250904 Lisa for AnOther Magazine Autumn/Winter 2025 – Issue 49
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250904 Lisa for Another Magazine Autumn/Winter- Issue 49 Cover
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[AnOther Magazine](https://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/16551/lisa-blackpink-interview-another-magazine-kpop-white-lotus)
**“Everybody Has Different Sides”: Lisa & Hans Ulrich Obrist in Conversation 1/6**
One quarter of the cultural phenomenon Blackpink, Lisa is shaping a young generation. Here, she tells Hans Ulrich Obrist about her life, her alter egos and how music connects people
This story is taken from the Autumn/Winter 2025 issue of AnOther Magazine:
My deep connection with South Korea goes back as far as the Nineties, when Hou Hanru and I visited during our co-curation of Cities on the Move, an exhibition that travelled across the world shedding light on the dynamic art and architecture of East Asian cities. I witnessed the rise of K-pop during the late Nineties and early 2000s, thanks in part to the amazing Miky Lee, whose promotion of the genre through events like the KCon festival made it globally visible.
-pop music and culture seem to connect communities and generations across the world. In 2020, Serpentine collaborated with BTS on the group’s global art project Connect, BTS, which worked with art institutions around the world to explore the connections between art, music and technology. BTS and Serpentine worked together with the Danish visual artist and technologist Jakob Kudsk Steensen to create Catharsis, an immersive, 3D digital simulation of a forest that has been undisturbed for hundreds of years.
I became familiar with Blackpink early on, so I was excited to talk to the Thai singer and actor Lisa to celebrate her success. Lisa bridges music, fashion and acting, recently making her screen debut in the third series of The White Lotus under her full name, Lalisa Manoban. She uses her platform to communicate with hundreds of millions of people all over the world and has a strong relationship with her fanbase, which is fascinating for an artist so young. This has been a big year for her, with Blackpink’s tour and the release of her debut solo album, Alter Ego, through which she explores ideas surrounding identity, using music and choreography as a vehicle for her self-expression. Together, we reflect on memories from her illustrious career, touching on unrealised projects and her dreams for the future.
**2/6**
Hans Ulrich Obrist: Good morning. How are you?
Lisa: I’m good. And you? It’s nice to meet you.
HUO: Very nice to meet you. I’m excited that we can do this interview. I’ve known your work for a long time because I’m a friend of Miky Lee, who always invites me to KCon.
L: Oh, really? That’s nice.
HUO: So, I’m not really in the music industry. I’m a museum director for contemporary art. I am the artistic director of Serpentine, where we do lots of collaborations between visual art and music and all other disciplines that bring the fields together. We recently collaborated with Lego – we are doing a Lego play at the pavilion this summer with Peter Cook, a co-founder of Archigram [the visionary architectural collective founded in the 1960s] and the father of the record producer AG Cook. Some years ago we did a collaboration between contemporary art and K-pop with the group BTS. So I wanted to ask you about some of your core memories from your incredible career. How did it all begin?
L: Wow, my memory is far from perfect, but I’ll try to bring it back today. So, how did I start? I started to dance when I was five years old. I always loved to perform on stage and I never got shy when people asked me to go up there and show them a dance or something. It’s always been a dream of mine to perform for large audiences, to be a performer. I grew up an only child, and my older cousin, who would come over a lot, introduced me to Britney Spears’s music. I also listened to Beyoncé, Rihanna, Justin Bieber, all the famous people. And then when I was in my early teen years, I got into K-pop, which was very popular in Thailand at that time. Then I had the opportunity to audition for a company in South Korea. And that’s it, that’s how it happened – I flew out to South Korea, trained for five years, Blackpink debuted and here I am, nearly ten years later.
HUO: And you went to this school in South Korea you mentioned in the Netflix film [Light Up the Sky], which was very much about performing but also languages. You learnt a lot of languages. You met a lot of people. What are your memories of this time at school?
L: Well, it was a school but it was also part of the music company. We had vocal lessons, dance lessons. We had monthly tests, singing and dancing in front of the boss. I’m Thai so I had to learn Korean. It was five years – there were a lot of fun moments with friends who I became very close with. When I look back at it, I’m really grateful that I could experience it. If I could choose my path again, I would still choose to do this.
HUO: Let’s go back to the start of Blackpink. I’m interested in the name, Blackpink, what one might call an oxymoron – something that is both very girly and at the same time also quite savage.
L: The company didn’t tell us that they were going to debut us as a group of four girls. At first it was maybe nine, then they cut it to six, then five and then there were four of us left who worked best in combination. Us four girls, we work really well together.
HUO: A good combination.
L: And the name of Blackpink? Actually, we went through many names before we came up with Blackpink. We had Pink Punk, we had Magnum, we had so many. But we just felt like, what if we just talk about colours because we’re girls and we can be cute and girly but we can also be a little fierce sometimes? Then we came up with Blackpink. We thought it was really us and that it showed our true colours.
