Hospitalization like a daily meal, loss of freedom, life threatened

BLACKPINK is a top K-pop group with global influence. The four members Jennie, Lisa, Rosé and Jisoo have all achieved great success, not only as a group but also in their brilliant solo careers.

In addition to their musical success, each member has also continuously become the "muses" of many famous world fashion houses such as Dior, Chanel, YSL, Celine..., owning assets worth millions of USD.

However, few people know that behind the stage glory and admirable success are the dark corners and pressures that a global idol group must endure.

Exhausted to the point of hospitalization

Since their debut, after 7 years of operation, the 4 members of BLACKPINK have always been in a state of working at full capacity with a tight schedule. Not only do they have diverse activities in Korea, the members also have to regularly attend events abroad.

Amidst their busy schedules with a huge amount of work in a tight time frame, BLACKPINK members don't have much time to rest. They can only take a break on the plane, and upon landing at the airport, they must immediately adapt to the environment, climate, and time zone of each region.

During the Born Pink show in Australia, Jennie was forced to leave the stage due to poor health.

High-intensity group activities leading to exhaustion and hospitalization are common occurrences. During the Born Pink show in Australia, member Jennie was forced to leave the stage due to poor health.

Previously, Jennie revealed that she did not have good resistance and often fell ill: "I was physically and mentally exhausted after the world tour (in 2020). The intensity of work made us not have time to sleep, eat unscientifically and did not provide enough water for the body."

The idol added: "Everywhere I touch, I get an allergic reaction. My immune system is not working, but the group still has to travel. I'm always wondering how to keep myself healthy during the next two busy years."

Not only Jennie, but the other 3 members, Lisa, Rosé and Jisoo, also often face health problems. "Youngest member" Lisa practices to the point of being skinny, Rosé attracts attention when she needs intravenous fluids, Jisoo has a tumor in her neck and a series of injuries that affect all 4 members. The alarming news about the health of all 4 members makes fans worried.

Living in criticism, judgment, death threats

Not only are the members facing serious physical problems, but their mental health is also in an alarming state. As a global group, BLACKPINK is always the center of media and public attention. Therefore, the members cannot avoid public pressure.

"Big sister" Jisoo revealed that having too many eyes watching her made her accept the pressure. She was criticized for lacking skills, being weaker than other members, and not being able to communicate well in English. Even Jisoo's statement "confident in acting" was dissected on many forums.

Despite her constant efforts to improve herself, Jisoo has not been recognized. Rolling Stone Korea magazine once caused controversy when it commented that Jisoo “does not possess the most outstanding talent in the group as a singer or dancer, but her maturity is more evident than anyone else.”

Jennie also did not forget the moment when she was always criticized for having a haughty and difficult attitude. Faced with negative comments about herself, Jennie confided: "When I was a trainee, I often heard people say "Why does Jennie always look so upset?". That hurt me seriously. I wasn't angry at anyone, I was just shy in front of others. My facial expression when I relaxed was like this? But instead of being miserable, I decided to accept it and try to change next time."

Not only talking about the misunderstandings about her attitude, Jennie also thought a lot about the comments about her not giving her all. Recently, Jennie also received a lot of criticism for her role in the drama Idol with bold scenes.

Jennie admitted that her image and name could appear frequently in the press with negative articles. That made Jennie constantly hurt herself.

She shared: "I constantly hurt myself, in performances and in life, when I compare myself to other girls. Sometimes, I want to throw my phone into the ocean and disappear. Disappear so that no one can find me." Too stressed and tired from the series of criticisms surrounding her, Jennie even burst into tears on stage.

Lisa, a Thai member of the group, has been under a lot of mental pressure since before her debut. She is a victim of discrimination against Southeast Asians by some Korean netizens.

Despite being beautiful, talented and loved by many, Lisa still has to endure hateful comments because of her Thai origin. Some netizens mocked and criticized her as a "country girl" or "transgender": "She is so beautiful thanks to Korean makeup technology!"; "If you take off that makeup, her face will only have Southeast Asian features"; "Go back to Thailand, don't come to Korea to seek fame. No one here likes you"...

Lisa has been criticized and threatened with death for being Southeast Asian.

Lisa was even threatened by an anonymous Twitter account: "When BLACKPINK comes back, I will kill Lisa" causing the group's fandom to be very worried about the safety of the foreign member. The fans had to ask for help from the Thai Embassy in Seoul. The Embassy then spoke up to protect Lisa, affirming that they would consider investigating the incident.

Faced with this pressure, Lisa cried and called her mother many times because she was discouraged. But luckily, the members were always there to encourage and help the little girl overcome it to become one of the most famous female rappers in K-pop today.

Private life is scrutinized and exposed publicly

Becoming famous, BLACKPINK members have to trade off their personal privacy. BLACKPINK's personal love affairs are often exposed publicly in the media.

Jennie was once "attacked" because of dating rumors with V (BTS).

Jennie is a member who is constantly "stalked". Jennie's personal life images are published in newspapers. Recently, she was caught holding hands with member V (BTS) in Paris. With these rumors, the management company always ignores them and Jennie also keeps silent, but the media does not "let her go". Jennie becomes a victim of anti-fans as well as a part of BTS fans.

Not only Jennie, the love rumor between Lisa and the son of the LVMH group's boss has caused a lot of controversy in the online community. Private photos of Lisa and young master Frederic Arnault were spread online, Lisa's management company - YG - only gave a vague answer because it said it could not be confirmed because it was a private matter. Lisa's personal schedule was also scrutinized and exposed.

Lisa's personal schedule photos were shared publicly.

Jisoo was also publicly photographed dating actor Ahn Bo Hyun. After confirming the relationship, Jisoo was turned away by a part of her fans because of her "taste" in choosing a boyfriend.

While the members were rumored to be dating top stars, Jisoo chose a male actor who was considered to be less famous and infamous. The actor was under a lot of pressure and boycotted by fans of the BLACKPINK group. Many people thought that the male actor was not worthy of being the idol of the hottest girl group in K-Pop today.

In the dating rumor with Kang Dong Won, Rosé was also opposed because of the huge age gap of 16 years. Rosé was even considered "not on the same level" as Kang Dong Won because he is a famous actor while Rosé is just an idol.

No freedom

The pressure of celebrity life makes BLACKPINK members no longer able to be themselves. According to Jennie, choosing to be a female idol means losing freedom.

“Starting my career in Korea as a K-Pop artist limited me in a lot of ways because I wasn’t allowed to express myself just because I was a K-Pop idol. I think I was also afraid of expressing myself,” she said.

Jennie affirmed that choosing to be a female idol means losing freedom.

As things progressed, I was able to express myself more and people saw it as breaking boundaries. People didn't think, she was doing something that she wasn't allowed to do, opening a new chapter for people in the industry.

Many people get lost in trying to please their trainers. It's a journey of years, not hours. So you really get caught up in the life they've laid out for you."

Lisa also admitted that the life of a female idol is not easy, but she always tries to live "real": "Let everything happen naturally. I always try not to fall into negative thoughts or emotions. Even when things don't go well, I still tell myself: "It's normal for unhappy things to happen."

Balancing the various aspects of life as a globally famous idol is not easy. Lisa confided that her biggest ambition is to be happy: "I think more about my own happiness. So I always try to live true to my happiness as long as it does not harm the people around me. I want to live for myself. I don't know why. Maybe because I'm in a period of instability and crisis in my life."

Le Chi

Source