Blackpink — the four-piece K-pop act comprised of Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie and Rose – are no longer working with YG Entertainment for their solo endeavors, the company announced in a press release on Friday.

The group will remain signed to YG Entertainment as an entity but the four women will pursue their solo careers outside of the agency. “We will do our utmost to support Blackpink’s activities, and we will cheer on the members’ individual activities with warm hearts,” read YG’s statement translated to English from Korean (via Soompi).

In a previous press statement regarding the group’s renewed contract, the company said that Blackpink plans a new album and a world tour and would “continue to do its best to shine even brighter in the global music market as an artist representing not only our company but also K-pop. […] And we send our unwavering support and faith to [fans].”

Blackpink was formed under YG in 2016, but as the quartet hit new levels of recognition and popularity worldwide there was speculation that their deal would need to be substantially renegotiated in the artists’ favor. Blackpink’s recent world tour included 66 performances in 34 cities and was watched by 2.1 million spectators, YG has reported.

Individually, all the members of Blackpink have expanded their presence in the global entertainment industry with solo musical projects. The most recent was Jisoo’s debut solo single bundle “Me,” while Jennie, who released her solo project back in 2018, freshly launched a new label and company called Odd Atelier (OA), and, earlier this year, made her acting debut in HBO’s “The Idol.”

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The members of Blackpink suddenly seem like they’re almost angling for the title of Queens of Christmas, as the holiday season has seen a flurry of three big announcements or releases — including Lisa choosing Christmas Eve to drop her cover of a Britney Spears holiday perennial, “My Only Wish (This Year).”

The group has big plans for the day after Christmas, too, with a virtual-reality concert showcase, “Blackpink: A VR Encore,” set to stream on Dec. 26.

The third piece of Blackpink news came earlier on Christmas Eve when the group member Jennie announced directly to fans that she would be launching her own label and company, OA, in the new year
Lisa is best known as Blackpink’s primary rapper and dancer, so her cover of Spears’ lone holiday song marked a vocal departure from her usual rapping persona.

“Christmas present for my Blinks… Have a wonderful holiday,” wrote Lisa on her Instagram account before dropping her Spears cover onto her YouTube channel, accompanied by a holiday-themed, romantic cinematic escapade shot in Paris.

The surprise cover revives a Spears song originally found on Jive Records’ 2000 all-label holiday album, “Platinum Christmas,” which additionally featured then-top label artists such as NSYNC, Santana, Christina Aguilera, Backstreet Boys and R. Kelly.

“My Only Wish (This Year)” is Lisa’s first solo work since 2021’s “Lalisa” album and that year’s non-LP single, “SG” with DJ Snake, Ozuna and Megan Thee Stallion. Earlier this year, Lisa was a featured guest on “Shoong!” from South Korean singer-songwriter and dancer Taeyang.

For fans wanting to see the full group in action, “Blackpink: A VR Encore” is set to air Dec. 26 at 5 p.m. PT on Meta Horizon Worlds and features the final show from Blackpink’s global 2023 tour in support of “Born Pink.”

The K-girl group dropped a trailer earlier this week for the VR special, which will viewable by owners of the special headsets, teased with the legend “Take a front row seat as Blackpink performs some of their biggest hits and unlock a limited-edition K-pop inspired emote! To get rewarded, set off a confetti balloon on the dance floor in Music Valley.”

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On December 6 KST, YG Entertainment, the agency of K-pop sensation BLACKPINK, made an announcement stating, “We have successfully reached an agreement within our board of directors regarding the signing of exclusive group contracts for all four members of BLACKPINK, our esteemed artists.”

BLACKPINK’s contract negotiations with YG Entertainment have been ongoing since their previous contracts expired in August. While the decision was made to continue group activities, individual contracts for each member have yet to be finalized. Notably, two members, including Lisa, have already chosen to part ways with YG Entertainment, while discussions with the remaining two members are still in progress.

BLACKPINK wrapped up their highly successful world tour, ‘Born Pink,’ in September. The tour drew an impressive 1.8 million attendees, generating cumulative sales nearing 300 billion won. Even without individual exclusive contracts in place, it is expected that YG Entertainment and each member will continue to reap substantial profits from BLACKPINK’s group activities.

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King Charles made BLACKPINK honorary Members of the Order of the British Empire on Tuesday. Rosé, Jennie Kim, Jisoo Kim and Lisa’s special recognition from His Majesty was part of a state visit from the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol. As part of the celebration, the K-pop group also received a tribute from the military band of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, who played a rendition of the BLACKPINK’s song ‘DDU-DU DDU-D’ outside Buckingham Palace.

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British and South Korean dignitaries are out in force this evening in their finest outfits for a Buckingham Palace state banquet. And among them is pop royalty in the form of K-pop girl band Blackpink who took their seats in the ballroom for the four-course dinner.

The band’s four members—Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie and Rosé—were among around 170 guests on the horseshoe table to which the King and President addressed their speeches before the meal. And they were even mentioned in the King’s speech as he praised them for using their huge profile to champion environmental concerns.

“It is especially inspiring to see Korea’s younger generation embrace the cause. I applaud Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa and Rosé, better known collectively as Blackpink, for their role in bringing the message of environmental sustainability to a global audience as Ambassadors for the U.K.’s Presidency of COP 26, and later as advocates for the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals,” the King said. “I can only admire how they can prioritise these vital issues, as well as being global superstars.”
The King’s speech referenced several aspects of Korean popular culture including Bong Joon-ho, Squid Game, and BTS.

Blackpink is believed to have traveled to the UK specially to attend the state banquet. In July, they made history as the first Korean band to headline a major UK festival when they played at the BST Hyde Park festival.

The King and Queen sat at the top table for tonight’s meal alongside the South Korean President, First Lady and Prince William and Kate. For the first time at a banquet, glasses on the table featured the cyphers of King Charles instead of Queen Elizabeth. The glassware is being gradually changed rather than replaced so today only the top table had the new glasses.

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Blackpink, the multinational female music act that is the biggest girl group in the Korean pop (K-pop) firmament, may finally be close to renewing its collective contract with YG Entertainment.

The news was widely reported in Korea on Monday and comes after months of speculation

that the four-piece act – Jisoo (real name Kim Ji-soo), Lisa (Lalisa Manobal), Jennie (Kim Jennie) and Rose (Roseanne Park) – would take their acts to another shop. Blackpink’s previous contracts with YG expired in August.

The Munhwa Ilbo (or Culture Daily) publication Monday claimed an exclusive with the information that Blackpink will re-up with YG, but the four individuals will not renew their exclusive contracts with the agency. It also added that two of the four have signed the new Blackpink-YG contract.

The information boosted YG’s KOSDAQ-listed shares by 3% on Monday morning. But the company put out a press statement saying that nothing is confirmed and that talks are ongoing.
Over the past months, the company has filed a succession of regulatory notices, saying much the same thing and trying to dampen speculation that it will lose its biggest single act and its biggest source of revenue. Its shares recorded two steep dips – of 9% and 13% — in September as rumors swirled.

Blackpink was formed under YG in 2016, but as the quartet hit new levels of recognition and popularity worldwide there has been speculation that the old seven-year deal would need to be substantially renegotiated in the artists’ favor. Blackpink’s recent world tour included 66 performances in 34 cities and was watched by 2.1 million spectators, YG has reported. They also headlined at Coachella in April.

There has also been speculation that the four band members are increasingly looking to develop their individual careers. The Munhwa Ilbo appears to echo this line of thinking. “Exclusive contracts between each member and YG Entertainment were not signed. In the future they plan to carry out individual activities and come together only for Blackpink activities,” it said.

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