K-pop girl group Blackpink has finally signed a new contract with YG Entertainment.
The news was revealed in a regulatory filing by the company on Wednesday, sending its KOSDAQ-listed shares up 26% to KRW 60,700 by midday.
“The board of directors has made a decision to extend the contracts of the four members of Blackpink,” YG said in the filing.
In a press statement, the company said that Blackpink is planning a new album and a world tour. “We are excited to continue our relationship with Blackpink,” YG founder Yang Hyun Suk said in the statement. “Blackpink will continue to do their best to shine even brighter in the global music market as an artist who represents not only our company but also K-pop. [And we send our unwavering support and faith to [fans]”.
The news comes after months of speculation that the four-piece – Jisoo (real name Kim Ji-soo), Lisa (Lalisa Manobal), Jennie (Kim Jennie) and Rose (Roseanne Park) – would take their acts elsewhere. Blackpink’s previous contracts with YG expired in August.
Variety understands that the four members’ individual contracts are still being negotiated.
Blackpink was formed under YG in 2016, but as the quartet reached new levels of global recognition and popularity, there was speculation that the old seven-year deal would need to be significantly renegotiated in the artists’ favour. Blackpink’s recent world tour included 66 performances in 34 cities and was seen by 2.1 million people, according to YG.
In April, Blackpink made history with their second album ‘Born Pink’, becoming the first album by an all-female group to reach number one since Danity Kane’s ‘Welcome to the Dollhouse’ in 2008.
That same month, Variety praised Blackpink’s performance at Coachella. “It’s clear from the stellar show that the group is not only fully formed and confident, it’s totally in charge. The four members of Blackpink – Jennie Kim, Lisa, Rose and Jisoo – along with a cadre of dancers and a crack band, blasted through songs like “How You Like That” and “Tally” (from 2022’s chart-topping “Born Pink”) with choreography meticulously timed to make the most of the stage’s massive video screens, and routines and references that evoked past pop heroines like Lady Gaga and Janet Jackson,” Variety said in a concert review.
