It's here: Rosé has finally released her first solo album, rosie, an intimate look into the end of a relationship and how she processed it over the past few years.
Rosie comes after years of Rosé's success as part of the K-pop girl group BLACKPINK — alongside Jennie, Lisa, and Jisoo — one of the most successful groups of the past decade. The 27-year-old New Zealand singer had previously explored her solo sound with a pair of songs in 2021, “On the Ground” and “Gone," showing a love for power ballads and acoustic guitars. Leading up to the album, Rosé released her biggest solo song yet, “APT” with Bruno Mars, which has so far spent six weeks at no. 1 on the Billboard Global 200.
There's a memorable scene in the BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky Netflix documentary from a few years ago, when Rosé sits on the floor in a dance studio, playing guitar and singing to herself at night. “I have a hard time falling asleep. I have a lot of thoughts running through my head. Singing is kind of like stress relief. Everything kinda makes sense when I'm doing this.” Those feelings are clear on rosie, a cathartic album that isn't afraid to delve into her insecurities and fears around a sometimes toxic relationship.
Below, Teen Vogue editors P. Claire Dodson, Sara Delgado, Donya Momenian, and Aiyana Ishmael listened through Rosé's debut album rosie, chatting through her career up to this point with BLACKPINK and how she's exploring her own voice.
P. Claire Dodson, Assoc. Culture Director: so how are we all feeling about this rosé album?
Aiyana Ishmael, Associate Editor: Outside of BLACKPINK I have not heard a single thing about this lady so I feel I am going to be a very unbiased listener to her music haha.
Claire: lmao aiyana
Sara Delgado, Editor-at-Large: I am just ready for the breakup anthems
Claire: I'm a blackpink fan and rosé has always been my bias, so i'm really interested to see how this goes.... I loved "on the ground" so much
Sara: oh, yes, you were such a fan of “On the Ground” — i’m hoping she deviates a little from that sound here
Sara: we need a more mature version of Rosé!
Donya Momenian, Fashion & Beauty Associate Editor: i liked apt so much so i have high hopes
Aiyana: Three K-pop stans and Aiyana walk into a listening party
Claire: HA
Sara: aiyana, get ready lol
Donya: hoping for a secret emo kid banger
Claire: that feels likely
Donya: her december cover is so good
Sara: shall we hit play? are we all sonically and emotionally ready?
Aiyana: I'm excited!!
“number one girl”
Claire: I love “sweetheart of your city”
Sara: this song has been out for a minute, and i have to admit i liked it from the getgo but it has really grown on me even more
Aiyana: Okay I had no expectations going in but I already relate to her omg that's sister
Sara: i love a simple piano arrangement
Donya: it's a yes from me
Sara: Aiyana’s therapy session is open
Claire: it's an interesting album opener for sure, operates in that “we can't be friends” realm of “is this song about a person or the fans?”
Sara: so right
Donya: was on the fence but the chorus got me
Sara: she’s setting the tone
Aiyana: I'm a lover girl at heart so anything in this realm will have me becoming a Rosé fan
Claire: she's such a lover girl
Sara: letting us know she’s vulnerable and not just a super star
Sara: that “tell me … that i’m enough” and “i need it and don’t know why”
Claire: it hurts
Aiyana: This should be in a YA coming of age story where the main character is a dancer and she's professing her love through movement
Aiyana: Someone call Netflix right now
Sara: you are so right… it’s giving TATB soundtrack
Claire: she sounds so good live doing this song too
Sara: the airy top notes
Sara: her trademark
Claire: reallly good showcase for her voice
Aiyana: Starting an album with a ballad is bold. I like it
Aiyana: Sets the tone
Sara: the production getting much more anthemic as she explodes
Donya: would love this as a kid sitting in the back of my mom's mini van staring out the rainy window
Sara: and we dont even notice
Sara: love how it presents her in a new light — she’s not BLACKPINK’s Rosé, she’s just Rosie here
Claire: laid bare
Sara: yup, same struggles as everyone else
Sara: also sonically, it’s just her bread and butter but stripped down and elevated
“3am”
Sara: lol this opening line
Aiyana: She's so me "just saw a red flag going to pretend I didn't see that"
Donya: too real. so true bestie
Sara: rosie 
sza
Aiyana: Okay this is a fun beat
Sara: oh i love this tone
Aiyana: It's very summer, skateboarding hanging with friends
Claire: have to be honest this is sort of getting into ed sheeran territory...
