Review | Ruby, debut solo studio album by Blackpink’s Jennie, is full of polished pleasures
From the empowering ‘Mantra’ and ‘ExtraL’ to the acoustic ‘Twin’ that rounds off the album, Ruby is a solid solo album from the K-pop singer
Seven years ago, global pop phenomenon Jennie became the first member of the K-pop girl group Blackpink to release solo music, with her song “Solo”.
On March 7, she became the latest to drop a debut solo studio album, the English-language Ruby. It is a kaleidoscope of different sounds for Jennie, full of incongruous, polished pleasures.
You had to believe her: she was not leaving her band, but a lacklustre relationship, an ex so innocuous they are barely a player in the song. “This time I’m only lookin’ at me, myself and I,” she sang, “I’ma do it on my own now.”
On Ruby, it is strongest on the singles “Mantra”, where Jennie cheerleads in a chant-along chorus: “Pretty girls don’t do drama ’less we wanna/It’ll be depending on the day” atop brassy production perfect for prime time commercial placement.