Explaining BLACKPINK’s contract status: what are they doing with YG Entertainment and what are they not?

The contractual situation between all four members of the K-Pop group BLACKPINK and their agency, YG Entertainment, was one of the biggest talking points of 2023 from the K-Pop world, with the “will they/won’t they” nature of resigning with their original agency despite their rise on the global music scene taking precedence over the last few months. 

Though YG Entertainment triumphantly announced that Lisa, Rosé, Jisoo and Jennie had re-signed with the agency as BLACKPINK, it does indeed now come with a caveat, with the agency explaining to South Korean news outlet Xsportsnews that the four members of the K-pop girl group would not be renewing their individual contracts with the agency.

“We have agreed not to proceed with additional contracts for [the members’] individual activities. We will do our utmost to support BLACKPINK’s activities, and we will cheer on the members’ individual activities with warm hearts,” YG Entertainment stated (translation credit: Soompi).

The news of a compromise shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, with members of the group having been spotted talking to music industry insiders including Rosé spotted having lunch with the CEO of Columbia Music, Ron Petty. Columbia currently distributes BLACKPINK internationally but was rumoured to be thinking of making an offer during the BLACKPINK/YG Entertainment contract saga.

Recently, Jennie announced the launch of her own label, Odd Atelier (OA), and shared that she established the company in November 2023. Her goal for OA is to create one-of-a-kind and inventive creations that stand out from the norm, in a similar move to Super Junior member Kyuhyun and his solo efforts being handled by Antenna Music. 

As of writing, no news on whether the other three members will develop their own agencies/labels to manage their solo careers or if they will indeed sign up with another label - perhaps a betting person might make a New Year’s punt on Rosé joining Columbia Records?