i haven’t used this blog in forever lmao. but listened to jennie’s album and wanted to express how much i love to see her win. she was everyone’s punching bag (even her own damn fandom) since hiatus, that everyone forgot that she was THE it girl. the album is unapologetically confident, but it is not arrogant or flashy. we learn that her strength comes from her loyalty to her loved ones and this discipline for self-introspection.
to me, it was a solid 8/10. my only criticisms is that lyrically, it is a bit weaker compared to the heavy focus on instrumentals and creating a cohesive sonic sound. i hope with the success, should jnk2 come, she’s dedicated a writer’s camp because i would love to hear more what she has to say, and be in a room of experienced writers that could put that push on it. she very much stated that this was her introduction to sound production, but her second verse in ‘like JENNIE’ really shows the cleverness of being in a room with both english and korean writers that get her vision. the songs that she didn’t have a writing credit on with the exception of jane (start a war, handlebars, love hangover, and filter) were sonically good fillers, but weren’t the highlights of the album. her zane lowe interview did show that her introversion does create a block for her expressing herself deeper.
nonetheless, may i say that the visual marketing for the album really pulls it altogether. i think people underestimate how aesthetics do play into how an album is perceived because its art. people want imagery that matches the body of work, not just a nice portrait that can be a throwaway instagram post (personally, new artists just struggle with this because it’s an image that’s going to be plastered everywhere that they want to look nice). but the red symbolism in the opening curtains, the album wig, the field of flowers, etc — it’s strong, passionate, and a warning as much as it a symbol of love. it was an excellent choice for the themes of her album.