Aiyana: LOL. Not my fave ginger omg
Sara: aiyana the visuals for the album are at a skatepark
Aiyana: OMG
Sara: you sure you don’t stan already?
Aiyana: Let me lock in
Sara: hahah claire, it’s the strums
Aiyana: It also has an early 2000s sound to it. I wonder who produced!
Claire: Producers were Jake Weinberg (Zach Bryan, quinnie) and Ojivolta (Kanye West, Lil Nas X, also did Rosé's “On the Ground”)
Sara: it’s giving avril for me, but poppier
Claire: def a bit of avril!
Aiyana: Very Avril. I need to listen to this song the way God intended: driving my car in the suburbs with the windows down
Donya: exactly
Sara: exactly. it’s giving late summer
Claire: breezy
Donya: this would have been a summer bop
two years
Claire: this is taylor-y
Aiyana: Why this sound like TS
Claire: jack antonoff did you sneak in here
Claire: getaway car vibe
Sara: the change feels so ominous
Donya: i liked the enunciation on chemical there
Aiyana: This switch from first two feel different
Sara: love this vocal layering, oddly inhuman
Aiyana: Kinda like the first two tracks are sisters and this is a cousin
Claire: “even had a funeral for you in my head”... yes
Sara: lol i was thinking this was very antonoff coded too
Aiyana: Sorry to the stans this is not my favorite
Donya: i feel like this would be on the breaking dawn soundtrack
Donya: interpret that how you will, to each their own
Aiyana: I am new to my girl but this doesn't feel like what she gave me in the first two tracks. If I had to hear this song first I wouldn't be tempted to keep listening to her. But also maybe because it does sound like a scrapped Taylor Song even vocally
Sara: this is def slower, not my cup of tea precisely but it has its audience
Claire: i'm a sucker for a synth
Sara: this is more “on the ground” coded
Claire: yes!!
Sara: so more og rosé i’d say
Donya: i cant move on either bestie
Sara: gotta keep a little of the old you
Sara: the synths did indeed eat
Donya: i have high hopes for this one
“toxic till the end”
Claire: toxic till the end ! spacey vibe
Aiyana: Needed this album lowkey senior year of high school
Sara: this feels like a more natural progression from the previous song. again very ’00s, YA
Aiyana: I prefer this over 2 Year
Sara: “i present to you the ex." in case there were any doubts
Claire: it made me blush a little… spoken word stuff in songs is tough for me
Aiyana: Y'all who is she singing about lol. Who broke her heart
Donya: so manipulating part is very satisfying
Sara: it’s effective
Sara: the million dollar question
Aiyana: The art of talking on the track is a skill that takes a lot of work
Sara: this was very taylor swift-coded at the beginning and now it’s very olivia rodrigo-coded
"drinks or coffee"
Aiyana: Why I'm dancing in my seat
Sara: immediately yes
Aiyana: Okay Miss Girl
Claire: little afrobeat moment
Donya: oh this is more fun
Sara: this bubbly beat — the way she blends the vocals to the beat change is tickling my brain
Claire: agreeeed
Donya: yes that was great
Sara: i wish we could hear less of her gasps for air to keep the composition cleaner, but i really like this
Aiyana: NGL I am eating it up
"APT." feat. Bruno Mars
Claire: apt time
Sara: SOTY!
Claire: seconded!
