BLACKPINK debuted 5 years ago in 2016. Since then, they’ve only had one full-length studio album that’s appropriately titled “The Album”. (They technically have two full-length albums, but the other album is just a compilation of their previously released songs). Their portfolio also includes 3 EPs and song collaborations with Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga, Cardi B and Selena Gomez. Jennie had her solo debut in 2018, and next in line for her solo debut this year is Rosé.
So far, we only have a teaser for Rosé’s song “Gone”:
“Gone” has a much more simple instrumental sound than BLACKPINK’s songs “Stay” and “Whistle”. Unlike most of BLACKPINK’s songs, the individual guitar plucking in “Gone” mainly serves to provide a beat without too much background noise, allowing Rosé’s voice to take the front and center stage.
Rosé’s voice is very distinguishable not just among the other BLACKPINK singers, but also amongst other singers in the K-pop industry. So to hear her raw voice in “Gone” really makes it easier for listeners to be captivated by the uniqueness of her raspy singing (but, of course, with edits to have that “pop” sound effect).
There’s not much vocal range to this song, and there’s probably a good reason why. No, it’s not because of Rosé’s trained vocal range to suit BLACKPINK’s songs. Rather, the song may just be the song that BLACKPINK will sing together as a group before their disbandment.
Despite the criticisms that I and other people have had on the health of Rosé’s voice, I now think that her vocal abilities shouldn’t be judged too harshly. For someone that has to work within certain limits to allow her groupmates to have a fair share under the spotlight, her voice still manages to shine.
It’s not impossible for Rosé to transition back to the ballad voice that she had during her trainee days in G-Dragon’s song “Without You”.
2NE1 has had many ballad and vocally expressive song genres like jazz. Despite how the group’s members worked with limited vocal abilities to fit in with most of their pop/hip-hop songs, they still managed to shape their voice for songs with not-as-heavy pop sounds and more focus on vocals.
Long after 2nE1’s disbandment, former members Minzy and Bom were able to express much better vocal technique and sounds in their solo songs “Lovely” and “Spring”.
Minzy and Bom, in my opinion, seem to have much weaker vocals compared to Rosé. Yet, they seem to have demonstrated growth as singers in their solo careers.
I believe Rosé still has the chance to break out of the pop sound that YG Entertainment and Teddy Park molded her into. “Gone” is a great start for Rosé to transition into singing ballads because of how the song only requires her to sing in a low soft palate.
Somewhere out there, there’s an independent entertainment company that cares about Rosé’s voice. There are singing voice therapists that don’t necessarily “fix” damaged vocals, but rather help singers exercise their vocals to expand their range of comfortability. I really do hope that Rosé is able to find an excellent vocal coach. I know how the (K-drama) ballad songs in Korea often don’t showcase much vocal abilities. Plus, there may be a ton of vocal coaches who may not offer training for Rosé to improve simply because her voice already has a unique sound to it.
This may be a bit farfetched, but I personally think that IU or her vocal coach is suitable for Rosé. IU has a pleasant vibrato, and a lot of stability and range to her voice. She’s also known for her ballad and “light poppy” songs. I’m not saying that Rosé should sound like IU, or pick up the same vocal techniques. I just think that because the music industry is so oversaturated with pop-edited voices, it’d be beneficial for Rosé to at least connect with IU or someone like her. It’s kinda possible for IU to train Rosé because I’ve seen BoA Kwon act as a vocal coach for trainees on a show.
I’ve talked about Rosé’s voice in an old blogpost (“Rosé’s voice sounds like it’s getting progressively worse.”), and that blogpost was mentioned in a Reddit post written by someone else (“I don’t even know what Rosé is doing in the kpop industry. She looks so out of place.”). The opinions expressed in both posts don’t totally reflect the opinions we have today since our thoughts can change over time.
Thank you for checking out this blogpost. I hope all goes well for Rosé.
MCTTAN 