Twice (JYP Entertainment) Reports fuel speculation over 9-member group's future as second JYP contract renewal nearsTwice, now in its 12th year after comfortably overcoming K-pop's so-called "seven-year curse," has reached another major crossroads as the group approaches a second contract renewal with JYP Entertainment.Reports linking members Jeongyeon, Tzuyu, Chaeyoung and Jihyo to agencies outside JYP Entertainment have fueled speculation that the nine-member act could adopt a structure similar to Blackpink's — pursuing individual activities under separate management while continuing group promotions with JYP.Blackpink has become the most prominent example of such an arrangement. After ending their individual contracts with YG Entertainment in late 2023 while retaining only their group contract, Jennie, Lisa and Jisoo established their own agencies, while Rose signed with The Black Label. The members have since expanded their solo careers across music, fashion and acting while continuing Blackpink's group activities, including a world tour that ran from July 2025 through January.Twice renewed its contracts with JYP Entertainment as a full group in July 2022, but attention has now shifted to what happens next. Local media recently reported that Jeongyeon is in talks with Varo Entertainment, home to her older sister and actor Gong Seung-yeon. Taiwanese member Tzuyu has also been linked to an agency founded by her mother in Taiwan, while separate reports suggested Chaeyoung and Jihyo are exploring opportunities outside JYP Entertainment.Music critic Lim Hee-yun believes, however, that simply replicating Blackpink's model may not suit Twice."Fundamentally, Blackpink and Twice are different," Lim said. "Blackpink built strong individual identities from the beginning, and there are only four members. It's difficult to compare the two directly. Twice has been much more defined by its strength as a group, and it also has many more members. Individual members certainly have dedicated fan bases, but they are not comparable to those of Blackpink."The difference is also reflected in each group's solo presence. Every Blackpink member has established themself as a global ambassador for a luxury fashion house — Jennie for Chanel, Lisa for Louis Vuitton, Jisoo for Dior and Rose for Saint Laurent — while simultaneously building careers as solo pop stars.Twice members — including Nayeon, Jihyo and Tzuyu — have also released solo music, but none has yet matched the level of global individual influence enjoyed by Blackpink's members. Blackpink (YG Entertainment) The group's size presents another challenge. Coordinating schedules among nine members under different agencies would likely prove considerably more difficult than it has for Blackpink's four-member lineup. Even Blackpink's latest album arrived only after the group's world tour, reversing the typical K-pop cycle in which artists release new music before heading on tour."As the social media landscape has changed, there are many more opportunities to generate income through brand partnerships, sponsorships and influencer activities," Lim said. "When members remain tied to a single group contract, those earnings are often shared. If they manage their own activities, they can keep those profits themselves. That's not unique to Twice. Every idol member thinks about that."Still, Lim argued that the possibility of independent management does not necessarily weaken the group. On the contrary, he believes the members understand that much of their long-term value comes from Twice itself."If you look at it from the opposite perspective, the members know that Twice is what gives them their greatest value," he said. "That recognition could actually become a reason for them to stay together as a group."