How BLACKPINK's Jennie uses star power to promote Korean heritage

Jennie of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK performs at the Melon Music Awards 2025 at the Gocheok Sky Dome in southwestern Seoul, Saturday. Her veil features passages from "Cheonggu Yeongeon," a Joseon-era collection of song lyrics. Captured from LEJE's Instagram

As her global profile expands, Jennie of K-pop juggernaut BLACKPINK is increasingly weaving Korean language and heritage into her solo work — not as decorative references, but as core elements of her contemporary, signature aesthetic.

That artistic vision was fully realized last week at the 2025 Melon Music Awards (MMA), where she won three honors including Record of the Year. But beyond the trophies, it was her solo performance built around Korean imagery and visual motifs that captured the most attention.

At the ceremony, Jennie performed rearranged versions of "Seoul City," "ZEN" and "like JENNIE," all from her March album "Ruby," her first full-length studio release. Costume and stage design played a central role in shaping the performance’s thematic arc.

The performance opened with "Seoul City," in which she appeared beneath a 15-meter veil inscribed with Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, set against stage visuals drawn from the deep blue of the Korean national flag.

To bring this vision to life, Jennie collaborated once again with Korean fashion label LEJE, which previously created custom pieces for her "ZEN" music video. After the awards show, the brand revealed via social media that the MMA costumes reflected “Jennie’s long-standing interest in Korean culture and language.”

According to LEJE, the veil was adorned with passages from "Cheonggu Yeongeon," an 18th-century anthology which is widely regarded as Korea's earliest known collection of song lyrics. The silk robe gown drew inspiration from the flowing garments of Korea’s iconic Pensive Bodhisattva statues, featuring a structured shoulder line and adorned with traditional knot ornaments.

Jennie of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK wears a custom dress for the Melon Music Awards 2025 at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul's Guro District, Saturday. The hand-draped cutout details of the outfit reference the geometric symmetry of the Seokgatap Pagoda from the Silla era. Captured from LEJE's Instagram

The following "ZEN" stage shifted focus inward, emphasizing balance and concentration, while the final "like JENNIE" stage concluded with a direct articulation of self.

For "ZEN," LEJE crafted looks that combined sheer silk drawn from traditional Korean attire with the structure of a Western corset. On the final stage, Jennie wore a custom jacket engraved with over 2,000 iterations of her name — a piece that took more than 200 hours to complete.

A key reference for the award-stage dress was the geometric balance of the Seokgatap Pagoda, a Silla-era stone pagoda, presented through hand-draped cutout details.

The brand explained the designs aimed to "reinterpret traditional Korean aesthetics through a contemporary visual language," shaped by a shared creative process between the artist and the brand.

"Hangeul is not a symbol or ornament, but a deeply personal strength that carries her into the world... It is not decoration, but a record of time and self-definition," the brand wrote.

Her agency, Odd Atelier, added that the performance expressed Jennie's "ongoing effort to treat Korean identity as part of a broader artistic framework."

BLACKPINK's Jennie poses with a Stanley Quencher tumbler released as part of her collaboration with the brand with a design inspired by Korean decorative motifs. Captured from Stanley's Instahram

The BLACKPINK singer has additionally extended this approach beyond the stage, incorporating Korean identity into brand collaborations and independent projects, including the release of a free Hangeul typeface.

In September, she partnered with Stanley to release a collaborative tumbler that incorporated design elements referencing traditional Korean mother-of-pearl inlay, applying Korean decorative motifs to an everyday consumer product.

She followed that effort in October with the release of a Korean typeface titled "ZEN SERIF," timed to coincide with Hangeul Day, a national holiday marking the creation of the Korean alphabet. Developed in collaboration with Meta Platforms, the typeface combines Hangeul with elements of Western Blackletter typography and was made available for free.

From topping major local and international charts with "Ruby" to appearances at the Met Gala and Coachella, Jennie continues to extend her influence — not only as a global fashion and music icon, but also as an artist intentionally amplifying Korean culture through a refined, contemporary voice.