Jennie’s Like Jennie: Let Your SexyBack Flag Fly

I am going to reference Justin Timberlake’s groundbreaking and genre defining track SexyBack ft. Timbaland multiple times in this review, so it is good to have this link up front for you to have a listen. In a multitude of ways Jennie’s track Like Jennie is her SexyBack as she tries to break the K-pop mould she is cast in by being part of K-pop royalty, BLACKPINK. It’s shocking how similar the two tracks are in theme, how it impacts the artist’s brand, the musical arrangement and larger significance…I mean…she quotes Timbaland’s hook in the song. You can’t get much more on the nose than that, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Before we look at Like Jennie, I think it will be instructive to unpack everything surrounding SexyBack. The track itself came on Timberlake’s sophomore record, but is the track that really broke him. It was 2006…a time where Justin Timberlake was on top of the world as a key member of one of the biggest boy bands in history. However, not everything was joy in the kingdom of Timberlake. Oh no, Justin wanted to break free and make a name for himself, but if he kept being seen as ‘the NSYNC guy’ he was never going to get anywhere. So, let’s get Timbaland, get super sexy, swear a few times and have have this edgy pounding beat…abracadabra…you have SexyBack. The combination of Timbaland’s beats and Timberline’s vocal take this song over the top and boy band idol becomes sexy solo artist…mix this up with a few differences and you also have Harry Styles. All of that is probably overly simplistic, but there was a lot on the line with SexyBack and it came off.

Jennie is in a similar position. As BLACKPINK prepares for a world tour, members are putting out solo records as they contemplate life after K-pop stardom. Jennie, and others, see this as an opportunity to break out of their BLACKPINK casting and work on their own brand. Similar to Timberlake, Jennie doesn’t want to be known as “oh…that one from BLACKPINK.” Similar to SexyBack, Like Jennie is a mix of sharp synth and club drops. This combination is both a break from the cotton candy K-pop arrangements of BLACKPINK, but not too far to totally turn off fans. Jennie did a lot of the record’s production herself, but like Timberlake she brought in a production heavyweight, which in her case is Diplo. This explains the tight club beat drops throughout the record, which gives it some much needed pop life amongst the angsty synth.

Musically, I think Jennie is trying some new things, which work well. Lyrically on the other hand is something we have heard before. To me, it is basically SexyBack rinse and repeat. Jennie sings about being sexy, successful, how people want to be her, swears a bit and even drops Timbaland’s SexyBack hook in the track. Now, saying I have heard it before does not mean it’s bad. I mean, I love Jason Statham action movies and I feel like it is always the same story with him wearing a different hat. If you do something well, I don’t care if it sounds like something I have heard before…Oasis, The Beatles are on line 1. Jennie’s vocal is distilled pop gold and the cool vocal loops and effects she does with Diplo really work. It’s not super deep, but music is supposed to be fun and make you bop your head. Tick. Tick.

Much like Timberlake’s SexyBack, Jennie is using this anti-BLACKPINK track to announce herself as her own artist. Even though I don’t think it is as successful as Timberlake, I do think it separates her as an artist in her own right. In fact, she is trying a lot of different things on Ruby. Some work and some don’t, but she is genuinely giving it a crack, which I respect. I’m not sure which artist will come out of BLACKPINK with the best career, but Jennie shows a lot of promise on this record and I am interested to see what other solo stuff she comes out with.

Listen to Like Jennie