JENNIE of BLACKPINK Sparkles on Debut Solo Album ‘Ruby’: Stream It Now
The star is the final of the band's members to release a solo set amid their hiatus.
Jennie photographed on Oct. 25, 2024, in Seoul.
The BLACKPINK solo set quadfecta is now complete, with JENNIE releasing her debut one-woman album, Ruby, Friday (March 7).
The 15-track LP makes JENNIE the final member of her girl group to drop a solo project amid BLACKPINK’s ongoing break, following ROSÉ’s Rosie, JISOO’s AMORTAGE and LISA’s Alter Ego. In addition to previously released singles “Mantra,” “Love Hangover” featuring Dominic Fike and “ExtraL” with Doechii, the album also contains the tracks “Like JENNIE,” “Start a War,” “With the IE (Way Up),” “ZEN,” “F.T.S.,” “Filter,” “Seoul City,” “Starlight” and “Twin.”
Plus, Ruby includes a number of star-studded collaborations, from the FKJ-assisted “Intro” to “Handlebars” featuring Dua Lipa and “Damn Right” with Childish Gambino and Kali Uchis.
The release of Ruby comes about seven years after JENNIE first made her solo debut in 2018 with the aptly titled single “SOLO.” The South Korean star didn’t follow the track up until 2023 with her version of “One of the Girls” from The Weeknd’s HBO show, The Idol, in which she also starred.
JENNIE has long been working toward a solo album, with the performer opening up about how she “struggled a lot in the beginning” of the creative process in her January Billboard cover story. “A few months, I would say, was just me throwing myself out there, walking into rooms filled with new people,” she continued. “I just had to keep knocking on the door, like, ‘Is this it?’ ‘Is this it?’ and then eventually, we got to a point where I found a good group of people that I linked with, sonically and as friends.”
Now that all four of the BLACKPINK ladies have released their solo projects, the next step is for the band to reunite for a global tour kicking off in July. Dates for the trek were announced in February; around the same time, ROSÉ confirmed that the foursome also has new music in the works.
Of their upcoming reunion, JENNIE told Billboard in her cover interview, “I’ve missed the girls. I’ve missed doing tours with them. I miss our silly moments.”
“I’m excited to see what everyone brings,” she added at the time. “You know, everyone took their own journey [during] this time, and I’m excited to share that with the girls. I want to say it’s going to be the most powerful [versions] of ourselves that anyone has seen.”
Listen to Ruby below.
This article was originally published by Billboard U.S.