HUO: Blackpink is one of the most popular groups in the world. At the same time, with your amazing solo act, you reach hundreds of millions of people through your social media, but also through your music, through your streaming. When did you feel for the first time that was happening, that your work was global, that you’d gone viral? Do you remember that moment and what it meant to you?
L: Yeah, it was a hard-hitting moment. I think we’re just so lucky and so thankful to our fans that they’ve loved our music from the start. In 2019, when we did our first Coachella, that was pretty incredible as well. We saw how many people loved our music. It was shocking and surprising at the same time. But that’s how I started to realise that we were known globally.
HUO: You interact with such an enormous audience. Very few artists have that. How does it feel to be one of the most popular musicians, both as a member of Blackpink and in your solo career?
L: I try my best to communicate and keep connection with my fans. They’re very supportive. Even when I’m on stage I can really see how they react. They scream out loud, they sing with me. I would not be here today without them.
**3/6**
HUO: Your fans are important to you. Actually, you gave them a name – the Blinks. How did that come about?
L: It’s a thing to have a fandom name in our culture. We’re Blackpink, so it should be something that connects us and our fans. So we just say it’s Blackpink, Blink to the fans, so it became Blink. It was the four of us and some of our company staff sitting down together and we were like, right, let’s just figure this out in 20 minutes. It’s such a cute name. I love it.
HUO: And what is clear and seemingly quite unique about K-pop is its ability to bring people together from different fields. K-pop builds communities, it connects generations, not only in South Korea, but all over the globe, which is so important today. In a world that can be separated, where people don’t talk to each other, we need togetherness. Tell me about this. It seems to be specific to K-pop, this capacity to create this. I’m curious, what’s the secret behind that?
L: What’s the secret behind that? I don’t think there’s a secret behind it. I feel like we’ve inspired a lot of people. The way we started as trainees and the time we dedicated to get here. I spent five years preparing before I debuted. A lot of my fans talk about that. They say, “You had a dream and you fought for it. You believe in yourself and you achieved your goal. You got it.” Also the music. Music is such a good way of connecting people. Our collaborations too.
HUO: And the collaborations extend beyond you and the band to your solo work.
L: Last year I collaborated with so many amazing artists on my solo album. I feel very lucky to have been able to work with people I really admire.
HUO: What were the highlights of these collaborations?
L: My collaborative process is very relationship focused. What we always have in common, as artists, is a deep love and respect for our own art as well as each other’s. We begin by working like friends rather than colleagues. From this, the collaboration follows. For me, building a professional relationship as friends is a really special way of working, and that really blossoms throughout the collaboration. So yeah, having that relationship with the artists I collaborate with is really special for me.
HUO: Who would you like to collaborate with that you haven’t yet?
L: Oh my, so many people. I’d love to collaborate with Charli xcx, she’s amazing. I’d also like to experiment with some new genres that I haven’t yet tried, perhaps collaborating with EDM DJs. I would love to do that.
HUO: I’m always interested in unrealised projects and dreams. Is there anything you haven’t been able to do in and outside music – maybe other art forms or dreams?
L: I’ve spent so much time focusing on Blackpink, I’m not sure. I mean, have you watched the third season of The White Lotus yet? I had a lot of fun working on that. I’d love to do some more acting. It’s a world I’d like to learn more about.
HUO: Your acting career is something else entirely. What experiences from The White Lotus are strongest in your memory?
L: There were a lot of memorable moments, starting when I sent in my audition tape. That was funny. It was just me and my team filming in a hotel room. Then I flew to Thailand to meet up with Mike White and we had a great initial conversation. Mike is really open-minded. While we were shooting, he was super-open to me trying out different things. He let Tayme [Thapthimthong], my co-star, and I do whatever we wanted to do, then if he wanted us to fix something, he’d just tell us how. The cast were great. They’re all big stars. It was a great experience to work with them. We had a lot of fun together.
HUO: I’ve read about your musical influences, but nothing about your cinematic inspirations. Korea is internationally renowned for its cinema and there are many great Korean television series. I wonder, what inspires you in the world of film and television?
L: Oh wow, there are a lot. I wouldn’t know where to start.
**4/6**
HUO: What do you binge-watch?
L: I just binge-watched Squid Game. I still have two episodes left, so no spoilers please. I watched, of course, The White Lotus, House of the Dragon. I like all genres. Sometimes I want something sad, other times some action. I watch everything. I want to learn from everything I watch – I think it would be cool to do an action movie.
HUO: This year is a very special year for Blackpink with the global tour, but also for your solo career. You released your debut solo album, Alter Ego, in February, which has since been described as a concept album. In it, you have these five characters. The late Etel Adnan, the seminal poet, told me, “Identity is shifty. It’s like a choice.” And in this album you choose between these five characters. I wondered if you could talk me through this.
