JISOO is a former BLACKPINK member, and while the group did not disband they have been on solo projects and journeys.
Attracting over 79+ million Instagram followers and generating billions of streams, JISOO ignited her meteoric solo rise in 2023. She made history with her debut single album Me, netting a series of accolades and popping off as “the best-selling album by a female soloist in South Korea” and “the first to sell over a million copies.” With the breakout” (FLOWER). JISOO has recently published her new album called AMORTAGE, and it’s all about love and emotions.
The name itself is a mix of “amor” (which means love in Spanish) and “tage,” hinting at us that love can feel like a long-term commitment, with heartfelt problems you may face along the way. There are four songs on this album -Earthquake, Your Love, TEARS, and Hugs & Kisses. JISOO ultimately shows us her personal journey through the highs and lows of love.
This album was able to show more of her vulnerable and honest side. I feel like she was able to really show and tell what she wanted today, she really did pour her heart into every song.
With the first song on the album, “Earthquake” sets the emotional tone for the album. I found both the lyrics and the music video to be as accurate as the name it is. The song opens with a soft instrumental beat, and it really did capture the uncertainty feeling when something starts shifting in a relationship.
Through the music video the tempo builds and it starts to feel really intense, it honestly felt like her world started to crumble. Some capturing lyrics were “Every promise shakes the ground beneath me” and “You smiled like nothing cracked, while I was breaking.” I feel like it was stating the vulnerability that comes from feeling alone in a relationship where everything’s falling apart. In the music video, JISOO is in a dull and dark office and she receives a text from her lover. That message triggered an emotional “earthquake”. She was also strapped to a lie detector and later experienced a car crash in slow motion with questions that questioned that relationship.
These moments symbolize the chaos that comes with love. With these visuals like cracks in glass and flickering lights illustrated her feelings and how she feels during an early relationship. By the end of this song, it feels like the feeling of emotional dissociation you start to question a relationship. My favorite part from this song was probably how real it felt just from listening and looking at the music video.
“Your Love” brings a shift, a warmth but also vulnerability. The song opens with soft guitar strums which create a nostalgic atmosphere. A capturing lyric would be “Your love, it’s all I’ve been waiting for, I’ll hold on forevermore.” These words captured the feeling of the emotional attachment someone might have for someone else who feels like the missing piece of your life. The music video enhances this feeling, showing JISOO in different settings, her surroundings blur. This can symbolize how love can feel both magical and someone who’s hard to get. Love how it highlights the bittersweet nature of love. I also really like these other lyrics like “I’m drowning in your love, but I can’t breathe” reveal the differences of love. It can be both a source of comfort but also overwhelming. In the end, Your Love conveys the complexity of love
“TEARS” to me felt like the big centerpiece of the album, capturing the lingering pain of heartbreak. Personally, I really liked the soft piano melody and slow tempo. JISOO sang lines such as “You never said goodbye, just left me in the silence,” and “Every tear I cry is just a memory falling.” These lyrics conveyed the sorrow of being left without closure. Trying to make peace with something that never really ended. The music video highlights how JISOO is shown alone in a room recalling her past relationship reminiscing photos, letters, and a sweater she clutches tightly. As the video progresses, she remains standing, silent and strong, showing how she was struggling at the beginning but was able to bring herself back up and it showed through how she was glowing. TEARS was about how you deal with sadness and learning to carry on and being able to uplift yourself.
“Hugs & Kisses” closes AMORTAGE with a sense of comfort, hope, and emotional closure after the intensity and heartfelt lyrics of the previous tracks. I really liked the beat of this song since it was very calming and soothing, with soft melodies, and guitar tones. JISOO’s vocals are soothing, she reflects on how love is not so painful, but as something healing. I liked lyrics like “With every hug and kiss, I found pieces of myself” expressing how love can help rebuild someone after loss and heartbreak. The music video embraces just that by showing JISOO in scenes surrounded by old photos. We see her dancing, laughing, journaling. These moments represent healing and rediscovery. Hugs & Kisses felt like it was about a quiet healing and beginnings, being able to find peace.
Overall, AMORTAGE is a deeply personal album that shows JISOO’s growth not just as a solo artist, but also being able to share her story. Each of the four songs represents a different stage. From the chaos of heartbreak in “Earthquake,” to holding on to love in “Your Love,” the quiet heartbreak and being able to get back up from “TEARS,” and the healing in “Hugs & Kisses.” Together, these songs represent the experiences of falling apart and still being able to find your way back to yourself.
As the title states amor (love) and tage (commitment) can reflect on how love can be both sweet but also somewhat of a burden. JISOO was able to fully express about heartbreaks but also about what happens after it, the healing begins, and being able to hold space for love again.
I feel like this album can be really relatable to those who have gone through a heartbreak and healing through the process of it which is something JISOO was able to showcase through these songs and represent that many aren’t alone, and many people are going through similar situations. My overall rating for this album would be a solid 8.5/10.
