A total of 15.7 million viewers watched “The Virtual,” Blackpink’s in-game concert series in PUBG Mobile, the game publisher reported.
The concert series within the popular mobile game featured virtual performances of Blackpink in avatar form. The avatars of Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa performed their chart-topping hits and debuted the special track “Ready for Love.”
PUBG players and Blinks from all over the world enjoyed the nine-minute immersive audio-visual experience. For its part, PUBG promoted Blackpink’s in-game concert “The Virtual” in iconic global locations including New York’s Times Square.
On August 28, Blackpink won the 2022 MTV Video Music Award for Best Metaverse Performance for “The Virtual.”
‘Ready for Love’ viewed 148 million times
As part of the partnership for the concert, Blackpink and PUBG Mobile released the special track “Ready for Love.” Its music video has now been watched over 148 million times since its launch.
“Ready for Love” transports Blackpink members’ avatars to iconic locations in the PUBG Mobile universe. These fictional locations include the island of Erangel, the desert of Miramar, and the rainforest of Sanhok. The idols’ avatars also landed in the the icy tundra of Vikendi and on a sea of flowers in Livik. To give viewers more PUBG Mobile feels, game elements such as planes, airdrop, helmets, and bullets embellish the video.
Watch the full music video of “Ready for Love,” which is also posted on the official YouTube channels of both Blackpink and PUBG Mobile:
“Ready for Love” marks the first time that Blackpink appeared in a music video in avatar form. Meanwhile, PUBG says it is the first time they collaborated with artists on a music video featuring virtual images.
“We want to thank all of our players and the Blinks alike for their support in making this PUBG Mobile’s biggest partnership yet,” said Vincent Wang, head of PUBG Mobile Publishing at Tencent Games.
In addition, Wang said: “It’s been such an honor bringing the incredible music of Blackpink into PUBG Mobile. PUBG Mobile always wants to present its players with new cutting-edge experiences and to be at the forefront of popular culture.”
Blackpink’s second full album coming September 16
For its part, YG Entertainment said: “It was a great pleasure for us to had another meaningful partnership with PUBG Mobile. Hope we can show various sides of Blackpink through music and more. 2nd FULL ALBUM [BORN PINK] will be released on September 16 and World tour start from October. Stay tuned for it!”
As we’ve previously reported, Blackpink’s In-game Concert ‘The Virtual’ ran from July 22 to 23 and July 29 to 30 in North and South America, and July 23 to 24 and 30 to 31 across the rest of the world.
In case you missed the show or want to relive “The Virtual,” you can watch it here.
To play PUBG Mobile, download it for free on the App Store and Google Play Store.