K-pop superstars Blackpink chose not to grace the MTV VMAs with their physical presence despite being nominated. Rosé, Jennie, Jisoo, and Lisa weren’t seen on the Newark, New Jersey red carpet or inside at the ceremony.
Blackpink’s “Pink Venom” was up for Best K-Pop video, Best Choreography, Best Art Direction, and Best Editing. It’s worth noting that the only artist award is best K-pop video, which went to Stray Kids. The rest are honors that would go to their production team.
While the exact whereabouts of all four members during the ceremony weren’t clear, Rosé was in the area earlier that week.
Rosé was seen in New York prior to the ceremony. Not only did she attend a New York Fashion Week event, but she was also photographed at Electric Lady Studios with Taylor Swift on September 9, the night a party appeared to be held there.
Blackpink has had a huge year, making history when they became the first K-pop art to headline Coachella in April. “It feels absolutely unreal,” Rosé told Billboard that month. “I think performing for Coachella in 2019 was a moment that really woke us up as BLACKPINK—to be motivated, to dream on and dream big. But we never expected anything as big as being the headliner of a festival we’ve all grown up admiring and hoping someday we could find ourselves in the crowd of.”
Jennie later spoke to Dua Lipa on her podcast released in July about the four girls’ trainee days and how they made a point to maintain their individuality throughout the process. “I’ve actually never really broken down how I did it, but the people who knew the importance of keeping their own identity and character within the training system are the people that are in the group right now, like, a lot of people got lost on the way because we were so focused to satisfy the people that we were working with, when we weren’t sure who we were doing it for and how it can identify us in the future,” she said. “Because it’s literally years of training. It’s not just a couple of hours. So you get really drawn into into the lifestyle that they put us in. And I think the girls and I were…I don’t know if it is, is it too controversial to say? I don’t know. I’m like, okay, yeah. [The] girls and I try to find our own voice and character. Whilst we had like, 30 other people training with us, and I guess our labels saw us trying and saw something really, really special.”
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Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.