There are artists who become famous, and there are artists who become phenomena. Born Pranpriya Manobal in Buriram province, Thailand, on March 27, 1997, later renamed Lalisa at the advice of a fortune teller, meaning “the one being praised,” LISA has built a career that increasingly refuses to fit neatly into either category. As the main rapper and lead dancer of BLACKPINK, one of the most commercially dominant girl groups in music history, she was already operating at a level most artists never reach. As a solo act, she has done something arguably more impressive: she has made it look inevitable.
This is the timeline of that rise.
Before the Beginning: YG, Training, and the Making of BLACKPINK’s Wild Card
LISA passed her YG Entertainment audition in 2011 at the age of 14, uprooting from Thailand to Seoul to begin one of K-pop’s notoriously grueling training regimens. She appeared as a backup dancer in Taeyang’s “Ringa Linga” music video in November 2013, alongside members of iKon and Winner, one of her earliest public appearances before the world had any idea who she was. She was revealed as a BLACKPINK member on June 7, 2016, making her debut with the group on August 8 of that year.
Within BLACKPINK, LISA occupied a specific role: the visual disruptor, the one whose dancing and stage presence drew gasps even in a group of formidable performers. BLACKPINK became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time, and LISA, as its youngest member and most globally viral personality, accumulated a following that would eventually dwarf nearly every other figure in K-pop.
September 2021: Lalisa and the Record That Broke Records
On April 19, 2021, YG Entertainment revealed that LISA would be the third BLACKPINK member to debut as a soloist, with the official schedule to be announced later. By July 12, the label confirmed that filming for her music video was underway. The world had been waiting. What it got exceeded even the highest expectations.
LISA’s debut single album Lalisa and its lead single of the same name were released on September 10, 2021. The music video for “Lalisa” became the most-viewed video by a soloist in 24 hours with 73.6 million views, breaking the record held by Taylor Swift’s “Me!” featuring Brendon Urie, for which she earned two Guinness World Records. The song debuted at No. 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 and landed at No. 2 on the Billboard Global 200.
The album debuted at No. 1 on the Circle Album Chart in South Korea and was certified triple platinum for surpassing 750,000 copies sold. More specifically, the album sold 736,221 copies in South Korea in its first week, setting the record for the highest first-week sales among female artists domestically and making LISA the first female soloist to surpass the 500,000-copy mark.
It was a debut that announced she had arrived. But the real story of Lalisa wasn’t the title track.
The “Money” Phenomenon: How a B-Side Changed Everything
“Money” was first released in September 2021 as a B-side on Lalisa. The song was later released as a single in November of the same year after going viral on TikTok. What followed was a slow-burning chart escalation that rewrote what was possible for a K-pop solo release in the Western market.
“Money” charted on the Billboard Global 200 for 29 weeks and the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. for 34 weeks, becoming the longest charting song by a K-pop soloist and the second-longest charting song by any female K-pop act, behind BLACKPINK’s own “How You Like That.”
In the United Kingdom, “Money” debuted at No. 81 on the UK Singles Chart and rose to a peak of No. 46, becoming the first song by a female K-pop soloist to spend multiple weeks on the chart.
The song’s cultural footprint only expanded with time. In 2023, it became the first K-pop track by a solo artist to reach one billion streams on Spotify, earning a Guinness World Record for the feat.
2021–2022: Awards, the Born Pink Tour, and “SG”
The Lalisa era delivered a series of industry-first achievements at global awards shows. LISA became the first solo K-pop artist to win at both the MTV Video Music Awards and the MTV Europe Music Awards. At the 2022 VMAs, she took home Best K-Pop for “Lalisa” — a category win she would go on to own multiple times.
Just over a month after making her solo debut, LISA joined forces with DJ Snake, Ozuna, and Megan Thee Stallion for the star-studded collaboration “SG.
Throughout 2022, she returned to BLACKPINK mode: the group released Born Pink, headlined global arenas, and broke records as a unit.
2023: Crazy Horse, a Billion Streams, and the End of a Chapter at YG
In 2023, LISA made a move that surprised and divided observers. She headlined five exclusive shows at Paris’s legendary Crazy Horse cabaret — an institution known for its artistic burlesque performances.
Meanwhile, “Money” crossed a threshold that had previously been reserved for BTS: on September 20, 2023, the song surpassed one billion streams on Spotify, making LISA the first K-pop idol to reach this milestone with a solo song.
The achievement landed in the middle of a larger story: reports were circulating that three of the four members of BLACKPINK — Jennie, Jisoo, and LISA — were not looking to renew their contracts with YG Entertainment for solo activities. By December 2023, that had been confirmed. LISA’s era at YG as a solo artist was over. “Money” was, as it turned out, LISA’s final release as a soloist under YG and Interscope, before her departure from the labels in December 2023. She was leaving on the highest of notes.
February 2024: Building Lloud and Betting on Herself
The defining move of LISA’s post-YG chapter was not a single or an album. It was a business decision. On February 8, 2024, she announced that she had launched her own artist management company, called Lloud. On April 10, it was announced that under a partnership with Lloud, she had joined RCA Records to release solo music; she would have full ownership of all of her recordings as part of the deal.
The structure was significant. This wasn’t simply an artist signing with a new label, it was an artist retaining masters, controlling output, and building infrastructure.
