LISA Reveals the ‘Little Love Letter’ to ‘Part of Her Family’ in Her ‘Fortnite’ Collab

LISA has been on a mission — and it comes to completion on Saturday, Nov. 29, when she launches as Fortnite Festival season 12’s Icon. As part of the Starlux Music Pass, the BLACKPINK singer-rapper’s collab will offer an in-game virtual headlining performance, as well as outfits, accessories and music from her solo debut album, Alter Ego, available as Jam Tracks.

“I’m always looking for fun, new ways to reach my fans, and I love when music, gaming and fashion mix together,” she tells Billboard. “Fortnite is the perfect place for all of that. I had so much fun creating my outfit designs, based on the different characters from my album Alter Ego, and making sure everything was personal and authentic!”

In fact, the star — who portrayed hotel employee Mook in season three of the HBO hit The White Lotus this year — took an extra step to make her contribution to season 12 of Fortnite Festival extra personal. And eagle-eyed fans may have caught the tribute when the trailer for the game’s new season dropped on Nov. 24.

“When Fortnite asked me what I wanted in this collab, I immediately thought of my cats,” LISA reveals. “My pets are such a big part of my life, and so the Back Bling is a little love letter to Louis! It’s my way of bringing a part of my family into Fortnite.”

In the trailer, her beloved furry pal rides on her back as LISA cruises around on a motorcycle, as well as when she’s showing off her moves on the main stage.

“I love how creative everyone gets with their collabs, and the best part is seeing people bring a piece of themselves into the game,” she says of other artists — Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, Eminem and Mariah Carey, among many more — who have worked with Fortnite. “Ariana Grande included her pet as a Back Bling, which I thought was so cute!” (The “Thank U, Next” singer’s porcine pal, Piggy Smallz, was featured in 2021.)

LISA also details her level of involvement in this Fortnite collab and her thinking process behind her choices. “I got to work with the Fortnite team, from the art direction to song selection. For songs, I wanted a good mix coming from Alter Ego,” she shares of the music from the album, which debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 in March. “’Rockstar” is for the attitude, ‘New Woman’ for a bold and confident energy, ‘FUTW (Vixi Solo Version)’ for a moody vibe.

“We also used the real dances in emotes, too,” she adds. “The FUTW and Rockstar emotes are very similar to the actual music videos. The Rockstar emote even has a motorcycle as part of it.”

The star notes that the collaboration really allowed her creativity to soar, and reveals one of her favorite parts of the collab. “What I love about Fortnite is that you can create anything,” she gushes. “I really wanted to show the bold attitude of Alter Ego for this collab. The FUTW emote was definitely a highlight for me! Adding those flash accents made every dance move feel exciting.”

Though LISA is far from the first musician to work with Fortnite, she is the first member of BLACKPINK to do so. And while the singer-rapper didn’t say who she’d like to be a Fortnite Festival Icon next, she does want to see all her bandmates do it — perhaps even as a group. She enthuses: “Those are my girls, and it’d be so cool to see all of us together in Fortnite!”