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After a tough training at 14 in the K-pop academy of the powerful label YG Entertainment in Seoul, the Thai Lisa set out to conquer the world with her girl band Blackpink. The title “Bombayah” released in 2016 will propel them to the top of the charts with its vitamin-packed video viewed more than a billion and a half times on YouTube. The Blackpink phenomenon overflows South Korea to reach all of Southeast Asia, Japan, then the West. The group piles up records.
The sound is pure K-pop, the themes are plain, but the leader Lisa, gaining in age and profession, has applied herself to slipping in an extra Thai soul. Thus strengthening the audience and identification. The shares of YG Entertainment which regularly panic the Seoul Stock Exchange, however, stalled in the fall of 2023 when uncertainty hovered around the renewal of the contract of the four of Blackpink.
Soft power
This was arranged with a new five-year contract that created euphoria in the markets. The entire Korean entertainment industry benefited. Lisa, who is at the head of a large fortune, is generous to her home country. While she has officially become an ambassador for LVMH (owner of “Les Echos”), she is also, unofficially, one for Thailand.
Her strong-willed and positive image shines on a country that has often been in the news with darker facts. Her latest video clip shot in Bangkok’s Chinatown has boosted the neighborhood’s popularity phenomenally. As for the future, at 27, the young artist is not ruling anything out. After music and alongside her career as a fashion icon, cinema is beckoning her.
La Story is a podcast from Les Echos presented by Pierrick Fay. This episode was recorded in July 2024. Editor-in-chief: Clémence Lemaistre. Guest: Yann Rousseau (correspondent for Les Echos in Asia)). Director: Willy Ganne. Music: Théo Boulenger. Graphic identity: Upian. Photo: Emma McIntyre/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP. Sounds: 07 Show Korean Dance Fever, Blackpink “Boombayah” (2016), Blackpink “Ddu-du Ddu-du” (2018), France 2, Lisa “Rockstar” (2024).
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