LISA has spent years building a global identity as one of BLACKPINK’s biggest stars, but her new single strips that identity back to where it started. “SaWaDiKa,” released September 3, 2026, is the lead single from her upcoming EP “PRESS PLAY,” and it’s built entirely around her Thai heritage, from its title down to the streets it was filmed on.
A Title Rooted in a Thai Greeting
The song takes its name from “sawatdee ka,” the formal greeting used by women in Thai, and LISA builds the track’s chorus around that phrase as both an introduction and a boast. Rather than treating her nationality as a footnote, the song leans into it directly, weaving in a second Thai phrase later in the track that translates to praise for a job well done, alongside references to the baht, Thailand’s currency, and a nod to Bangkok’s iconic tuk-tuks. The result is a song that functions as both a rap showcase and a cultural postcard, delivered entirely on her own terms.
Written by LISA alongside Thom Bridges, Mark Williams, Raul Cubina, Rachel West and Danny Chung, with production from Bridges and Ojivolta, the track moves through a shape-shifting beat that critics have described as a return to her sharpest rap instincts, trading the more pop-leaning hooks of recent singles for dense, rhythmically aggressive verses. A brief, more melodic pre-chorus offers the song’s only real breathing room before it snaps back into full boast mode.
The Video: Filmed Entirely in Her Hometown
The accompanying music video was shot in Bangkok and directed by Bang Jae Yeob, and it leans just as hard into Thai identity as the song itself. LISA appears in a Muay Thai ring at one point and rides through the city in a tuk-tuk at another, moving through a series of instantly recognizable local landmarks while wearing looks that include a red cut-out leather bodysuit and boxing shorts branded with the song’s title in rhinestones. The rollout leading up to release included a global “Hello Sawadika” campaign, with the word “hello” translated into eleven languages and physical billboards appearing around Bangkok ahead of the official announcement.
Where ‘SaWaDiKa’ Fits in LISA’s Bigger 2026
The single doesn’t arrive in isolation. It follows LISA’s history-making performance of “Goals” alongside Anitta and Rema at the 2026 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony in June, a moment that made her the first female K-pop act and first Thai artist ever to headline a World Cup opening show. “SaWaDiKa” is her first solo single of the year, and it sets up “PRESS PLAY,” a six-track EP arriving October 23 through LLOUD Co, her follow-up to 2025’s debut album “Alter Ego.” The project’s press materials describe it as LISA at her most personal, framed as both a celebration of how far she’s come and a reminder of where her story began.
The EP also lands just weeks before LISA makes another kind of history: her first-ever concert residency, “VIVA LA LISA,” opens at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on November 13, with additional dates on November 14, 27 and 28.
A Crowded Year for BLACKPINK Solo Releases
LISA’s rollout is part of a broader wave of BLACKPINK solo activity this year. Jennie released her “Fallen Angel” EP on August 28, Jisoo followed with the single “Click” on September 4, and Rosé has reportedly been working on new material of her own throughout the year. That timing puts LISA’s “PRESS PLAY” in direct conversation with her groupmates’ individual eras, each staking out a distinct identity outside the group.
| Member | 2026 Solo Project | Release Format | Defining Theme |
|---|---|---|---|
| LISA | “PRESS PLAY” EP | 6 tracks, Oct. 23 | Thai heritage, personal origin story |
| JENNIE | “Fallen Angel” EP | 3-track digital release | Acoustic, vulnerable songwriting |
| JISOO | “Click” (single) | Standalone single | Cinematic, visual-forward pop |
| ROSÉ | Reported new material | Unconfirmed | Unconfirmed |
What separates “SaWaDiKa” from that lineup is how explicitly it’s tied to a single, specific cultural identity rather than a broader emotional theme. Where Jennie’s EP leaned into stripped-down vulnerability, LISA’s lead single is a full-scale reclamation of her nationality as a creative statement, delivered with the same confidence and visual spectacle that’s defined her biggest hits.
What Comes Next
With “PRESS PLAY” still seven weeks from release at the time “SaWaDiKa” dropped, LISA has left plenty of room for additional teasers and singles before the full EP lands. Between the new music, the Toronto International Film Festival premiere of her documentary “Always Lalisa,” and the upcoming Las Vegas residency, this fall is shaping up to be the most concentrated stretch of solo output in her career, and “SaWaDiKa” makes clear she’s using it to put her roots front and center rather than in the background.
