Lalisa (stylized in all caps) is the debut single album by Thai rapper and singer Lisa, a member of South Korean girl group Blackpink. It was released on September 10, 2021, by YG Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album is a hip hop record produced by Teddy, 24, and R. Tee and received mixed reviews by critics.
The physical version debuted at number one on the Gaon Album Chart, becoming the best-selling album by a female soloist in the chart's history, and set the record for the highest first-week sales among all female acts with 736,221 copies sold. It was certified double platinum by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA) in November 2021 for selling 500,000 copies, and was later certified triple platinum in August 2023 for selling 750,000 copies.
"Lalisa" was released as the lead single on the same day the album was released. The song debuted at number two on the Billboard Global 200 and number 84 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The B-side track "Money" was sent to US contemporary hit radio on November 9 following its viral success, and peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Global 200 and at number 90 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 2023, Lalisa earned a Guinness World Record for becoming the first album by a solo K-pop artist to reach 1 billion streams on Spotify.
Background
On April 19, 2021, an official from YG Entertainment revealed to South Korean media outlet The Korea Herald that Lisa would debut as the third soloist from her group (after her group-mates Jennie and Rosé respectively) with schedules later to be officially announced through a notice. On July 12, through Star News, her label revealed filming for her music video was underway. On July 25, the singer uploaded two images from her in a recording studio onto her Instagram stories, where a close-up of a screen is shown alongside two different soundwaves and the caption "What’s my name?", hinting at the single album's title.
Release and promotion
On August 25, 2021, YG Entertainment uploaded a teaser poster with the album's title, named after her given name, with pre-orders starting that same date. On August 27, YG released a 26-second teaser showcasing one of the visual concepts of the album. On August 30, it was confirmed by YG that the title track of the album would also be named "Lalisa". The full tracklist was released on September 5. The album was released worldwide on September 10 through YG and Interscope in conjunction with the music video for its eponymous single. Leading up to the release of the solo, Lisa held an online live countdown event on social media platforms V Live and TikTok to talk about the album and the music video. On September 11, Lisa gave an interview on The Woody Show as a special guest, marking her first appearance on a Thai talk show. On September 14, the artist held a special live broadcast on Naver Now to promote the single album. On November 12, Lisa held an Audacy Check In interview. On November 18, Lisa appeared as a guest on The Zach Sang Show and the radio show 102.7KIISFM.
Singles
"Lalisa" was released as the lead single alongside the release of the single album and received a music video on September 10, 2021. The music video recorded 73.6 million views on YouTube in 24 hours, becoming the most-viewed music video in the first 24 hours on the platform by a solo artist, breaking a record held by Ariana Grande's "thank u, next". The song debuted at number two on the Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S., marking Lisa's first solo entry and top-ten song on the charts. In the United States, "Lalisa" debuted at number 84 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The B-side track "Money" received a dance performance video on September 24, 2021. Following the song's rising success globally and in the United States, the song was sent as a single to US contemporary hit radio on November 9, 2021. "Money" peaked at number ten on the Billboard Global 200 and number seven on the Global Excl. U.S., becoming Lisa's second top-ten song on the charts. In the United States, the song peaked at number 90 on the Billboard Hot 100 as well.
Live performances
On September 10, Lisa made the debut performance of the title track "Lalisa" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. She then performed the song on Naver Now on September 14. Lisa performed the song on SBS's Inkigayo on September 19, on MBC's Show! Music Core on September 25, and again on SBS's Inkigayo on September 26.