June 2024: “Rockstar” and the New Era Begins
The commercial mechanics of LISA’s return were themselves newsworthy. She began teasing new music on June 6 by creating a new TikTok account and posting a video with a teaser snippet, which led her to set a Guinness World Record by gaining a million followers in just two hours and 18 minutes.
“Rockstar” was released through Lloud and RCA Records on June 27, 2024, as the lead single from her debut studio album Alter Ego. A hip-hop track with hyperpop beats, it was written by LISA alongside Brittany Amaradio, James Essien, Lucy Healey, Ryan Tedder, and Sam Homaee, with production handled by Tedder and Homaee. The results were emphatic. “Rockstar” debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Global 200 and at No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. US, becoming LISA’s third top-ten hit on both charts and her first number-one hit on the latter chart. It also debuted at No. 70 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking her highest-charting entry and third appearance on the chart.
In Thailand, “Rockstar” debuted at No. 1 on Spotify with over 2.57 million streams in a single day, setting a new record for the most daily streams for any song released in the country. The debut broke a long streak of Western acts topping the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. ranking, with LISA displacing Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” after six weeks at the top.
The music video, directed by Henry Schofield, was shot across Bangkok and paid homage to Thai culture through various locations including Yaowarat Road, which caused a surge in tourist activity in the region. The cyberpunk aesthetic, combined with the cultural specificity, signaled something important: LISA was expanding globally while drawing closer to her own roots.
August–October 2024: “New Woman,” the VMAs, and “Moonlit Floor”
On August 15, LISA released the album’s second single, “New Woman,” featuring Rosalía. The song debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard Global 200 and at No. 6 on the Billboard Global Excl. US. The pairing of two of the most globally impactful female artists outside the Anglophone mainstream was noticed. Rosalía brought her experimental flamenco-pop pedigree; LISA brought an unrivaled fanbase and rap fluency.
The campaign reached a television milestone on September 11. LISA performed at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, which marked her debut major performance as a solo artist and made her the first K-pop soloist in history to perform on the show. “Rockstar” received four nominations at the ceremony and won Best K-Pop, making her the first solo act to win the award twice and breaking a new record in the category.
She headlined the Global Citizen Festival on September 28, her first solo performance at a festival. During the performance, she surprise-debuted a new song titled “Moonlit Floor (Kiss Me),” which was released on October 3 as the third single from Alter Ego. The track, which interpolated Sixpence None the Richer’s 1997 classic “Kiss Me,” introduced a softer, more ethereal LISA.
She then performed at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2024 on October 15, a natural home for someone who had been dominating the fashion world as a global ambassador for Celine, Bulgari, and, from July 2024, Louis Vuitton.
February–March 2025: Alter Ego, the White Lotus, and the Oscars
The convergence of projects that LISA had been building across two years arrived simultaneously in the first weeks of 2025, creating a cultural moment that was difficult to ignore on any platform.
On February 6, 2025, “Born Again,” featuring Doja Cat and Raye, was released as the fourth single from Alter Ego. The collaboration immediately charted, becoming LISA’s first number-one on the newly launched Official Thailand Chart.
She made her acting debut under her given name Lalisa Manobal as Mook in the third season of the HBO television series The White Lotus, which premiered on February 16. The season would go on to earn 23 Emmy nominations including Outstanding Drama Series.
Alter Ego was released on February 28, 2025, through Lloud and RCA Records. The 15-track debut studio album explored hip-hop, electropop, and trap styles, featuring guest appearances from Rosalía and Tyla, with Future, Megan Thee Stallion, Doja Cat, and Raye appearing on digital editions. The album’s subject matter explored LISA’s personality, fame, and success through the lens of various alter egos. Alter Ego debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart.
On March 2, during the album’s release week, LISA performed at the 97th Academy Awards, taking part in a tribute to the music of the James Bond film series, where she performed Wings’ “Live and Let Die.” She became the first K-pop singer to perform at the Academy Awards.
On April 11 and 18, she performed songs from Alter Ego at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, closing a loop that had begun when she appeared there years earlier as part of BLACKPINK.
Summer 2025–February 2026: LISA return to BLACKPINK Activities
In 2025, BLACKPINK returned with their most ambitious group chapter in years. The Deadline World Tour commenced on July 5, 2025, at Goyang Stadium in South Korea and concluded on January 26, 2026, at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong. The global run that included Wembley Stadium, making BLACKPINK the first K-pop girl group to perform at the iconic venue, plus sold-out extensions at Citi Field, SoFi Stadium, and Stade de France. During her solo set, LISA performed solo songs such as “Thunder,” “Lifestyle,” and “Rockstar.”
BLACKPINK released their third EP, Deadline, on February 27, 2026, with lead single “Go” dropping alongside the project. The EP’s pre-release single “Jump” had already debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 (the group’s third No. 1 song), while entering the US Billboard Hot 100 at No. 28.
2026: Las Vegas Residency
If 2025 was the year LISA announced herself as a multidimensional artist, 2026 is the year that announcement became infrastructure. The most structurally significant move came in late March. LISA announced VIVA LA LISA, a Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, scheduled for four shows across two weekends in November 2026 — November 13, 14, 27, and 28. With the announcement, she became the first K-pop artist to mount a Las Vegas residency. Notably, tickets for VIVA LA LISA sold out in record time, underscoring the scale of demand surrounding her first solo residency. After pre-sale access opened, all tickets were gone within just 22 minutes, while the general sale cleared the remaining inventory in under nine minutes.
Photo: LISA in the “New Woman” music video
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