When K-pop super-label YG Entertainment introduced BLACKPINK in August 2016, the Korean music industry had no shortage of polished girl groups. What it didn't have was an act that could capture the world's attention upon debut and top the charts both at home and abroad.
A decade later, the quartet of Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa have sunk their teeth into pop culture and refuse to let go. During the first two months of 2026 alone, BLACKPINK closed out their first all-stadium tour, became the first musicians to earn 100 million subscribers on YouTube, and set a new sales record when their new project DEADLINE sold over 1.4 million copies worldwide on its first day.
But the blueprint for widespread impact was embedded in BLACKPINK's name from the beginning. "Pink," typically coded as a soft, feminine color, gets an entirely new edge the moment "Black" enters the picture, adding mystery, sophistication, and an edge; all making the perfect name for a group that refuses to be defined by one sound, style, or genre.
For all the accolades and spectacle of their careers, BLACKPINK have backed it up with a catalog that is far smarter, textured, and emotionally varied than a mainstream reputation suggests. From minimalist hip-hop to disco-kissed synth-pop to singles incorporating traditional Korean instruments, BLACKPINK's discography has always favored quality over bloat, delivering a pristine body of work over the past ten years. These are Complex's picks for their 15 best songs. Enjoy the hits and shop the exclusive limited-edition capsule collab between BLACKPINK, Disney and Complex.
15. "Ice Cream" with Selena Gomez
Album: THE ALBUM (2020)
Capturing the girls at their most unguardedly fun, this bubblegum banger with Selena Gomez brought a bit of sweetness during the first summer of the COVID-19 pandemic. What elevates "Ice Cream" above novelty status has to be Lisa, who weaponizes the song's playfulness to deliver some of her most inventive wordplay: "Snow cone chilly, get it free like Willy," "Play the part like Moses, keep it fresh like roses," all while referring to herself as "Mona Lisa kinda Lisa."
14. "Forever Young"
Album: SQUARE UP (2018)
“Forever Young” is an unabashed, unapologetic moment of pop euphoria. Tucked inside its tropical-house breakdown is a hook that reads like a psychic premonition: "BLACKPINK is the revolution." If only said once, it’d sound like a quick boast, but repeated over the infectious beat made it a declaration. Nearly a decade after the group's debut, it's safe to say BLACKPINK is indeed the revolution.
13. "You Never Know"
BLACKPINK rarely let their tough armor slip, which is exactly what makes a track like "You Never Know" so arresting. A quiet closer to their debut full-length album is one of the superstars' vulnerable moments and insight on the invisible weight of being part of the most scrutinized girl group on the planet: "But you'll never know unless you walk in my shoes… / 'Cause everybody sees what they wanna see / It's easier to judge me than to believe."
12. "As If It’s Your Last"
BLACKPINK's sole release in 2017 between their early EPs, "As If It's Your Last" revealed new sonic layers to the outfit, weaving together dance-pop, shimmery synth-pop, house, reggae, and moombahton over a disco-inflected groove. Since their first tour in 2018, the track has been a favorite for the group to save towards the end of concerts with that final chorus packing a full punch of joy that essentially demands confetti cannons.
11. "Tally"
Album: BORN PINK (2022)
BLACKPINK are arguably at their best when flipping expectations and traditional gender roles. "Tally" is where they say it with their whole chest: "I say 'fuck it' when I feel it / 'Cause no one's keeping tally, I do what I want with who I like / I ain't gon' conceal it / While you talking all that shit, I'll be getting mine." No metaphors, no softening, no apologies, but a message to anyone wasting their time stuck in misogyny or petty hatred.
10. "PLAYING WITH FIRE"
Album: SQUARE TWO (2016)
After the double punch of debut singles "BOOMBAYAH" and "WHISTLE" (keep reading to see where they land), "PLAYING WITH FIRE" revealed yet another dimension to the group. The quartet handled sleek, emotionally charged power-pop production with ease, letting all four members' vocal performances carry real heat to dissect romantic recklessness.
9. "GO"
Album: DEADLINE (2026)
That Chris Martin co-wrote "GO" with all four members is the kind of detail that only makes perfect sense once you hear the results. While the chorus carries BLACKPINK's sharpest production yet, the vocal moments are soft and luminous like a top Coldplay anthem, offering some tenderness before the hardstep breakdown. As the single meant to represent the group upon reaching 10 years together, "GO" incorporates both intimacy and force — another perfect pairing of BP attributes.
8. "BOOMBAYAH"
Album: SQUARE ONE (2016)
The first words we ever heard from BLACKPINK became their signature catchphrase, with Jennie announcing their arrival on "BOOMBAYAH" with "BLACKPINK in your area." Indeed, once the blitz of synths and 808s hit, the girls immediately solidified themselves among pop music's most exciting acts. The song was styled in the same vein as YG Entertainment's stable of beloved crossover acts like PSY, BIGBANG and 2NE1, with BLACKPINK offering a youthful, fresh take that brought out the best in producer Teddy. The song instantly proved BP's global appeal by debuting at No. 1 on Billboard's World Digital Song Sales chart as well.
