Mo Kim

Hi, everybody! It’s always a pleasure to join my friend Kayla over at Pop Excellence and contribute to her annual list of top 20 K-pop singles: I wrote about Lisa and Rosalia’s “New Woman” here!

Lisa (ft. Rosalia) – New Woman

Whether warbling about dolla bills or teaching us all Japanese, Lisa has cemented herself as one of K-pop’s most camp pop icons. I mean that as praise: it takes a particular go-for-broke charisma and confidence to execute songs as obnoxious on paper as “Money” and “Rockstar” (and–ducks tomatoes–most of Blackpink’s discography between 2018-2022). It’d be easy to treat “New Woman” as a clean break from Lisa’s previous body of work: its technicolor electro-pop feels sleeker and more refined than anything she’s done, and both the composition and lyrics embody reinvention, down to the unexpected, moody switch-up sandwiched into its second verse. But ultimately, the song’s high-concept construction only works because of the women at its center: Lisa hits Peak Lisa here, delivering rapid-fire verses chock full of silly multilingual puns in one moment and understated, hypnotic coos about walking through fire in the next, utilizing an emotional range her former label never bothered to showcase. Rosalia proves a worthy partner, bringing a playful, electric energy to her half of the duet. Together, “New Woman” adds up to a worthy reminder of what makes Lisa a compelling popstar, even when she demands we pronounce her name like an Italian deli meat.