Review | Rosie, debut album of Blackpink’s Rosé full of songs about heartache, is rich in feelings

Across 12 songs, Rosé breaks down the tribulations of lost love. While it is easy to empathise with, some may miss Blackpink’s upbeat tempo

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Across 12 songs on her debut album Rosie (detail from the cover pictured), Rosé breaks down the tribulations of lost love. Photo: Atlantic Records via AP

Published: 10:46am, 5 Dec 2024Updated: 12:31pm, 5 Dec 2024

Rosé, the nightingale of the popular Korean girl group Blackpink, has flown the nest and launched her first solo album, Rosie.

She is the first of the four to release a full-length solo record, and in English at that. Members Jisoo, Lisa and Jennie have previously released singles, and Lisa is gearing up for her own studio album in 2025.

Across Rosie, titled after Rosé’s nickname to communicate a kind of personal intimacy, the singer goes to great lengths to detach herself sonically from her band.

Unlike Blackpink’s high-energy electropop output, Rosé’s solo material is that of a coffee-house dweller with a sideline in romantic drama. But do not expect finger-plucked acoustic guitar balladry exclusively – Rosie is reserved in some moments, full of life in others.

The album starts off chipper, with the soaring piano ballad “Number One Girl”, the cool synth-pop track “Two Years”, the dynamic, catchy Bruno Mars collaboration “APT”, and the contemporary, Taylor Swift-indebted pop of “Toxic Till the End”.