Lisa Blackpink: Blackpink’s Lisa was born to be famous – and that was known before a fortune teller told her to change her name to make it happen | Explainer
Her face has been broadcast to millions worldwide for more than eight years, but when the lights came on and she stepped onto the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show’s runway in October, it was like we were seeing her for the first time.
At 27 years old, Lisa – best known for her work with K-pop group Blackpink – has lived many lifetimes, and, judging by the fact she’s soon set to make her acting debut in HBO’s The White Lotus, she’s got many more to come.
It’s all part of Lisa’s grand plan, with the multi-hyphenate working since she was four years old to have her name go down in the history books.
Watch the video above.
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Fortune teller’s advice paved the way for Lisa’s fame
Born on March 27, 1997, in Thailand, Lisa was not always known by her mononym.
In fact, her parents named her Pranpriya Manobal, but when she was 13, she changed it on the advice of a fortune teller – something that’s not uncommon in Thailand.
“We made an audition for YG [Blackpink’s label and management company], but YG didn’t contact us back. We really wanted to get it. So the fortune teller said, ‘You should change your name’,” Lisa told Billboard in 2021.
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So she did, and Lalisa was born.
One week later, she got a call from YG Entertainment, who asked her to come on board as a trainee.
”I was like, ‘Wow!’ … People don’t really know that Lalisa is my real name, because they just know me as Lisa from Blackpink,” she told the magazine.
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Lisa first joined dance classes when she was four years old, competing in a plethora of competitions over the years including the LG Entertainment Million Dream Sanan World Competition in September 2009.
Earlier that year, Lisa had also finished as the runner-up of the Top 3 Good Morals of Thailand singing contest.
In 2010, Lisa, one of 4000 applicants, auditioned for YG Entertainment, eventually being hand-picked by former CEO Yang Hyun-suk to become a trainee for the label.
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The following year, she moved to South Korea to begin her training, officially joining YG Entertainment as the label’s first non-ethnically Korean trainee that April, later making history as YG Entertainment’s first non-ethnically Korean artist when Blackpink was made official.
It took her five years, but in August 2016, Lisa finally got her moment in the sun.
Blackpink was a roraring success from its first album, with lead single Whistle topping all South Korean charts from almost the second it came out.
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“It’s still like a dream to me. I can’t believe that we have come this far and that people love us so much and love our music. I’m so grateful for that,” Lisa later reflected to Vanity Fair of Blackpink’s success in November 2024.
Lisa, however, is more than a girl band member.
Yes, Blackpink is what made her famous, and she toured with them for years and even was made an honourary Member of the Order of the British Empire by King Charles III in November 2023, but she’s also seen success as a solo artist.
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Blackpink may have gone on a hiatus of sorts in 2023, but Lisa has been pursuing solo projects, including endorsement deals and fashion and photography work, for years.
She released her debut single album Lalisa in 2021, and has been in a series of reality shows – including Real Man 2000 and Youth With You – over the years.
But October’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was truly the first time fans had seen her for what she is: a force to be reckoned with.
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Opening the controversial lingerie brand’s first runway in six years, Lisa stole the show with her energetic renditions of her singles Rockstar and Moonlit Floor (Kiss Me).
It was only the third time she’d publicly performed Rockstar, which is notably the first single she’d released through Lloud, her self-founded management company.
“It was a big risk,” Lisa told Vanity Fair of taking her career into her own hands after being part of a group for so long.
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“I just wanted to have a team that was really focused on me and focused on my solo projects, and have support when I think, Oh, I want to do something,” she continued.
Even though she was inducted into the Asian Hall of Fame in 2023, in a way, Lisa’s career is only just beginning.
Next year, Blackpink is tipped to make a comeback, and Lisa’s solo album Alter Ego is due for release. She’s also set to make her acting debut in The White Lotus.
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