L: When I was working on this album, I tried lots of different styles and genres. I did slow songs, faster ones, things that I’d never tried before. I loved everything I did. I feel like I embody these different styles and genres, these different characters. So I was like, what if we just put every style into this album? It’s not a single character, it has five characters, like the five points of a star. It starts with Roxi, she loves to be on stage, she’s a rock star. Roxi is really me. But I think everybody has different sides to them. Don’t you agree? There are many different sides to me. Sometimes I want to be a lovely girl who is free-spirited and loves animals. That’s Sunni. Vixi is fearless and fierce. Kiki is sassy and loves Y2K. And then Speedi loves to race and likes sports cars. I love cars. These girls are me, they are my alter egos – the five points to my star.
HUO: Then there is the question of the musical styles, each song with its unique vibe. There are lots of different elements. There’s EDM, pop, hip-hop and rap elements. Can you tell us a little bit about that? And how does your style as a solo artist differ from that of Blackpink?
L: If you listen to Blackpink music, you just know right away that it’s Blackpink. But when you listen to my solo album, it’s just like you can tell that this is Lisa music.
HUO: Of all your songs as part of Blackpink, but also from your solo career, which are you most proud of?
L: They’re all my babies, I’m not sure I could name one. I am particularly proud of Alter Ego – the whole album. I worked on it for over a year while working on The White Lotus, so it was a big year.
HUO: Next I want to talk about the role that choreography plays in your work, because it’s more than just accompanying the music, right? It’s an integral part of it.
L: Dancing has always been my thing. When it comes to choreographing a song, I work closely with a choreographer to ensure the dance acts as another avenue for communication. I start with an image in my head, which I will brief the choreographer on. They’ve all been so understanding of my vision and have helped me to see it through with great dance moves.
HUO: What is the most challenging choreography you’ve done so far?
L: I would say probably for my song Rockstar, because I had to learn the choreography on the day of the music video shoot. I had to learn it, memorise it, get ready, then shoot it. It was very stressful.
HUO: When is a song finished?
L: It’s hard to stop. I want it to be the best version of itself. I keep fixing things until the very last minute, which I guess is the case for a lot of artists. It’s hard to know when to stop trying things out.
HUO: And when do you rest? Do you have hobbies or things you like to do outside making music?
L: I try to rest here and there, but honestly I’m a bit of a workaholic. I like to be busy. I’m good at finding the in-between moments for resting and spending them well.
HUO: I know. I’m a workaholic too, so it’s familiar to me. In one of your videos you have an old Nokia cell phone, which you got when you were ten years old. I love the video. My generation has a past without the internet, but your generation really grew up with and on the internet, and with the cell phone. I want to ask you about technology, because you are in a way part of the first generation who grew up with this. What was it like and how has it influenced your work?
L: When I first got a phone, all I was trying to do was download music that I loved onto it, so I could just listen to music all the time. I also grew up with the iPod. Technology is how I stay connected with my fans, through different apps. I can’t imagine life without the internet.
HUO: I recently went to a presentation in London by Hideo Kojima, the creator of the visionary video game Death Stranding, who was, of course, talking about technology. Today, more than three billion people across the world play video games. The gaming industry is bigger than the music industry and the film industry combined. And more and more musicians are working on music for video games. Are you interested in the video-game industry at all? Do you game yourself?
L: I’m not very in the know when it comes to the game world. I play some of the less-intense games like Cooking Mama or Mario Kart.
**5/6**
HUO: You do some collaborations with brands, which is another way of reaching people. You recently collaborated with Bose, right?
L: Yes, on the Ultra Open Earbuds. When I collaborate on a product, I must really love the product and the brand. Bose was a great collaboration because, as an artist, I’m always listening to music. And it was cool getting to design my own product. Speakers and headphones are good because we need music all the time.
HUO: And you’ve been instrumental in the rise of the Labubu. What is it about Labubus that you love so much and have you collaborated with the company?
L: I would love to do a collaboration with Labubu. It was my friend who introduced me to the world of Labubu. At first I was like, “What is this cute little monster?” I didn’t know. And then I just fell in love with them and kept collecting them and wearing them on my bags. They’ve become so popular that I can’t even get them any more – it’s so sad.
HUO: So that’s a dream – to collaborate with Labubu? We hope that can happen. Your fashion sense is iconic. Can you talk about your connection to fashion? Your favourite looks and maybe also about collaborations you’ve done or would like to do with fashion brands.
L: Fashion is something that’s still quite new to me. I enjoy wearing things that are fun, unique and crazy. At Coachella [this year] I wore this reptile bodysuit, which I was obsessed with. That’s definitely my favourite recent look.
HUO: Who designed that?
L: That was designed by Asher Levine. He took inspiration from his pet lizard.
**6/6**
HUO: Amazing. To finish off today, I’d like to ask whether there is a piece of contemporary art, visual art, painting or sculpture that interests you?
L: I love to visit museums and galleries. I go a lot with friends. I really want to learn more about art. I think to really learn about art you have to be by yourself. I travel a lot because of the tour, so when I have the time, I like to visit the museums of that city.
HUO: Next time you’re in London I’d love to show you the Serpentine.
L: Yes please. I’d like that.
HUO: Thank you for the great interview. It was such a pleasure to meet you.