240830 The new era of LISA | Rolling Stone Spain

**The new era of LISA**

The world star talks exclusively with ROLLING STONE Spain about her return with ‘Rockstar’, her collaboration with Rosalía, what excites her most about her new stage as an artist and more.

‘Rockstar’ is a huge comeback for me,” says LISA in conversation with ROLLING STONE Spain. The world-renowned singer, rapper, dancer and fashion icon has taken a very important step in her solo career.

‘Rockstar’ arrived in June as her first release since 2021 and her first solo single released under the new partnership of her management company LLOUD Co. (which she founded to “present its vision of music and entertainment”) and RCA Records. LISA advanced a single a few days earlier on her social networks, inaugurating her TikTok account, which set a Guinness Record by getting 1 million followers in 2 hours and 18 minutes.

“The last time I released a song was a few years ago,” says LISA. “I wanted to find a great sound, create visuals or a choreography that was iconic, that’s what I was looking for.” The song was produced by Ryan Tedder and Sam Homaee.

It’s an energetic pop song that shows the versatility of the BLACKPINK member. “I wanted to find a sticky beat, something that was easy for people to remember, that they identified it as a LISA song, and it turned out very well, people love ‘Rockstar’, or so I think [laughs]. It’s easy for people to sing ‘I’m a rockstar’, the phrase stays in your head,” says the artist.

The idea of the rock star has clearly evolved over time. In 2024 rockstar is no longer exclusively a man with a guitar and a life of excesses, the idea goes far beyond that. For LISA, a rock star in 2024 “is a person known globally and who has a unique style, someone who has confidence and is ready to show it to the world.”

The video shows LISA taking the streets of Bangkok. The clip directed by Henry Schofield and choreographed by Sean Bankhead has references to Thai culture and authentic life in LISA’s native country. “It made me very happy to have the opportunity to record in my country,” she reflects. “I don’t like to show my culture in a forced way, I like it naturally, it’s in my blood, so if I have the opportunity to show it to my audience, I will. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

More recently, LISA released a song that shook the world for the collaboration that accompanies it. The artist recruited Rosalía to create ‘New Woman’. “I’ve always been a big fan of Rosalía,” she says. “I love her performances, her style, I love it. I had that incredible track and I thought I would love for her to join. I contacted her and luckily she accepted immediately. The process was very easy, because we were both excited and wanted to do something big and iconic.”

“On the set, the chemistry was there. And her part is in Spanish, so we created a very unique collaboration, I am very proud of ‘New Woman’ and I think people liked it a lot too,” she adds.

LISA is one of the biggest stars today, in addition to the undeniable success of BLACKPINK, she has managed to break multiple records as a soloist worldwide with her singles ‘Lalisa’ and ‘Money’, both placed in the top 10 of the Billboard Global 200. ‘Money’ set a record as the song of a solo female K-pop artist who has remained the longest on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in the United States and in the U.K. Singles Chart. Last year, she set three Guinness Records for generating the most followers on Instagram as a K-pop artist, with 104 million followers today.

But do you feel pressured by this success? When asked, LISA answers: “I would be lying if I said that I don’t feel pressure or stress, of course I feel a lot of pressure, but I want to stay positive. I think the people around you are very important, you have to surround yourself with good people who keep you down to earth. I don’t want to be stuck in a moment for a long time, I want to keep moving and always maintain a positive vibe.”

BLACKPINK’s Born Pink tour, which included 66 concerts in 22 countries, reached tenth place in Billboard’s list of the 40 most successful tours of 2023, breaking the record for the most successful concert tour of a female group. Now, LISA is preparing to take the stage as a soloist, something that means a new challenge. “As you say, I used to be on stage with my girls, so it’s a challenge to introduce myself and feel the stage alone. But at the same time I am very excited and I want to show the world my own style. It’s a challenge, but I love it,” she reflects.

About her goals in terms of the sound of her project, LISA adds during the talk: “I want to find a sound that has a personality, that when they listen to a song they know that it is from LISA, I want to find that personal and easily recognizable style of my project.”

LISA will continue to conquer the world, taking the reins of her music, being a fashion icon and venturing as an actress in projects such as The White Lotus, among other things. To conclude, the world star tells us what excites her most about this new era:

“What excites me most about my new era as an artist is making my own decisions, having control of things, it’s stressful, but very exciting and fun.”