Blackpink’s Jennie Was 'Starstruck' After Meeting This Celebrity, Talks Pre-Debut Days

Blackpink has opened up about one celebrity interaction that left the K-pop group starstruck.

Gracing the cover of Elle's October issue, Blackpink members Rosé, Jennie, Jisoo and Lisa spoke about an array of topics in their interview with the magazine, including meeting Will Smith and setting the standard for the new girl group in the U.S.

Last year, Blackpink became the first K-pop girl group to perform at the Coachella stage and had shared a tent with Jaden Smith, which ultimately led to their interaction with his dad. Jennie revealed that they were so excited after learning that the “Men In Black” actor knew about them.

“Will Smith was backstage,” Jennie recalled. “He said, ‘You guys are so great.’ That was a starstruck moment for me, definitely. Like, Will Smith knows us. Wow.”

Blackpink recently collaborated with Selena Gomez for “Ice Cream,” and it wasn’t long before the quartet was breaking records. “Ice Cream” was Blackpink's career-best entry on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, debuting at no. 13.

The “Ice Cream” music video also crossed 10 million views on YouTube in under three hours, setting a new YouTube record for the fastest music video by a Korean girl group to reach the milestone.

With its growing global popularity, Blackpink has earned some comparisons with the Spice Girls, which Rosé described as an “honor.”

“[Being compared to a group] whose contribution to pop culture and music was so intense and massive is an honor,” Rosé said. “But it was never like, ‘Let’s become this or them.’”

Bekuh Boom, an L.A.-based songwriter and Blackpink collaborator who has worked with the girls on their singles “Boombayah” and “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du,” said the pop stars are on their way to setting the standard for the new girl group in America.

“We haven’t had anyone like them since Destiny’s Child. [Blackpink] is going to fill that void,” Boom said.

In the Elle interview, Blackpink also spoke about their early days and revealed that they were “formed in a pop-star boot camp” where they trained for four to six years.

Jennie, who studied in New Zealand before returning to South Korea, was the first member of the group. She was then joined by Lisa, YG Entertainment's first non-Korean idol, then Jisoo, who got her start as an actress. The last to join was Rosé, who grew up in Australia.

“We’d go home together and order food, talk about how scary the teachers were, how the work was too much. And just like how kids at school become friends, we just got along,” Jennie told the magazine about their friendship.

Blackpink will be releasing its album on Oct. 2.