Jennie revealed what it was really like working with Dua Lipa on their collaboration song Handlebars. During a conversation with Tame Impala frontman Kevin Parker for Rolling Stone's "Musicians on Musicians&qout; feature, the Blackpink star opened up about working with the Levitating hitmaker on the track from her debut solo album, Ruby.
"It truly just felt like a day out with her in New York for a shoot," the K-pop sensation shared. "We were texting as if we were trying to find a date to hang out."
The making of Handlebars felt less like a traditional music project and more like spending a day with a friend. "Unfortunately, we didn't get to record the songs together, but she came back with her amazing vocals," the Mantra songstress added.
For the unversed, Handlebars appears on the South Korean singer and rapper's debut solo album, Ruby, which was released on March 7, 2025. The song was subsequently promoted as a single, with its music video arriving around March 10-11, 2025, and the track being sent to US radio on March 11.
Although Handlebars marked their first song together as a duo, the SOLO singer and the Training Season chart-topper were not exactly strangers before the collaboration. Dua, 31, had previously joined Blackpink on Kiss and Make Up in 2018, bringing her into the group's musical orbit years before her partnership with Jennie, 30, on Ruby.
Fans worldwide have praised the unique chemistry and vocal blend displayed by the two pop icons on this track. Music critics have also noted that the collaboration highlights the global appeal of K-pop and Western pop crossover projects.