7. "Lovesick Girls"
Album: THE ALBUM (2020)
No one was expecting the focus track single from our girls' first full-length to be a soft-hearted, aching pop song about persisting in love even when love keeps failing you. Yet "Lovesick Girls" arrived to further dismantle whatever assumptions remained about what defines BLACKPINK upon releasing their debut full-length. Bringing out the best in co-producer David Guetta, "Lovesick Girls" is BLACKPINK straightforward and emotional, leaning into a rare vulnerability that delivers a certain kind of musical magic for the group.
6. "JUMP"
Album: DEADLINE
Upon the release of "JUMP," co-producer Diplo shared on his Instagram that "the beautiful BLACKPINK ladies asked me to make a K-pop techno trance hardcore summer banger." While BP and Diplo feel like an obvious pairing for perfect crossover pop, "JUMP" felt like it pushed both artists into new creative territory, with listeners consistently returning to the techno throbber, making it to BLACKPINK's longest-charting hit on Billboard's Hot 100 and Pop Airplay charts.
5. "Kill This Love"
Album: KILL THIS LOVE (2019)
By 2019, there was already significant pressure on BLACKPINK to deliver at a scale that would justify the anticipation building around them globally. The drama of "Kill This Love"—marching percussion, horn-led production, and a cinematic chorus that sounds like a declaration of war against one's own heart and pop-music standards—impacted across all areas of entertainment with wins at the iHeartRadio Music Awards and People's Choice Awards, and even made its way onto the stage of RuPaul's Drag Race.
4. "DDU-DU DDU-DU"
Album: SQUARE UP (2018)
Somehow, BLACKPINK made the phrase "DDU-DU DDU-DU" part of the pop-music lexicon and sound…cool? Beyond changing up dictionaries, the track lets each woman do what she does best (Jennie and Lisa's raps are on point, while Rosé and Jisoo deliver pure emotion on the pre-chorus), and closes by warping the chorus into an unexpectedly twisting outro, setting up a sonic signature for the group.
3. "How You Like That"
Album: THE ALBUM (2020)
No BLACKPINK song shifts identity quite as brilliantly as "How You Like That." Regal horns quickly turn to brooding atmospheric production in a song full of pop pivots that deliver something entirely explosive by the end. The twisty, squelchy beat drops for the chorus commands listeners’ attention before elevating and evolving into the final section, where Jennie steps up and declares, "Bring out your boss bitch.” With her undeniable sense of authority, the callout felt like a revelation, not just because the explicit sentiment was unexpected from a K-pop act, but because of how natural it felt in the BLACKPINK ether, paving the way for bolder, grander statements from the group in the future.
2. "WHISTLE"
Album: SQUARE ONE (2016)
There is a version of BLACKPINK's debut that plays out very differently, where our introduction to the quartet comes via one high-tempo, synth-heavy banger that quickly boxes the group into a singular sonic identity. But that version didn't happen because of "WHISTLE."
While BLACKPINK was preparing for its debut in 2016, former creative director SINXITY pushed hard for a secondary single to deliver a more layered first impression. Alongside the explosive EDM-trap of "BOOMBAYAH," he insisted on the delicate "WHISTLE," a hip-hop/pop number built over minimal drum 'n' bass and a whimsical whistle hook. The track not only delivered one of the best performances of their career (Jennie's belting on the final chorus established her special vocal timbre that could have gone unnoticed without the track) but also firmly planted the seed of BLACKPINK's duality — the girls could be explosive and intimate, commanding and vulnerable, without either canceling out the other.
1. "Pink Venom"
Album: BORN PINK (2022)
"Pink Venom" was BLACKPINK's opening declaration to their second studio album, a moment that could reaffirm their place as the world's biggest girl band or find them suffering a dreaded sophomore slump only heightened by the fact that they were mostly barred from connecting with fans in person during their previous LP release. Stepping up to the challenge, the superstars made their most global statement via a personalized anthem.
With its expected bravado and sophisticated musicianship, "Pink Venom" also shares a deliberately Korean viewpoint. Opening with the plucking of Korea's six-stringed zither geomungo over a subtle but growing chant of the group's name, “Pink Venom” only kicks into high gear with a trap beat that blends with more traditional instruments like the gayageum. It's a song that shucks any interest and need for approval from Western standards, but still delivered undeniable international impact topping the Billboard Global 200 and even earning the group a No. 1 single on the official charts across territories like Australia, Hong Kong, India, New Zealand, the Netherlands, the Philippines and beyond.
"Pink Venom" is BLACKPINK's best, sharing something uniquely theirs for the world to enjoy. There exists no such thing as "pink venom" (though, that would be a great perfume name), but somehow BLACKPINK created something that felt visceral, real, and truly like it went “straight to your dome like whoa-whoa-whoa.” That’s the BLACKPINK signature sauce: the ability to bottle up and serve something entirely new for the entire world to enjoy as only the best artists can.