Blackpink’s Rosé spoke about the origins of her new solo song, “On the Ground,” auditioning for YG, and more in the latest installment of Rolling Stone’s “The First Time.”

“On the Ground” is one of two tracks on Rosé’s debut solo project, R, which was released March 12th. She says Blackpink’s producer brought the song to them at a dinner, but she was the one who latched onto it the most. “I hadn’t heard a song like that before,” she says, “I didn’t expect to hear a song like that because every song that we get or begin with doesn’t have these kinds of messages in it. For us, it was kind of like, I think this song kinda speaks our mind.”

Rosé also spoke about being “starstruck” when she first met her puppy Hank, as well as what it was like performing live with Blackpink for the first time and meeting her bandmates. She says Jennie showed her the ropes in choreography and South Korean culture (Rose was born in New Zealand and raised in Australia); she bonded with Lisa over being away from home, as Lisa had arrived from Thailand; and Jisoo, Rosé jokes, was the cool kid — although, Rosé adds, “Now I know she’s like the goofiest person ever. And of course, she’s still cool.”

As to how she ended up in Blackpink in the first place, Rosé credits her father with encouraging her to audition for Blackpink’s label, YG Entertainment. “I was just a very awkward, lost 16-year-old girl,” Rosé recalls. “I was there because my dad told me he’s noticed that I have a love for music and that he doesn’t want me to regret it when I’m older, that I haven’t tried to pursue anything through it. I remember just being there in Sydney in that audition room being like… I’m just gonna try to enjoy it, since I’m probably not going to get it, and I’m just going to try to remember this moment and get some good memories out of it. Then I left and I got a call and I was like, ‘Huh, that’s very odd!’ ”

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