Cover graphic for the biography of Lisa (BLACKPINK)

BLACKPINK Lisa Biography: The Border Crosser

BLACKPINK
Lisa at the airport
Lisa departing from the airport, December 2023
Photo: 티비텐 (TV10) · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Places in this story

Buriram 1·4·7 Seoul 2·5 Bangkok 5·6·7 London 5 Paris 5 New York 6 Los Angeles 7

Close-up: Thailand

Buriram 1·4·7 Bangkok 5·6·7

Buriram — A town in northeastern Thailand.

Bangkok to Buriram: about 310 km in a straight line

Numbers are the chapters where each place appears. The dashed line is her move to Korea in 2011.

BLACKPINK Lisa Biography: The Border Crosser From a trainee from Buriram, Thailand, to an artist who crossed the borders of country, language, group and genre: the story of BLACKPINK's Lisa. Topics: BLACKPINK, .

Profile

Item Details
Stage name LISA
Born March 27, 1997, Buriram Province, Thailand
Nationality Thai
Affiliation BLACKPINK (group activities: YG Entertainment), LLOUD (solo activities)
Debut August 8, 2016
Main fields Singer, dancer, actor

Summary

Lisa is the Thai member of BLACKPINK. Born in Buriram in northeastern Thailand, she moved to Seoul at fourteen without knowing a word of Korean, and after debut she moved across stages in many countries, both with the group and on her own. Her first solo song set a Guinness World Record, and in 2024 she went independent with a label of her own. She has performed at the Oscars and at the opening ceremony of the World Cup in North America, and has brought the streets, ruins and greetings of her native Thailand into her songs. Her career is a record of crossing borders one by one: between countries and languages, between group and solo, and between kinds of stages.

Chapter 1. The Girl from Buriram

Lisa was born on March 27, 1997, in Buriram Province in northeastern Thailand.[1][2] The province is home to the ancient Phanom Rung temple.[3][4] She says she began learning to dance at around age five and entered a number of dance competitions as a child.[5] In an interview shortly before her debut, she also said she had performed as part of a dance team in Thailand.[6]

The turning point came in 2010. About 4,000 people applied to an audition YG Entertainment held in Thailand, and she was the only one who passed.[1][5] For a girl who was still thirteen, passing also meant she would have to leave Thailand. The first border she would cross was a national one.

Chapter 2. The Trainee Who Spoke No Korean (2011–2016)

In 2011, at fourteen, Lisa moved to South Korea and began life as a trainee.[1][7] In an unfamiliar country, the first thing that stood in her way was language. Looking back in an interview in her debut year, she said, “At first, I couldn’t speak any Korean at all.”[8]

Her trainee years lasted about five years. When YG first introduced her as a member of its new girl group in June 2016, the introduction noted that she was from Thailand and that she could speak Thai, Korean, English and Japanese.[9] The fourteen-year-old trainee who could not speak any Korean had, by the time of her debut, become someone who used four languages.

Chapter 3. Lisa of BLACKPINK (2016–2020)

On August 8, 2016, BLACKPINK debuted with the single album SQUARE ONE.[10] Its title track “Whistle” reached No. 1 on SBS’s Inkigayo just two weeks after debut.[11][12] Lisa, the only foreign member among the four, drew attention for her dancing from the pre-debut introductions onward.[6]

The group’s growth soon turned outward. “DDU-DU DDU-DU,” released in June 2018, entered the US Billboard Hot 100 at No. 55, the highest position at the time for a song by a K-pop girl group.[13][14] In October that year, YG announced a partnership with Interscope Records in the United States for BLACKPINK’s overseas activities.[15] In April 2019, “Kill This Love” reached No. 41 on the Hot 100,[16] and BLACKPINK became the first K-pop girl group to perform at the Coachella festival in the United States.[17][18]

During this period Lisa also broadened her work on Korean television. She appeared on the MBC variety show Real Men 300, which began in September 2018, taking on military training as a foreign member of the cast.[19][20]

2020 was the year BLACKPINK secured its place on the world stage. The music video for “How You Like That,” released in June, set five Guinness World Records, including 86.3 million views in 24 hours,[21] and the group’s first studio album THE ALBUM, released in October, reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200, the highest ever for a girl group.[22] Along the way the group also collaborated with American pop singers, working with Lady Gaga and Selena Gomez.[23][24]

That same year, Lisa’s own stage expanded into fashion. In July she was named an ambassador for the Italian jewelry brand Bulgari,[25][26] and in September a global ambassador for the French fashion house Celine. It was the first ambassador Celine had named since designer Hedi Slimane took the helm.[27][28] As an idol from Thailand became the face of European brands, the borders she crossed extended beyond music as well.

