BLACKPINK is finally in the arena and ready to jump back into action. Their newest album “BORN PINK,” released on Sept. 16, was long awaited after the K-Pop group decided to take a two-year hiatus.

Their first single, “Pink Venom,” was initially released as a teaser for Blinks, the fans of the singing group, and soon became a challenge for followers to dance along with them, #pinkvenomchallenge. They have broken new records in a short span of time, and in the last 24 hours after their release, BLACKPINK became number one in America.

“BORN PINK” has catchy beats Blinks can enjoy and relate to, but some fans think otherwise.

Despite the tracklist only having eight songs, their overall sound has not evolved since their first album release, “THE ALBUM.” Their B-sides such as “Typa Girl,” “The Happiest Girl,” and “Ready for Love” are somewhat repetitive and predictable, which left Blinks disappointed. Their slower yet optimistic ballads do not correlate with the ‘girl crush’ standard they created, which lowered Blink’s expectations. 

After the new album’s release, the K-Pop group included a music video for their second top hit, “Shut Down.” The introduction carries a violin sampling that plays throughout the entire song. As BLACKPINK’s second new hit, the song was tolerable yet salvageable.

Not only do their songs sound mediocre, but their album cover has little to no creativity. They have lost their originality, and sadly it is not up to the girl group to decide what music to publish.

Nonetheless, the K-Pop girl group sensation has broken South Korean standards and is a role model for their younger audience. Their music has created milestones in the K-Pop community and has spread their culture worldwide. Instead of displaying the pure, innocent stereotype in South Korea, BLACKPINK flaunts their differences with edgier concepts.

They are role models for women empowerment and thrive on darker, edgier songs. It breaks the typical stereotype of women, including their past music. Perhaps BLACKPINK’s label was trying to change their concept to a more positive look at love instead of releasing music such as “Kill This Love.”