Concert Review: Blackpink dazzle but they need more songs of their own

SINGAPORE -For now, South Korean girl group Blackpink is gold.

Their song, Ddu-Du Ddu-Du (2018), was one of the most-viewed music videos for any K-pop group, with 665 million views, and they are slated to perform at California's music festival Coachella later this year. And they showed why at their first concert in Singapore on Friday night (Feb 15).

Performing to a sold-out 9,500-strong crowd at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, the four members - Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa and Rose - were exuberant, charming and visually stunning onstage.

Kicking off their show with the dance-heavy fan favourites Ddu-Du Ddu-Du and Forever Young (both 2018), they performed all nine of their original songs as well as Jennie's solo track - titled, without irony, Solo (2018) - and a tie-up track with British pop singer Dua Lipa called Kiss And Make Up (2018).

Their energy was infectious enough that even a casual listener like me felt a creeping urge to bob along to the music. I walked out of the show feeling I had a solid grasp of the group's performing chops.

Unfortunately, the same could not be said for their music. It is a shame that an outfit more than two years old has only one full album with nine songs.

Groups which debuted around the same time have easily chalked up over 20 songs so it is baffling that one with as much traction as Blackpink has not stepped up the releases. Watching a concert - and this is only one stop in a world tour that includes Europe and the United States - with such limited repertoire feels like starting a movie but not finishing it.

In every song you catch a glimpse of what the group is capable of in both ability and musical style but there is just not enough for a fully satisfying experience.

Stay (2016), a folksy pop song that was my favourite, showed what the members, in particular its vocalists, can do with a mid-tempo vocal-heavy, instrumental-based song and built up anticipation for what they might be able to do with a traditional ballad or even a laidback, soulful track.

Similarly, Jennie and Lisa, the group's rappers, show promise in Playing With Fire and Whistle (both 2016) that they can handle hard-hitting raps but an unapologetic, no-holds-barred diss track has yet to materialise.

But things can only look up.

Mid-way through the set, each member got some alone time in the spotlight and showed what she is capable of - Jennie with Solo, Jisoo with Clarity (2012) by Russian-German producer Zedd, Rose a mash-up with Beatles' Let It Be, Park Bom's You And I and Taeyang's Only Look At Me, and Lisa a dance solo.

While the covers were enjoyable, at this juncture in their career, the group and its individual members need more original songs tailor-made for them to establish a strong musical identity.

Hopefully they will return to Singapore one day with a fuller stable of songs. But until then, Blackpink, with their stage presence, spirited performances and beautiful looks still showed why they can sell out arenas around the world.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.