Chapter 4. Standing Alone (2021–2022)

In January 2021, Lisa returned as a dance mentor on Youth With You, the audition program of the Chinese video platform iQIYI, following her role in season 2.[29] The Thai idol who had debuted while learning Korean was now teaching dance to trainees in China.

On September 10 of that year, Lisa released her first solo single album, LALISA.[30] The music video for the title track “LALISA” drew 73.6 million views on YouTube in its first 24 hours, entering Guinness World Records as the most-viewed music video in 24 hours by a solo artist.[30][31]

In her first solo song, she put her homeland front and center. Lisa said that because Thailand is her home, she wanted to bring a Thai feel to the song, and that she included traditional Thai costumes and traditional dance moves in the music video;[32][33] the Phanom Rung temple of her native Buriram served as a motif for the video’s backdrop.[3][4] That she, having debuted with a Korean agency, set the stage for her first solo song with a ruin from her hometown of Buriram can be seen as a moment that showed the world the starting point of the borders she had crossed.

In August 2022, “LALISA” won Best K-Pop at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) in the United States, making her the first K-pop solo artist to take home a VMA trophy.[34][35] “MONEY,” another track on the same album, later became the first song by a K-pop solo artist to pass one billion streams on Spotify, earning another Guinness World Record in 2023.[36][37]

The group set new records too. BLACKPINK’s second studio album BORN PINK, released in September 2022, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It was the first time for a K-pop girl group, and the first No. 1 for any girl group in 14 years.[38][39] By this time Lisa, a member of the group, had become a singer whose name reached the top of the world’s charts both on her own and with the group.

Chapter 5. From Bangkok to Paris and London (2023)

2023 was a year in which Lisa moved back and forth between the stages of her homeland and the stages of the world. In January, BLACKPINK held a BORN PINK world tour concert in Bangkok. In April, they became the first K-pop act to headline the Coachella festival in the United States,[40][41] and in May they returned to Bangkok for encore concerts at Rajamangala National Stadium.[42][43] The world tour, which began in October 2022, closed in September 2023 at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, with a record of 66 shows in 34 cities and about 1.8 million attendees.[44][45]

From September 28 to 30, she gave five performances at the Crazy Horse cabaret in Paris.[46][47] Appearing at a Paris venue with a tradition entirely different from K-pop stages can be seen as a moment that showed her crossing the borders of genre as well.

In October, she was inducted into the Asian Hall of Fame in the United States as a “Cultural Icon.”[48][49] On November 22, together with the other BLACKPINK members, she received an honorary MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) from King Charles III at Buckingham Palace in London, in recognition of their work as advocates for the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26).[50][51] In December, her Instagram followers passed 100 million, making her the first K-pop artist to reach that number.[52][53]

By the end of the year, the paths of group and solo activity had been settled. YG announced in December that BLACKPINK had renewed its contract for group activities, and on December 29 it stated officially that it would not sign individual exclusive contracts with any of the four members.[54][55] BLACKPINK as a group would stay with YG, while each member would go her own way for solo work.

Chapter 6. In Her Own Name (2024–2025)

On February 8, 2024, Lisa announced the founding of her own label, LLOUD. She introduced it as “a platform to showcase my vision in music and entertainment.”[56][57] On April 11, it was announced that LLOUD had formed a partnership with RCA Records (part of Sony Music) in the United States.[58][59] Someone who had started out at fourteen as a trainee at an agency had, thirteen years later, become the owner of a company bearing her own name.

Her first song after going independent began once again in Thailand. The music video for “Rockstar,” released on June 28, 2024, was filmed on Yaowarat Road in Bangkok’s Chinatown.[60][61] The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. US chart and entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 70.[62][63] The response spread into Thai society as well. The Tourism Authority of Thailand mentioned walking routes around Yaowarat, which drew attention through the music video,[64][65] and then Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said, “I would like to thank Lisa for thinking of her motherland.”[66][67]

That year, Lisa’s stages spanned continents. In July she became a House Ambassador for Louis Vuitton.[68][69] In August she released “New Woman” with the Spanish singer Rosalía.[70] On September 11 (local time), she won her second Best K-Pop award at the MTV VMAs in the United States for “Rockstar,” closing her acceptance speech with the Thai greeting “khob khun ka” (thank you).[71][72] On September 28, she performed a solo set as a co-headliner at the Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central Park,[73][74] and in October she released “Moonlit Floor.”[75]

