Jennie - "Ruby"

Still overproduced, but less of a mess

The third Blackpink member to drop a solo LP since December of last year is Jennie. I missed Rose’s album last year (because I was already swamped), but I did catch Lisa’s Alter Ego, though it didn’t do much whelming.

Jennie is one of the two Korean-born members of Blackpink, but she spent a large portion of her youth and adolescence attending schools in New Zealand, and was heavily interested in pursuing ballet for a time. But she also became a fan of K-Pop during her time in Auckland, especially the acts in the YG Entertainment stable.

So when her mother talked about moving her to Florida in 2010 (when she was 14), in the US, to further her education and give her a chance to be a lawyer or teacher, Jennie told them she wasn’t interested in that. They listened to her and supported her, moving her home to South Korea.

Later that same year, she auditioned for YG Entertainment and joined the label as a trainee. Over the next several years, like Lisa, Jennie was educated and trained for stardom as the label’s marketing department teased her existence and found compelling songs and videos to include her in. Then, of course, she was revealed as a member of Blackpink when the group was unveiled in 2016.

At first glance, Jennie’s debut solo album looks like standard high-profile pop fare: a list of short tracks with high-profile featured artists. Dua Lipa is here, as is Doechii, and even Childish Gambino makes an appearance. There are a couple of others I don’t recognize: Dominic Fike and Kali Uchis.

And when I say short, I mean it. No track hits the four minute mark, and the whole 15-track album runs for 41 minutes; if you cut the intro track, it’s 40 minutes for 14 songs, averaging under three minutes each.

But most of these songs kinda slap, starting with the first song after the intro, “Like Jennie”. Jennie is both a singer and rapper, and kills it on both fronts. Her singing voice has this great, soulful quality (best demonstrated in “Seoul City”, ironically), and she can bring serious power when she needs to. And she’s developed a mastery of rhythm and meter, so her rapped sections flow incredibly smoothly (opener “Like Jennie” is the best track for this, as it’s the only song where she switches fluidly between English and Korean).

Some songs, especially the more upbeat or rap-centric tracks, manage to mask the production a bit more, so the fact that Ruby is overproduced only sticks out in a couple of tracks, which is nice. One of those is “Start a War”, the third track on the album. This song made a playlist that I highlighted in my Lady Gaga review — it uses the same common melody, and is the second song on the playlist right after the offending Gaga song.

On the bright side, “Start a War” is the better of the two songs.

Overall, the album is a clear step up from Lisa’s effort, with solid songs scattered throughout, and a smaller proportion of moments that feel disgustingly gaudy. Ruby is still not remotely genuine or authentic in any way, though. It’s just a collection of good to great songs; the highlight here is Jennie’s clear talent. The only feature who seems to have any capacity to match her is Doechii; the others are all overpowered.

I recommend a listen through for any pop or pop-hop fans. You might love it, or you might want to just grab some songs for playlists. It’s not bad.

Rating: Green