Netizens show controversial opinions regarding the performance of BLACKPINK member Jisoo at the 2023 Coachella.
On April 15th (local time), BLACKPINK made history by becoming the first Kpop act to headline at one of the world’s largest music festivals, Coachella. After BLACKPINK’s performance, US media outlets continuously praise their stages as magnificent and explosive, worthy of a global female music group.
Overall, it can be said that BLACKPINK made an impressive start to “conquer” Coachella. But, naturally, not all audiences are convinced. In particular, several netizens have been nitpicking the appearance of Jisoo, comparing her to other members, and making rather scathing comments.
Coming to Coachella 2023, BLACKPINK prepared a setlist of 18 songs and added many cool dance moves. In the first act of their performance, the girl group appeared dazzlingly in the dim light with black and pink clothes and delivered stages of “Pink Venom”, “Kill This Love”, “How You Like That”, “Pretty Savage”, “Kick It”, and “Whistle” back-to-back. However, it was here that Jisoo received mixed feedback.
For starters, Jisoo’s outfit was said to not have accentuated her body well, with too many ruffle details and poor form. In addition, several netizens compared Jisoo to other members, claiming that her movements were not as fast and stable. While Jisoo hit all her moves correctly and matched the songs, these netizens simply find the female idol not enough, saying that she was only “adequate”, not “outstanding”.
Then, as Jisoo delivered a solo stage for her new song, “Flower”, Chinese netizens left rather scathing comments. According to them, Jisoo was dressed in elaborate makeup, hairstyle, and outfit, but her beauty was the only thing that shines. Her dance was stiff and facial expressions not impressive, they said, adding that the choreography of “Flower” was the simplest among the four solo performances.
However, netizens from other nations seem to view the performance differently, expressing that they were blown away by the stage presence of Jisoo. In fact, the “Flower” stage at Coachella has quickly gone viral on numerous SNS platforms.
Below are some comments from netizens:
- Stiff body movement, normal expressions, there’s nothing mind-blowing about this, especially when compared to other BLACKPINK members
- Isn’t “Flower” the easiest choreography of them all? How come Jisoo appears the stiffest?
- “Flower” is elegant and light, unlike other choreographies, so there should be no comparison
- Honestly, I think Jisoo is a good performer, but she is not at a “wow level”
- She did enough to rile up the crowd, I don’t get the complaints
On the other hand, Jisoo’s live singing voice was also brought to debate. While the female idol was stable, she was unable to execute challenging vocal parts, and this was revealed through her solo, say several netizens. As a result, while performing “Flower”, Jisoo had difficulty controlling her voice and at some parts, could become unstable.
However, considering that BLACKPINK’s set lasts for a whooping 2 hours, with constant dancing and formation changes, a little instability is expected, countered other netizens. In addition, Jisoo boasts a unique husky voice, making it hard for her to reach high tones, so she did her part well enough, they also said.
Nevertheless, at the end of the song, Jisoo did have to change the execution of the high note compared to the original arrangement. This brought a lot of mixed opinions, but the general public pays more attention to Jisoo’s overall energy, which they find little issue about.
Finally, Jisoo’s biggest struggle lies in her limited English skills. Due to this, the female idol was unable to interact well with the Coachella audience, especially when compared to other members.
At the end of their sets, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa, all went viral for their charming interactions that energized the atmosphere, at the same time elevating the crowd’s high with English ad-libs. However, Jisoo was unable to do that, and could only rely mostly on her smiles and eye contact.
Of course, English is not a necessity to BLACKPINK, seeing that they are, in essence, a Kpop girl group. In addition, apart from Jisoo, all members of BLACKPINK have been exposed to the language since a young age, leaving Jisoo with a disadvantage.
Nevertheless, on an international stage such as Coachella, many find English skills to be essential to connect with the audience. However, in the end, it is most crucial that a performer can perform, and the power of music can do the rest of the work.
Source: Weibo
