I will admit, back when Lisa was still under YG, I was not a big fan of her solo debut. I liked her b-side ‘Money’ a fair amount, but the title track ‘LALISA’ was repetitive to a fault. I have no problems with how Lisa herself executed the track- ever since her debut, it has long been established on what an incredible performer Lisa is. Her star potential is enormous, and now that she’s free from YG’s clutches, I was very excited to see what kind of music she would be putting out. ‘ROCKSTAR’ tells me that I was right to be excited.
In practically every aspect, ‘ROCKSTAR’ feels like an upgrade from ‘LALISA’. The production sounds much less dated, and is generally much tighter and more focused. There are genuinely interesting production flourishes used here and there to keep the song interesting and developing despite the hooks of the songs being quite repetitive. The difference between the repetition in ‘LALISA’ and ‘ROCKSTAR’ is that the latter feels more ‘tongue-in-cheek’, and is truly quite camp in the best way possible. ‘La-la-lisa can you teach me Japanese’ feels like an instant pop culture moment, instantly stuck in my head while not feeling like it was placed their against my will, unlike ‘Lalisa love me Lalisa love met etc.’ in ‘LALISA’.
The song is quite short and doesn’t allow for too much development, but I’m honestly glad that it wasn’t longer, for despite how fun the hooks are, they already feel adequately repeated, and I can’t see how much else can the song develop. It feels like it has run its course.
Lisa, as expected, did a great job in delivering everything with flair and charisma. It makes ‘ROCKSTAR’ distinctly ‘Lisa’, that it’s all the more stronger for it.
All in all, ‘ROCKSTAR’ is a fun debut track (after leaving YG) that promises great things from Lisa in her future solo music.
Hooks – 9
Production – 8
Vocal Delivery – 8
Rap Delivery – 9
Overall – 8.5
K-pop Evaluated 
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