Aiyana: She likes to talk on the track
Aiyana: I KNOW THIS SONG
Claire: in this one it's really working
Sara: just picture me chanting
Donya: love absolutely love
Sara: kissy face kissy face
Sara: it’s so visual this song
Sara: and so engaging
Aiyana: I love this song it's a hit
Sara: like talk about a perfect formula
Claire: obviously draws on some 2000s vibes & the ting tings etc but feels very fresh
Sara: right it’s familiar but with a twist
Claire: good addition to karaoke duet canon
Sara: the layering of bruno’s “whatevers” is underrated
Donya: "just meet me at the" part feels so perfect every time
Claire: i love them collaborating together. genius
Aiyana: I wonder what is her favorite Bruno Mars song is that made her want to work with him
Claire: I think she said she went to his concert and realized she knew and loved every song
“gameboy”
Aiyana: I love the sound of this already
Sara: ok ’00s
Aiyana: A little r&b feel
Sara: cry me a river girl version
Claire: no exactly
Donya: OOOOOOOOOOOH
Aiyana: Oh yeah I love this track. It's smooth
Donya: get him girl
Sara: this is playful
Sara: the repetition of “break”
Donya: this song is perf for a grwm after the end of a situationship
Sara: this guitar base is saur good, it’s for the ’90s kids
Aiyana: Someone needs to investigate. I need a 5,000 word essay on who she is talking about in all of these songs. That person needs to be identified.
Sara: speak your truth, D
Donya: when you pull off your most perfect makeup look
Aiyana: The beauty girls get it
Donya: thats why her makeup is always so good, she knows heartbreak
Aiyana: This to me will be in my top three I feel confidently about it.
Sara: same
Sara: though i wish it was more r&b towards the end
"stay a little longer"
Claire: more pretty piano
Claire: love it
Aiyana: I am a sucker for an emosh ballad
Aiyana: She will win me over with all of these
Sara: at a bar after a breakup piano to be exact
Sara: ok her voice sounds so different here
Aiyana: I like the pain in her voice. it really adds to the song and makes it feel a bit more real
Sara: the controlled strains, they really aid the message, yes
Aiyana: NGL she vocally has an interesting range. i feel like without knowing you might question if these are all the same people
Donya: it's so captivating
Donya: similar feeling as listening to brothers osborne
Claire: fascinating reference donya
Sara: she’s definitely leaning into the alto more in this one and i’m not mad!
Donya: very moving
Sara: donya, elaborate
Donya: i feel a lot of feelings rn
Aiyana: Need the research paper, Donya
“not the same”
Sara: “not the same” and quite literally
Aiyana: This sounds like someone
Donya: and really strong voices
Sara: because this is so different
Aiyana: Cannot pinpoint but it sounds like someone
Claire: is it... camp rock?
Claire: demi
Aiyana: LMAO
Sara: oh this melody is very familiar
Aiyana: Yes DEMI omg
Claire: demi tones
Sara: OMG SHE DOES SOUND LIKE CAMP ROCK DEMI
Aiyana: Movie one Demi
Aiyana: Scrapped song from the award-winning movie Camp Rock
Donya: so she's kind of a music chameleon
Aiyana: Chameleon is perfect word
Donya: she needs to do the jimmy fallon impersonation wheel thing
Claire: album is a collage of the mid 2000s to mid 2010s
Aiyana: I think that's also very fun for her first solo album
Sara: i love the arpeggios in the background
Aiyana: Play around with sounds and see what sticks like spaghetti on the wall
Sara: sucker for a guitar
Donya: she said the f word! how fun!
Donya: i like the contrast of her voice and the music
Aiyana: I actually really like this song
Claire: me too
Sara: the ending
Aiyana: Not the ending
“call it the end”
Sara: she said “enough fun”
Aiyana: She said new sound b*tches! (edited)
Claire: she sort of is bringing a country singer sensibility to a lot of these
Sara: “the one or the one that got away”
Donya: wait not to go back but it reminded me of brothers osborne because they are both called stay a little longer
Aiyana: She made this for the girlies who cannot make up their mind
Sara: ouch
Donya: silly me
Sara: this one is very country vocally, claire
Sara: i love the juxtaposition with the more simple compositions
Claire: if you went in expecting this album to be like APT you might be surprised lol, but I think her voice is so unique and pretty and dexterous that it's working even when it's sad for long periods
Sara: this and “number one girl” just relying mainly on piano and the voice
Sara: they could be so much different had she gone for a full arrangement
Donya: listen to this after “his car isnt yours” by wendy and just cry it all out besties
“too bad for us”
Sara: “APT.” was the sprinkle of fun, and the rest is pen and paper
Sara: i love the guitar with the voice there, the mirrored progressions
Sara: a different type of fun
Donya: ROSES?