On February 28, 2025, Lisa released her first solo studio album, Alter Ego.[76] The album entered the US Billboard 200 at No. 7,[77][78] and the pre-released track “Born Again” reached No. 13 on the UK Official Singles Chart, becoming her first UK Top 40 song.[79][80] Explaining the album’s title, she said it began from the idea of putting many different styles into one album and simply calling it Alter Ego.[81]

That same month, Lisa crossed another border: acting. She appeared as Mook, a resort employee, in season 3 of the American HBO drama The White Lotus, which is set in Thailand and premiered on February 16.[82][83] After filming ended, she wrote, “I’m so proud to be able to share my culture and show the beauty of Thailand to the world.”[83][84] Her first role, in an American drama set in her native Thailand, can be seen as a moment when the two worlds she had passed through overlapped in a single work.

On March 2 (local time), she took the stage at the 97th Academy Awards in a tribute to the James Bond series and sang “Live and Let Die.” It was the first time a K-pop singer had performed on the Oscars stage.[85][86] In April she returned to Coachella, this time as a solo artist,[87] and in May she attended the Met Gala, the fashion event in New York, for the first time.[88][89]

While her solo work expanded, the group did not stand still. In July 2025, BLACKPINK released the new song “JUMP” and opened its DEADLINE world tour in Goyang.[90][91] In October, the Tourism Authority of Thailand announced that it had appointed Lisa as an “Amazing Thailand Ambassador.”[92][93] The girl who had left Thailand to become a trainee was now the face introducing Thailand to the world.

Chapter 7. Today (2026)

On February 27, 2026, BLACKPINK released its third mini album, DEADLINE.[91] In May, the four members of BLACKPINK attended the Met Gala together for the first time.[94][95] On June 12 (local time), Lisa took the stage at the opening ceremony of the World Cup in North America, held in Los Angeles, and sang “Goals,” a track from the tournament’s official album.[96][97]

In September, the story of where she began drew attention again. Her new single “SaWaDiKa,” released on September 4, took its title from the Thai greeting “sawasdee ka” and was filmed in Bangkok.[98][99] According to reports introducing the documentary Always Lalisa, released around the same time, she confided that since the age of fourteen she had lived without being able to express what she thought.[100][7]

Lisa is set to release her first EP, PRESS PLAY, on October 23.[98][99] In November she will hold the show Viva La Lisa at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The venue has described it as the first Las Vegas residency by a K-pop artist.[101][102]

The girl who learned to dance in Buriram crossed a national border without knowing Korean, debuted speaking four languages, and went on to cross borders from group to solo, from agency to her own company, and from music stages to the stages of acting and award ceremonies. Along the way, she brought the ruins, streets and greetings of her homeland onto her own stage. Lisa’s story as “a border crosser” is still going on.

At a Glance

Music (solo)

Year Title Release Notes
2021 LALISA First solo single album Music video: 73.6 million views in 24 hours (Guinness)
2021 “MONEY” LALISA track First K-pop solo song to reach 1 billion Spotify streams (Guinness)
2024 “Rockstar” Digital single Filmed on Yaowarat Road, Bangkok; No. 1 on Billboard Global Excl. US
2024 “New Woman” (feat. Rosalía) Digital single
2024 “Moonlit Floor” Digital single
2025 “Born Again” (feat. Doja Cat, RAYE) Pre-release from Alter Ego No. 13 on the UK Official Singles Chart
2025 Alter Ego First solo studio album No. 7 on the Billboard 200
2026 “SaWaDiKa” Digital single Filmed in Bangkok
2026 PRESS PLAY First EP Scheduled for release on October 23

Screen

Year Title Type Role
2018 Real Men 300 MBC variety Cast
2020–2021 Youth With You seasons 2–3 iQIYI audition program Dance mentor
2025 The White Lotus season 3 HBO drama Mook

Records and honors

Year Details
2021 “LALISA” music video: most viewed in 24 hours by a solo artist (Guinness)
2022 Best K-Pop at the MTV VMAs (first K-pop soloist to win)
2023 “MONEY”: first K-pop solo song to reach 1 billion Spotify streams (Guinness)
2023 Inducted into the Asian Hall of Fame (Cultural Icon)
2023 Honorary MBE (with the BLACKPINK members)
2023 100 million Instagram followers (first K-pop artist)
2024 Best K-Pop at the MTV VMAs (“Rockstar,” her second)
2025 Performance at the 97th Academy Awards (first K-pop singer)
2025 Tourism Authority of Thailand “Amazing Thailand Ambassador”
2026 Performance at the opening ceremony of the World Cup in North America

