Jennie

Jennie Kim (born January 16, 1996), known mononymously as Jennie, is a South Korean singer, rapper, and actress.

Jennie Kim was born in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul on January 16, 1996, as an only child.

She initially attended Cheongdam Elementary School in Seoul before moving to New Zealand.

When she was eight years old, she went on a trip with her family to Australia and New Zealand.

When her mother asked her if she liked New Zealand and wanted to stay, Jennie replied "yes".

One year later, she was sent to study at Waikowhai Intermediate School in Auckland and lived with a home-stay family.

Jennie spoke about her experience learning a new language on the MBC's documentary English, Must Change to Survive (2006).

During her adolescent years, she dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer.

After completing intermediate, she enrolled at ACG Parnell College.

Jennie first heard of K-pop while in New Zealand, particularly finding an interest in YG Entertainment's music.

Her mother planned to move her to Florida in the United States at the age of 14 to continue her studies to become a lawyer or teacher; however, she did not like the idea and was concerned about not finding work she liked while living alone.

Born and raised in South Korea, Jennie studied in New Zealand for five years before returning to South Korea in 2010.

Her family supported her decision, and she moved back to South Korea in 2010, where she studied at Cheongdam Middle School.

Jennie auditioned for YG Entertainment that same year with Rihanna's "Take a Bow", succeeding in joining the label as a trainee.

Through High Cut Korea, she revealed because she was afraid of strangers and reluctant to take initiative, she could barely introduce herself during her audition.

Initially a vocalist, the company believed she should embrace the role of a rapper as most songs she covered included raps and she was the only trainee fluent in English at the time, along with her native Korean; she also knows basic Japanese and has learned French.

On April 10, 2012, Jennie was introduced through a photo titled "Who's that girl?"

via the official blog of YG Entertainment.

Her photograph gained interest from netizens, soon becoming the most searched topic on portal sites under the name "Mystery Girl".

On August 30, YG Entertainment released a YouTube video through their blog titled "YG Trainee - Jennie Kim", in which she covered B.o.B.'s song "Strange Clouds" featuring Lil Wayne.

On September 1, Jennie made her first public appearance as the lead actress in G-Dragon's music video "That XX" from his extended play One of a Kind.

In January 2013, another video titled "Jennie Kim - YG New Artist", in which she covered the song "Lotus Flower Bomb" by rapper Wale, was released.

In March, Lee Hi featured Jennie on her B-side track, "Special" from her debut album, First Love.

In August, Jennie featured on Seungri's B-side track "GG Be" from his extended play Let's Talk About Love. In September, she featured on G-Dragon's B-side track "Black", recording the hook in less than five days before the release of his album Coup d'Etat.

On September 8, she made her first stage appearance alongside G-Dragon on SBS' Inkigayo.

She debuted as a member of the South Korean girl group Blackpink, formed by YG Entertainment, in August 2016.

In 2023, she made her acting debut under the stage name Jennie Ruby Jane in the HBO television series The Idol.

On June 1, 2016, Jennie was the first member to be revealed for YG Entertainment's newest girl group, its first in seven years since 2NE1.

On August 8, 2016, she debuted as a member of Blackpink, alongside Kim Jisoo, Roseanne Park and Lalisa Manobal, with the release of their single album Square One alongside double A-side singles "Boombayah" and "Whistle".

According to band-mate Jisoo, Jennie was responsible for the general duties and decision making of the group.

Jennie recounted her six-year experience as a trainee through V Live, stating each month a group, dance, and solo song were performed for the label's CEO, producers and artists to watch and evaluate the progress of their training.

She also recalled memories preparing outfits and songs, making musical accompaniments, and practicing choreography.

In November 2018, Jennie made her debut as a solo artist with the single "Solo", which topped South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart and the US Billboard World Digital Songs chart; its music video was the first by a female K-pop soloist to surpass one billion views on YouTube.

Her single "You & Me" (2023) reached number one on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. and the top five in South Korea, while "One of the Girls" (2023) also entered the top ten of the Billboard Global 200 and became the highest-charting song by a female K-pop soloist on the US Billboard Hot 100.

In November 2023, Jennie established her own label named Odd Atelier.

Jennie has received several accolades throughout her career, including a Gaon Chart Music Award and a Golden Disc Award.

She is the most-followed Korean individual on Instagram, and her YouTube channel was the fastest in history to surpass one million subscribers.

Jennie is renowned for her musical versatility and fashion image, and has been dubbed the "Human Chanel", for which she serves as a global ambassador.

In 2018, Blackpink signed with Interscope Records in a global partnership with YG Entertainment.

Jennie appeared with Blackpink member Jisoo on Running Man in July 2018.