BLACKPINK's Jennie becomes the first female K-pop soloist to hit 1 billion views on YouTube

Jennie claims her one billion throne as Solo music video helps her crack new world record.

BLACKPINK's Jennie has never shied away from her trend-setting maverick. Claiming her well-deserved throne on YouTube records, the South Korean rapper has achieved a new benchmark by claiming one billion views on YouTube. She's now the first female K-pop solo artist to have achieved this feat; it's almost poetic that her Solo music video made the unthinkable happen.

Jennie Kim in Solo music video (2018) (YouTube / BLACKPINK)

Jennie debuted as a soloist in 2018, the same year the Solo MV was released on YouTube. While the track was released through YG and Interscope, she's now spread her wings and embarked on her ‘solo’ journey on a new level. Many consider a new beginning the mark of something better, but Jennie had different plans for closing 2023 on a banging note. Grabbing the moment and making the most of the final days of the past year, she launched her exclusive label OA (Odd Atelier) in December 2023.

This isn't the first time that Jennie's solo debut has helped the pop diva clinch a YouTube milestone. In August 2021, her track's music video helped her secure the title of the first female K-pop soloist to have surpassed 700 million views on YouTube. Solo video dropped on November 12, 2018, and since then, it has become an anthem-worthy response to her haters, with the lyrics confirming that “she's sittin' on (her) throne”.

Watch the BLACKPINK Jennie Solo MV:

Jennie's solo success and other projects:

Staying true to her main character energy, BLACKPINK Jennie also asserted her musical dominance on the Billboard chart with her song One of the Girls. This track was born in collaboration with her The Idol costars, The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp, in 2023.

Its successful streak continued well into 2024. Earlier this year, it sailed a steady journey on Billboard's Hot 100, reappearing at the 69th position on the most-consumed songs in the US list. Its high-ranking stance helped consolidate its post as the highest-charting song of all time by a South Korean solo female musician on the Hot 100. This spot was previously held firmly by Jennie's own bandmate, Rosé. (Forbes)

What makes her solo wins even more special is that The Idol star also participated in writing, styling and choreographing some bits of the song. She followed in the footsteps of Korean icon Psy, as he was the first K-pop soloist to hit the billion mark with his 2012 song that took the world by storm - Gangnam Style. Additionally, some of Jennie's hits from the BLACKPINK roster have previously earned their billion-views badges.

With each member off foraying into the solo territory, group activities seemed to have been halted for a minute. Jennie's recent solo activities also involved stepping up for the Calvin Klein Spring 2024 campaign. The press release aptly sums up her confident display in the campaign as it “magnifies Jennie’s playful confidence and infuses Calvin Klein’s emblematic underwear and jeans with her distinctive pop energy, elevating each style to icon status.”