Album Review: Rosé – rosie | Redbrick Slider (Music)

Rosé’s anticipated debut studio album, rosie, was released on December 6, 2024. With BlackPink’s decision to not renew their solo contracts with YG Entertainment, fans looked forward to new sounds from Rosé as she promised to have more creative control. The album has 12 songs with a central theme of love, longing, and heartbreak, letting listeners into her past and allowing them to “feel much closer to her,” as mentioned in her Instagram announcement.

As rosie is written as a narrative piece, it starts off soft and emotional with ‘number one girl,’ the second released single that delves into her desperation for a guy to want her as much as she wants him. Then it moves to ‘3 am,’ a ballad where she talks about seeing the red flags in this guy, but still needs him in her life, showing her vulnerability. The story gets deeper with ‘two years,’ where she alludes to a past relationship she felt stuck in and could not move on from. It then transitions to the third released single, ‘toxic till the end,’ showing a toxic relationship and conflicts. It is a pop-rock song that moves a bit away from the mellow vibe of the start of the album.

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The album has 12 songs with a central theme of love, longing, and heartbreak, letting listeners into her past and to “feel much closer to her”

It continues with the lighter vibe in ‘drinks or coffee,’ a catchy song about seeing the guy in a new light and the possibility of friendship. Next comes ‘APT,’ the first released single, and most popular song in the album. Featuring Bruno Mars, it is an upbeat fun song that still shows yearning, but the vocal chemistry between Rosé and Bruno makes it hard not to dance to. The heavy atmosphere returns with ‘gameboy,’ talking about breakups and being played, then moves to ‘stay a little longer,’ begging him to wait a bit before he goes. The smooth track ‘not the same’ comes next, showing how the relationship and partners have evolved.

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This 12-part story of an album takes listeners through the journey of a girl in her twenties figuring out her love life

The album starts to close with ‘call it the end,’ where she finally begins to accept the breakup and has to decide what will be next. It moves to ‘too bad for us,’ talking about regrets and what could have been, but understanding there is nothing to go back to. It ends with ‘dance all night,’ showing her recovering from the breakup, moving on, and getting her life back together.

This 12-part story of an album takes listeners through the journey of a girl in her twenties figuring out her love life, and although it can be listened to in any order, I would recommend listening to it in its original order. The songs do have a constant theme and some emotional repetitions, but the delivery with different genres and moods, makes it an enjoyable album.