Sara: “the roses don’t grow here”
Sara: loaded
Donya: i liked the chorus a lot
Donya: made my head bob
Claire: pretty strings
Claire: this little cinematic backing
Claire: verging on movie trailer
Donya: the way she sings "disappear" and "here" is so nice
Aiyana: Ngl this not doing anything for me but it's cute
Sara: i truly appreciate how bold she’s being about just not being sure of things — feeling conflicted and even contradicting herself. it’s so refreshing for any pop star, but especially coming from the k-pop scene
Claire: great point!
Sara: the little cinematic verse you mentioned
Sara: it’s reminding me of “P.S I Love You”
Donya: i think this is one of her better bridges
Sara: this song feels like an irish cliff, i can’t explain it
“dance all night”
Claire: final track!
Sara: ok this is fun again
Sara: this melody is also very familiar!!!!
Claire: this is maybe the one nostalgia-y one that isn't tracking for me.... it feels like song that plays during a wedding reception in a movie
Sara: like at the very end?
Sara: freaky friday style?
Claire: it's sort of trying to be 70s but with that very 2010 approach
Aiyana: It also gives transitional scene in a movie where she's trying on different looks for a big event
Sara: i feel like it’s a bit to chill for that
Donya: the end of freaky friday? the ultimate?
Sara: but it’s definitely giving credit song
Aiyana: Interesting way to end an album
Donya: i loved the ultimate
Claire: I love a lot of what she's doing on rosie but this one is a bit of a lackluster ending to an album
Claire: that is otherwise compelling
Aiyana: I am intrigued by her
Sara: i guess it works to signal that we need to leave
Aiyana: She is a musical enigma to me as a newer listener
Donya: i feel like maybe to end on not very sad girl vibes
Donya: a little pick yourself up and dance all night
Donya: wait that's it? ... so no emo banger? 
Sara: there is one hidden track in her vinyl, i wonder if that one would bridge this for a more cohesive bow
Aiyana: I honestly would've preferred a sad girl ending
Claire: love her voice, I will definitely keep listening to this... some really interesting parts and also some that aren't hitting as hard
Claire: is that vampirehollie @sara
Sara: yes!
Aiyana: I think it'll be a strong start to her solo career and I am excited to see where she lands with finding her sound
Donya: maybe the emo song was the friends we made along the way
Sara: there’s def some emo
Claire: agreed. she can do a lot! so it'll be more a matter of what her eventual vibe wants to be
Sara: but it’s more heartbreak-tinged
Donya: yeah late 2010s emo
Claire: it's also hard because APT. is so so good
Claire: so it sets a high bar and then the rest of the album doesn't feel quite as exciting
Sara: i really want to see what she uses as inspo later down the line — a breakup can only last you so much and she’s said the album was the way to let go. i’d love to see her to take on a conceptual album.
Sara: “APT.” is definitely the star
Sara: should we do a quick top 3 for everyone?
Claire: I'm rooting for her! Excited to see where she goes from here
Aiyana: “a breakup can only last you so much”
Aiyana: Taylor is calling
Claire: top 3..... “APT.,” “number one girl,” “two years”
Sara: i think mine are “APT.” "gameboy,” and “drinks or coffee”
Sara: “number one girl” is def up there too
Claire: i do like drinks or coffee and think that'll be a hit
Claire: i don't love that outro though… we get it!!! you'll get drinks or coffee!
Sara: it loses steam but the beginning is too good
Aiyana: Top Three: gameboy, number one girl, and drinks or coffee
Donya: my top 3 are APT, gameboy, and stay a little longer (brothers osborne's sister)
Aiyana: Honorable mention is the Ed Sheeran banger: 3am
Sara: ok a lot of overlap!
Sara: “toxic till the end” will grow on me, i fear
Claire: agreed
Aiyana: The beginning half of the album is the stronger portion, in my opinion
Donya: i liked toxic til the end too
Donya: i think she should make an emo version of toxic til the end
Donya: it could go with some finger pointing
Claire: good idea
Sara: any final thoughts?
Donya: just excited to see her solo career flourish and grow!
Sara: i think it’s a pretty solid introduction — not every song can be a massive hit but it’s cohesive sonically and lyrically. it’s so hard when expectations are so high but i’m excited to see her play with sounds even more
Claire: and in the meantime, i want to sing some of these at karaoke asap
