“I wanted to become an artist that could complete an entire show”— BLACKPINK Jennie reveals the reason behind naming her album title ‘Ruby’

BLACKPINK Jennie is currently hitting the headlines with her first solo studio album, Ruby. Before the album's release, the singer hosted a listening party on February 27 in Seoul, titled Rubify Listening Party on Spotify's K-Pop ON! Video Podcast. The video podcast was released on March 9, 2025, and select 200 fans were invited to the party hosted by ZICO.

Zico asked Jennie what was the inspiration behind the album's name, and Jennie said that she did not name it 'Ruby' because of her middle name. Speaking about her inspiration, she said,

"I wanted to become an artist that could complete an entire show, opening and closing the curtains on my own. And the red curtains you see in the theater really resonated with me - "I will open the curtains of my show with my own hands!" As I gained more confidence in myself, I wanted to include my identity as 'Ruby'."

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Jennie gets candid about Ruby, her inspiration for the album, and more

Speaking about her album's inspiration, the singer mentioned Shakespeare's seven stages of life as an inspiration. “This album means everything to me—it’s my story, told through my voice and my vision,” she said.

“Shakespeare’s concept of the seven stages of life really resonated with me, so I wanted to explore those emotions—from innocence and love to power, reflection, and legacy. It felt like the perfect way to introduce myself as a solo artist and show every side of who I am. I was inspired by the play aspect, with the curtains revealing my next step in my career.”

She also added that her life has been one of the inspirations for the album. She learned what is important in her life, and what matters in her life, and her experiences are what got her motivated to get started on the album.

The short version of the video podcast showed the Love Hangover singer talking to the camera as well, with snippets from the listening party. A couple of lines about a particular song's achievement on the Spotify charts were featured in the video. Jennie also read out tweets from fans expressing their views and love for the album.

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Jennie's solo studio album Ruby at a Glance

Ruby was released on March 7, 2025. The album, containing 15 tracks, including Jennie as the title track. The song was teased before the album release and it reportedly came under fire for being a copy of Pritam's Rani Intro Theme from Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. Pritam came forward to refute the claims.

Ruby topped various music streaming charts worldwide. Ten out of 15 songs from the album charted in the Global Spotify playlist. The digital version of the album features collaborations with artists like Dua Lipa, Doechii, FKJ, Kali Uchis, Childish Gambino, and Dominic Fike. Songs like Mantra, ExtraL, Love Hangover and Zen were pre-released to create a curiosity about the album.

Around the album's release, the Mantra singer hosted listening parties across the globe. She also hosted her concert The Ruby Experience in LA. The concert will then head to New York and Seoul as well. She has pledged a portion of the LA concert proceedings to the wildfire relief fund.

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In other news, Jennie will be performing at Coachella in April 2025. Fellow BLACKPINK member Lisa will also grace the stage, but in a separate set.