2 min readTHE RUNDOWN
- Lisa performed “SaWaDiKa” live for the first time at the MTV VMAs.
- The K-pop star released the song on September 3.
- Lisa is up for four VMAs and already took home the award for Best Pop.
Blackpink’s Lisa made her solo stage debut at the MTV VMAs in 2024. Tonight, she sang again at the 2026 ceremony—and gave the crowd the first live performance of her new single “SaWaDiKa” (which means “hello” in Thai, as Lisa told Jimmy Fallon during her The Tonight Show interview on September 17).
Lisa put on an elaborate show, starting strong with some martial arts-inspired choreography.
Fans quickly shared clips on social media:
She even rode a tuk-tuk onstage, as a mini homage to Thai culture.
The K-pop star has four solo nominations tonight, while her group, Blackpink, has two nods. At the start of the ceremony, Lisa’s song “Dream” won the award for Best Pop. She’s also in the running for Best K-pop, Best Cinematography, and Best Editing, and Blackpink is nominated for Best K-pop (“Jump”) and Best Group.
Soon, Lisa will be performing again at her Las Vegas residency, which begins in November.
Lisa recently attended the Toronto Film Festival for the premiere of her documentary Always Lalisa. She spoke to Reuters about a pre-performance ritual she always does: invite her late grandfather and dance teacher to join her.
“I’m super close with my grandpa and during COVID, I couldn’t go back [to see him in Thailand], and that’s when he passed away,” she said. “He was always my biggest supporter; he always believed in me. And teacher Nok, I think he’s one of the key people that made me, me today. I just want to invite them to come and see me perform because he didn’t have a chance to see me here today, so that’s why I’m always like, ‘Hey, come watch me. I’m gonna do this here, just watch.’ I feel like they’re my guardian angels.”