Lalisa Manobal, better known as just “LISA” (all caps), doesn’t need any introduction to a k-pop fan, and certainly not by me. But here’s one anyway: she first got on most people’s radars when she debuted with k-pop giants BLACKPINK in 2016, and since then has done acting, singing, modeling, dancing, rapping, basically everything. She’s been releasing singles since 2021, but 2025 is when she’s releasing a full album.

Here are my credentials: So, full disclosure, I used to be a Blink. BLACKPINK were one of the first groups I got into when I became a k-pop fan, and though their music has somewhat lost me over the years, the members themselves hold a special place in my heart. I was a Rosé bias (see my review of her solo work here), but I had a soft spot for Lisa too, and so I’m honestly looking forward to this. I covered a couple songs of hers in the 4th Edition of my Solo Rankings, but I’m hoping to find some I missed just in time for her new album!

Single #1: Lalisa

It may be considered a bit of an eye-roll inducing move to debut with a song bearing your own name, but Lalisa is a bit of a different story. Being Lisa’s real name and not her stage name, it’s also an embrace of her Thai identity in a Korean song (see the picture above), which is both surprising and welcomed in an industry that can often stick to predefined formulas. And here’s where I have to say that the song itself very much does.

While I appreciate the ideas behind it, there’s no denying that the song is just so…predictable. It’s Blackpink’s post-How You Like That career to a T, and it doesn’t really show off her talents (besides the impressive pole dancing, kudos there). Like, we get it. It’s Lisa. She’s great. She’s beautiful. She’s talented. We know. We could look up her Wikipedia article and learn the exact same things about her without having to sit through this. Look, the song’s not unforgivable or anything. I’ve both heard and seen worse, and rest assured, we’ll get to that. I’m not going to throw a tantrum if it comes up on shuffle. But I’m not going to seek it out either.

Single #2: Money

Money is technically a b-side from the Lalisa single, but I wanted to give Lisa as much of a fair review as I could, and so I decided to cover it here. While I could appreciate Lalisa for what it was, even if it wasn’t for me, I’m afraid that my willingness doesn’t extend to this song. It’s even more cookie cutter than the first song, while going out of its way to convince you that it’s different, that it’s cooler, that it’s unique. And it’s not. By the time we got to the chorus I was already rolling my eyes. Again: we know Lisa has a lot of money. We get it. Moving on.

(And, side note: the box braids in the opening scene? Seriously? This was 2021. I knew this was wrong then and I was still in high school.)

Single #3: Rockstar

I hadn’t had a chance to listen to Rockstar until my quick review of Lisa’s singles, and oh boy. While I can appreciate some songs despite them not being for me, I barely made it halfway through this one without turning it off. It’s just hell on the ears, with practically no melodic moments whatsoever. We know Lisa’s a rapper—and a damn good one at that—but that doesn’t mean she has to just talk at the camera for three minutes. And what on earth was the line “Lisa can you teach me Japanese? I said ‘Hei, Hei’?” Who approved that? It would be one thing if Lisa herself was Japanese, but she isn’t, and so it’s there for absolutely no reason but to get people annoyed. And apparently it worked, if I’m any indication. Does this song deserve anywhere near this much brain power? No. Has it wormed its way in anyway? Oh, you bet.

After I listened to the song for my first review, funnily enough, I actually ended up learning the choreo for my kpop dance team, which gave me a whole new respect for her skills. It’s still, to this day, the most difficult one I’ve ever done; I only worked on a forty second section and it took me over three hours to even make it passable. There’s so many difficult minuscule movements masked by more obvious ones, and that tutting section where she makes a box with her hands while doing footwork was the bane of my existence for a week. So, credit where it’s due, here. Doesn’t mean I liked it any more though.

Single #4: New Woman

New Woman marks Lisa’s first high profile collaboration (of what will soon be many) with Latin Pop singer Rosalia. I was pleasantly surprised to see her rapping in Spanish, not English, like I’d expected, which I think made it feel much more like a meeting on equal footing. That being said, the tempo of it really doesn’t fit with the rest of the track. The song, even besides that, is strange and funky, and the music video only emphasizes it, looking like some bizarre combination of Willy Wonka and a Park Chan Wook movie. I can’t decide if I like it or not, but it’s definitely unique. I think that for me, the song is more of an experience or a statement to witness than something to enjoy relistening to, so I’ll put it in a similar category to Lalisa, but a bit higher for the creativity.