Sources

  1. Bangkok Post, Women of the Year 2022: Lalisa Manoban
  2. Newsis (Korean), Lisa tops K-pop in Instagram followers (2021-09-24)
  3. Bangkok Post, The LALISA music video and Phanom Rung (2021-09)
  4. Thai PBS (Thai), Phanom Rung in the LALISA music video
  5. Rolling Stone, Lisa cover interview (2022-05)
  6. TenAsia (Korean), BLACKPINK, three days to debut (2016-08-05)
  7. Sports Kyunghyang, Report on Lisa's remarks in her documentary (2026-09-06)
  8. TenAsia (Korean), Interview with BLACKPINK's Lisa (2016-11-05)
  9. Seoul Shinmun (Korean), YG reveals new girl group member Lisa (2016-06-29)
  10. Korea Herald, BLACKPINK's seventh debut anniversary (2023-08-08)
  11. TenAsia (Korean), BLACKPINK's first No. 1 on Inkigayo (2016-08-21)
  12. The Fact (Korean), BLACKPINK at No. 1 fourteen days after debut (2016-08-23)
  13. Billboard, BLACKPINK's "DDU-DU DDU-DU" enters the Hot 100 (2018-06)
  14. TenAsia (Korean), "DDU-DU DDU-DU" Billboard record (2018-07-05)
  15. Korea Times, YG–Interscope partnership (2018-10-23)
  16. Billboard, "Kill This Love" on the Hot 100 and Billboard 200 (2019-04)
  17. TIME, BLACKPINK to perform at Coachella (2019-01-03)
  18. UPI, BLACKPINK to perform at Coachella (2019-01-03)
  19. Asia Economy (Korean), Real Men 300 cast (2018-09-06)
  20. Seoul Shinmun (Korean), Real Men 300 (2018-09-16)
  21. Guinness World Records, "How You Like That" YouTube records (2020-06-30)
  22. Korea JoongAng Daily, THE ALBUM debuts at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 (2020-10-12)
  23. Billboard, Lady Gaga and BLACKPINK release "Sour Candy" (2020-05-28)
  24. Reuters (via Malay Mail), BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez's "Ice Cream" (2020-08-28)
  25. Kuki News (Korean), Lisa named Bulgari ambassador (2020-07-24)
  26. W Korea (Korean), Lisa named Bulgari ambassador (2020-07-28)
  27. Vogue Korea (Korean), Lisa named Celine global ambassador (2020-09-23)
  28. Hypebae, Lisa named Celine global ambassador (2020-09)
  29. Korea JoongAng Daily, Lisa returns as a dance mentor on Youth With You (2021-01-07)
  30. Guinness World Records, LALISA YouTube record (2021-10-08)
  31. iMBC Entertainment (Korean), 24-hour views of the LALISA music video
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  33. Vogue Singapore, The LALISA music video and Thai designers (2021-09)
  34. Guinness World Records, First K-pop solo winner at the MTV VMAs
  35. OSEN (Korean), Lisa's VMA win (2023-01-26)
  36. Guinness World Records, First K-pop solo track to reach 1 billion Spotify streams
  37. Korea JoongAng Daily, "MONEY" sets Guinness record for 1 billion Spotify streams (2023-10-19)
  38. Korea JoongAng Daily, BORN PINK No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (2022-09-26)
  39. Gulf News (IANS), BORN PINK No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (2022-09-27)
  40. Rolling Stone, Coachella 2023 headliners announced (2023-01-10)
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  42. Korea JoongAng Daily, BLACKPINK's Bangkok encore concerts
  43. Bangkok Post, BLACKPINK's Bangkok encore concerts (2023-05)
  44. Newsis (Korean), BORN PINK world tour wraps up (2023-09-17)
  45. Korea Herald, BORN PINK tour record
  46. AFP (via HKFP), Lisa's Crazy Horse performances and more (2023-11-03)
  47. Thai PBS World, Report on Lisa (2023-11-02)
  48. Asian Hall of Fame press release (PR Newswire) (Korean), 2023 inductees (2023-08-09)
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  50. Reuters (via Interaksyon), BLACKPINK receive honorary MBEs (2023-11-23)
