. Jennie’s cool. She’s rich. She’s better than us. She doesn’t need to say her name fifty-four times (yes I counted; yes I am that petty) to tell us who she is. I will say, I do appreciate that Jennie is one of the main writers on this track and I appreciate that there’s Korean lyrics in it; I’m glad that at least, she’s making the music she actually wants to make, even if I don’t like it.

Ruby is Jennie’s first stab at anything besides a single, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. The kind of writing that goes into promotion and hits isn’t the same as making a b-side or album track or a cohesive piece all in all. And mostly, I thought it was solid. While I criticized the hazy sound in One Of Your Girls and Love Hangover, I enjoyed it for the most part in these b-sides, especially Start A War and F.T.S., which were probably my favorite. Besides that, though, I also liked the synthiness of Starlight, the solid pop sound of Handlebars (which features Dua Lipa), and the sincere vulnerability in Twin, a song to a lost friend that genuinely made me tear up.

Despite all my criticism, I do want to say that I appreciate that Jennie’s album is absolutely an album. It’s not eight tracks (cough cough BP) , it’s fifteen, and does a good job showing different sides of Jennie.

Verdict: TL;DR

I’m glad I did this. No, no, seriously, I mean it. While Jennie’s music might not have been for me, I’m really happy that she’s achieving so much success. While editing this review, I watched Jennie’s appearances on Chicken Shop Date and Hot Ones, and her interview with Zane Lowe. I had a great time catching up with what she’s been doing and seeing how much more confident she is now than when I first started standing BLACKPINK.

My Top 5 songs were F.T.S., Twin, Starlight, Start A War, and Solo, with Handlebars as an honorable mention. With as negative as I’ve been so far, you probably won’t be surprised to hear that Jennie gets a 7 out of 10 from me. I know. I know. Pitchforks, burning torches, the whole thing. I’m sorry. I won’t repeat myself too much (editor laughs in the background), but let me summarize. As much as I’ve criticized Lisa’s work, I can at least acknowledge the amount of personality and dedication that she always shows. Jennie’s songs are just too watered down to make the same impact. They exemplify almost everything I dislike about BLACKPINK’s later music. The posturing. The AAVE. The misused buzz words. The vague girlpower signaling. So on and so forth. So, I’m sorry, Jennie. I know there’s absolutely no chance she’s reading this but I still wanted to put that out there.

Next time, we’re onto a male soloist. Tschüss!