Single #5: Moonlit Floor

I was a bit wary of Moonlit Floor when I saw how short it was (barely two and a half minutes!), but I’m happy to say that Lisa surprised me. Besides being the first of her songs to be something other than an “I’m-cooler-than-you” track, it also feels more down to Earth and mature. Part of that is probably the live band in the performance video, but part of it is also that the song (and by extension, Lisa) knows exactly what it is: a relaxed, soothing pop song to be played in a pub with a guitar, a wink, and a smile, and not some grand statement. It’s good because, for once, it isn’t trying to pretend. It strips away the artifice that’s made up a lot of Lisa’s past songs and feels very true to her, and I hope it’s a sound she continues.

Single #6: Born Again

Born Again is another collaboration, this time with two people: Doja Cat and Raye. I had specific expectations for this song, off the heels of tracks like Lalisa and Rockstar, but I admit it; I was wrong. There are some similarities, sure, like the somewhat unnecessarily skimpy clothes and making faces at the cameras, but overall, the song is pretty great. It has a juggernaut of a chorus, for one, that just makes you feel like you’re strutting down a runway as the star of the show, and its light instrumental mixes with this ethereal background and gospel-esque vocals to create something that doesn’t only play at being grand, but actually is. It’s the first song of Lisa’s that I didn’t just tolerate or even like, but loved.

Album #1: Alter Ego

It took me a couple watches of FUTW to form an actual opinion of the song, I’m going to be honest, because the MV was such an insane collection of visuals that I couldn’t process them all at once: there’s the mental institution, there’s the supervillain–ing (is that a word), there’s the comic book animations mixed with live action, and so on and so forth. Here w’re introduced to “Vixi” the first of Lisa’s alter egos (more on that in a minute), who’s dressed in red leather and seems like she’s one minor inconvenience from, well, you know. But, as for the track itself, if I’m being charitable, it’s not for me. I absolutely like it more than Lalisa or Rockstar, that’s for sure; it’s a much more thought out vision and commits to its concept wholeheartedly. But it’s mostly sing-talk—very catchy sing-talk but still—and it’s a skip for me, sorry.

With this, finally comes Lisa’s long-awaited full album, so let’s dive right in. It’s centered around Lisa’s five alter egos, who each get a single: “Vixi” gets FUTW, “Kiki” gets Rapunzel, “Speedi” gets New Woman, “Sunni” gets Moonlit Floor, and “Roxi” gets Rockstar. It’s a really interesting concept that explores the idea of a performer’s personas in a way I haven’t seen before: the bad girl, the good girl, the confident woman, the girl in love, and the rockstar.

I confess that I like the idea of the album much more than I like the album itself. I winced at what feels like forced sexualization in Elastigirl (“it’s a metaphor for lifeeeee” earned a full eye roll) and the recurring overuse of sing talk. But there were things I enjoyed, like the melodic “make way, make way” hook from Thunder, the backing choir in Rapunzel, the excellent vocals of Dream, and the percussive, acoustic Chill, which was probably my hidden gem. I also far preferred New Woman as a b-side instead of a single, which is something that happens to me a lot in k-pop.

Verdict: TL;DR

I’m glad I did this! I can honestly say that I missed seeing Lisa on my screen, and like with my Rosé deep dive, it was really nice to take this walk down memory lane. I know that my commentary may have been harsh at times, but none of it is a reflection on Lisa as a person or on how talented she is. I watched a lot of random content of her, both on her experience of filming The White Lotus (which I’m excited to see when I have time!), her Billboard interview, and her Rolling Stone discussion with Tyla, a random combination but an eminently delightful one. All in all, I’m glad she’s back.

My Top 5 songs were Born Again, Kiss Me, Chill, Thunder, and New Woman, with Rapunzel as an honorable mention. Lisa gets a 7.75 out of 10 from me. I think that, overall, Lisa remains someone I enjoy more as a creator and a person than an artist. Her music tends not to be for me, but I’d say that’s mostly due to my own opinion and not because she doesn’t care or doesn’t put in the effort. She has a clear vision that she’s executing, and you could never accuse her of failing to execute it. It’s just that she hits a lot of the pet peeves I have when it comes to kpop: the raps out of left field, the grandness that leads nowhere, or the unnecessary sexualization, just to name a few, and so my enjoyment is a bit limited. That being said, I’ll keep an eye (and an ear) out. I have a feeling Lisa may surprise me once again.

Next time, we’re onto a boy group, that I’m very excited for! Tschüss!