Blackpink’s Lisa Inks RCA Solo Deal — Complete With ‘Full Ownership of All Her Recordings’

Blackpink member Lisa, who’s inked a solo deal with Sony Music’s RCA Records. Photo Credit: Mikey Asanin

Blackpink’s Lisa (real name Lalisa Manobal) has inked a solo deal with RCA Records – complete with “full ownership of all her recordings,” according to the Sony Music Entertainment subsidiary. RCA and 27-year-old Lisa formally revealed their agreement today, roughly four months after Blackpink itself re-upped with YG Entertainment. That renewed pact was followed by a double-digit share-price spike for the K-pop agency.

Soon after the corresponding announcement, it emerged that YG hadn’t re-signed Blackpink’s members on the solo side – leaving the artists free to explore different deals. Jennie (full name Jennie Kim) last month released a track entitled “Slow Motion” with RCA-signed Matt Champion, but isn’t herself listed as part of the label’s roster.

Thailand-born Lisa is officially part of said roster, however, with plans in place to pursue results “in a new era as both an artist and entrepreneur,” per RCA. On the entrepreneur front, Lisa owns an artist management company called Lloud, which will, of course, factor prominently into her forthcoming projects. (Jennie, who has nearly twice as many Spotify monthly listeners as Blackpink, debuted a label and music company called Odd Atelier in 2023’s final quarter.)

Similarly, while the involved parties didn’t provide a timetable for Lisa’s next solo effort, the Lalisa act struck an optimistic tone when addressing the RCA deal.

“I’m super excited to be joining the RCA family and I am confident they are the best team to create a bigger movement in my solo career,” indicated Lisa, who has a role in the upcoming season of The White Lotus. “Looking forward to showing the world everything we have been preparing.”

And in a concise statement, RCA head Peter Edge and COO John Fleckenstein touted the professional feats of the “multidimensional talent” Lisa.

“We are incredibly proud to partner with LISA and LLOUD CO.!” the RCA execs communicated. “LISA is a multidimensional talent and an irrefutable global force. We are thrilled to welcome her and her team to the RCA Records family.”

Bigger picture, Lisa isn’t the only well-established K-pop artist seeking solo-career growth on the world stage. Most notably, Jungkook last year broke a number of records with Golden and currently has almost as many Spotify monthly listeners as BTS. Taking the point a step further, K-pop companies themselves are diversifying beyond the core genre, with Hybe now the owner of Latin music company Exile, Quality Control (the roster of which features Lil Baby, Quavo, and more), and Ithaca Holdings.