Super couple, power couple… are you ready?
It’s been a year of rumours and speculation. Last May a photo of what looked BLACKPINK’s Jennie and BTS’s V on a road trip on Jeju Island in Korea was shared on social media. More photos soon followed, spreading like wildfire on social media, as fans of both bands argued back and forth over whether or not they were legit.
Things have been pretty quiet for months… until this week. V was seen flying out of Seoul a few days ago heading to Paris. And Jennie just happens to be in France too ahead of the premiere of The Idol at the Cannes Film Festival. Now we have the visuals: Jennie and V, in the city of love, holding hands on a late-night walk along the Seine.
This is real! And it’s major!
These are two members of the two biggest bands in the world. As I said last night, this would be like if Baby Spice Emma Bunton and JC Chasez were dating back in the day – imagine the meltdown that would have happened in the 90s if that actually happened. It’s 2023. Jennie and V are legit. Is everyone OK?
As for what this means, beyond the fact that they are a fact…
It’s been at least a year now since they’ve been together. And these are two experienced celebrities, they know that people have been talking about them, they know they are a heatscore, they know how to be careful… and now they’ve just been papped in Paris, not exactly a low-key location considering the mayhem they’ve both caused on their own on previous trips there, holding hands along the Seine. An indication that they’re less reticent about hiding their situation?
With celebrities in Korea, it’s not unusual when news breaks about their romantic lives for them to release statements confirming that they’re dating. This is (still) wild to me, because that’s not how it works in the west. Imagine if, for example, Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny issued a press release to confirm their relationship? But that’s what happens in Korea. Late last year, IU, arguably the most famous female pop star in Korea and Lee Jong Suk, one of the most famous actors in Korea, were revealed to be dating. Which resulted in this agency releasing this comment:
“Hello. This is HighZium Studio.
This is an official statement regarding the exclusive article about actor Lee Jong Suk.
Actor Lee Jong Suk and IU recently progressed from being close acquaintances into being a couple, and they are maintaining a serious relationship.
Please show lots of support so they can continue their beautiful relationship.
Thank you.”
And then each of them posting messages on their personal social media accounts telling their fans about it! Like how they went from friendship to more than friendship and asking fans to cheer on their love. Again, this is NOT how celebrities operate in the west. But this is the ecosystem that Jennie and V belong to. So it’ll be interesting to see whether or not they follow the same template or if they just let these new visuals do the work.