  51. Sports Kyunghyang (Korean), BLACKPINK receive Order of the British Empire honors (2023-11-24)
  52. The Nation (via ANN), 100 million Instagram followers (2023-12-26)
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  54. Newsis (Korean), YG's official statement on BLACKPINK's individual contracts (2023-12-29)
  55. Vogue Korea (Korean), BLACKPINK's group renewal and solo activities (2023-12-29)
  56. Vogue Korea (Korean), Lisa founds LLOUD (2024-02-08)
  57. New Straits Times, Lisa sets up her own label (2024-02)
  58. Electronic Times (Korean), LLOUD–RCA partnership (2024-04-11)
  59. Malay Mail, Lisa signs with RCA Records (2024-04-12)
  60. TenAsia (Korean), Lisa releases "Rockstar" (2024-06-28)
  61. Vogue Korea (Korean), "Rockstar" filmed on Yaowarat Road (2024-07-04)
  62. Newsis (Korean), Lisa's "Rockstar" chart results (2024-08-27)
  63. Billboard Brasil (Portuguese), "Rockstar" No. 1 on Billboard Global (2024-07-11)
  64. Bangkok Post, "Rockstar" and Yaowarat's soft power (2024-07)
  65. Government Public Relations Department of Thailand, On "Rockstar" (2024-06-28)
  66. The Nation (via ANN), Prime Minister Srettha on Lisa (2024-07-01)
  67. Thai Government Portal, Government praises Lisa (2024-07-02)
  68. Marie Claire Korea (Korean), Lisa named Louis Vuitton ambassador (2024-07)
  69. Korea Herald (via ANN), Lisa named Louis Vuitton ambassador (2024-07-25)
  70. Korea JoongAng Daily, "New Woman" release announced (2024-08-07)
  71. Korea JoongAng Daily, 2024 MTV VMA wins (2024-09-12)
  72. Bangkok Post, Lisa's second VMA win (2024-09)
  73. Global Citizen press release, 2024 festival lineup (2024-07-09)
  74. Korea Times, Global Citizen Festival performance (2024-09-30)
  75. Korea Times, "Moonlit Floor" release announced (2024-09-30)
  76. Newsis (Korean), Lisa's studio album Alter Ego (2025-03-08)
  77. Korea Times, Alter Ego at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 (2025-03-11)
  78. NPR (via WAMC), Alter Ego enters the Billboard 200 (2025-03-12)
  79. Official Charts, "Born Again" on the UK Singles Chart
  80. Newsis (Korean), "Born Again" on the UK chart (2025-02-14)
  81. Grammy.com, The story of Alter Ego (2025-02-28)
  82. Vogue Korea (Korean), Lisa joins The White Lotus (2025-02)
  83. Rolling Stone UK, Lisa's acting debut in The White Lotus (2025-04-09)
  84. TenAsia, Lisa on The White Lotus (2025-04-09)
  85. Korea Herald, Lisa performs at the Academy Awards (2025-03-03)
  86. Seoul Shinmun (Korean), Lisa on the Oscars stage (2025-03-03)
  87. Newsis (Korean), Lisa at Coachella (2025-04-12)
  88. Billboard, Lisa at the 2025 Met Gala (2025-05-05)
  89. Ilgan Sports (Korean), Lisa's first Met Gala (2025-05-06)
  90. Korea Times, BLACKPINK to release "JUMP" (2025-07-08)
  91. Korea Herald, BLACKPINK's DEADLINE (2026-02-06)
  92. TAT press release, Lisa named Amazing Thailand Ambassador (2025-10-15)
  93. Khaosod English, Lisa named Thailand tourism ambassador (2025-10-16)
  94. Sports Kyunghyang, BLACKPINK at the 2026 Met Gala (2026-05-05)
  95. Vogue Korea (Korean), BLACKPINK at the 2026 Met Gala (2026-05-05)
  96. Korea Times, Lisa at the World Cup opening ceremony in North America (2026-06-13)
  97. Khaosod English, Lisa performs at the World Cup opening ceremony (2026-06-13)
  98. Korea JoongAng Daily, "SaWaDiKa" and PRESS PLAY (2026-09-04)
  99. Rolling Stone Canada, "SaWaDiKa" and PRESS PLAY (2026-09-04)
  100. Korea Herald, Report on the documentary Always Lalisa (2026-09-04)
  101. Caesars Entertainment press release, Viva La Lisa (2026-03-30)
  102. Vogue Korea (Korean), Lisa's Las Vegas shows (2026-03-31)

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