On a cold and rainy night in Newark, New Jersey, BLACKPINK fans (better known as BLINKS) came prepared in their best attire. Crowds entered the arena with their pink puffer jackets and black sequined skirts, mimicking the girl group’s iconic merch: a lightstick formed into a pink heart-shaped hammer. Before the concert even began, fans waved their BI-Ping-Bong with a vigorous passion to the beat of their music videos playing on the big screens next to the stage. The exuberant energy was set for BLACKPINK’s entrance, and the moment they stepped on stage, they absolutely delivered.

It was the third time that Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé and Lisa graced the stage at Prudential Center this year. The first time, they released their long-awaited comeback single “Pink Venom” and performed the song at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards back in August and the group walked away from the awards victorious with many firsts. They were the first all-female K-Pop group to perform, Lisa was the first K-Pop solo act to win best K-Pop performance and the group was the first to win Best Metaverse Performance for Blackpink The Virtual – PUBG. On the first day of their two-day “Born Pink World Tour” Newark stop, the girls admitted that they were shy and nervous to be on stage after not being on tour for three years. However, they ramped up the energy on the second day to give their all to their fans.

The four-piece strutted the stage with confidence to the first song, “How You Like That” from their debut studio album The Album. Their fierceness never stopped as they transitioned into “Pretty Savage” with their signature staunch and seamless choreography. When it came to introducing themselves, they were pumped to give a great show. “It was intense yesterday, but today I feel completely blown away,” Rosé said of the crowd.

Throughout the first half of the concert, the group performed back-to-back hits like “Lovesick Girls,” “Kill This Love,” “Crazy for You,” and “Playing with Fire” which they all executed with the same carefree feelings portrayed in the songs, yet maintained a bold intensity. They launched into the sentimental “Tally” from their latest album Born Pink, which still holds up the strong girl feelings with the lyrics “Yeah, I say ‘f—k it’ when I feel it / ‘Cause no one’s keeping tally, I do what I want with you I like.” The members were also joined by the grooving live band, The Band Six (who also played with YG Entertainment labelmates Big Bang), and their dedicated backup dancers for their latest smash single “Pink Venom.” Amid their lively performances, the quartet wasn’t afraid to give credit when it was due. BLACKPINK made sure to keep mentioning the hard work and love that the people who constantly support them showed off during the show.

After showing off the stunning songs from their new album, each member highlighted their skills on their solo stages. Jennie kicked it off by singing her single “Moonlight,” adorning the stage with an elegant balance of flirtiness, regality and mystery. Next up was Rosé, who sang “On the Ground” from her solo release -R- and charmed the crowd with the versatility of the feel-good song. Lisa perfected a mashup of her incredibly viral songs “LaLisa” and “Money” by commanding the stage and showing off her decades-long dance expertise and flexible pole dancing. Lastly, Jisoo finished it off by covering Camilla Cabello’s “Liar” which was met with a rupture of cheers and applause from fans across the arena.

The girls reunited as a whole for a smooth rendition of the second single off of Born Pink “Shut Down” and popped their personalities in “Typa Girl.” During the dance exemplar, “Ddu-Ddu-Du-Du,” they instructed their fans to point their fingers in sync with the chorus, and rest assured, the crowd echoed the vibrancy that BLACKPINK exuded on the stage. They closed off the set with their fan-favorite song “Forever Young” but returned once again for a memorable encore. The members appeared in their own merch, feeling very loose, and showed off a goofy side of themselves by being absolutely bubbly and bouncy during the last three songs.

During the climax of “Yeah Yeah Yeah,” the younger members Lisa and Rosé gave their elder members Jennie and Jisoo piggyback rides and they ran down the extended stage giggling, much to the fans’ enjoyment. The night finally concluded with lots of love for fans as they rounded it off with “Stay” and “As If It’s Your Last” to bombastic confetti work, lots of hand hearts, and waving. The warmth and attachment between BLACKPINK and Blinks will always remain sacred and for two nights, Prudential Center shined bright with pink love.

cr. StyleCaster