BLACKPINK’s Lisa addresses an old controversy in her new documentary, Always Lalisa: a leaked video from the group’s trainee years at YG Entertainment that shows members using the n-word while rapping.
Speaking to Variety around the film’s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 14, the 29-year-old apologized. She said that growing up in Thailand, she had never been taught what the word meant or why it was harmful, that she understands now and that she would never use it again.
Why it’s resurfacing now
The clip, which is more than a decade old, leaked in 2025 just before Lisa’s solo Coachella set, according to Billboard. In the documentary, she says she felt unable to respond publicly at the time.
About Always Lalisa
The film follows Lisa’s rise from YG’s first non-Korean trainee to global star. It includes interviews with her family and with The White Lotus creator Mike White, who cast her in the show’s Thailand-set third season. It opens in theaters Oct. 12.
Lisa also made clear that BLACKPINK isn’t going anywhere. Although the group wrapped its Deadline World Tour in January and has discussed taking a break, she told Variety she’d happily still be in the group at 50.
Our take
Using her own documentary to face this directly, instead of leaving it to a publicist’s statement, is the right call. Her apology doesn’t make excuses, and it shows the kind of growth many fans hoped to see. It also puts a spotlight on how little cultural education young trainees in the K-pop system have historically received.
