While digging up old messages from BP's debut era, on a soon to be dead forum that was once the biggest K-Pop forum, I found a take of mine that aged better than a fine wine 
I made this post more than 7 years ago on 8/12/16 
So here's my take on this, if anyone cares to read. This won't be too long. (I like how I had a reputation for essays back then and dmg controlled here)
I will say that I don't find a ton of similarities between BlackPink and 2NE1, the group that made me a K-Pop fan, and I don't think you could just copy paste 2NE1 into the BlackPink tracks and have the exact same result. The songs would definitely have a different vibe.
A lot of people saw YG state "I didn't try to to make BlackPink different from 2NE1" and then interpreted that as him saying he made BlackPink to be as close as possible to 2NE1. That's a bit of a logical fallacy.
"I didn't try to make BlackPink different from 2NE1" doesn't mean "I tried to make BlackPink as close to 2NE1 as possible"; it means that while he was coming up with the concept and image of the group, his decision-making process was not framed by the thought "We HAVE to make this group as different as possible from 2NE1!"
The other thing he said is that he wanted the girl group to have the YG style deeply embedded in their music and that is what he focused on.
I mean, I personally think it's pretty obvious that YG, in so many words, made it clear that he wasn't copying and pasting 2NE1 songs and concepts into BlackPink. Instead he's saying he focused on making sure they had those distinct, signature qualities we come to expect from a YG Idol group, and that of course means BlackPink would naturally have similarities to 2NE1.
It's this same approach that led people to saying (out of hate or spite) Ikon was receiving hand-me-down songs that were meant for Big Bang and that they were a copycat group. Really, it's just the YG style.
BlackPink was always going to have that fierce, hip-hop influenced girl crush vibe to them. There's no way that won't remind us of 2NE1 in some way, but there are some distinct differences.
I think it's an unfair, grossly over simplified interpretation of YG's comments that is being used to shade BlackPink by some people.
And I honestly don't think you were ever much of a 2NE1 fan if you think Whistle and Boombayah are songs that sound like they came straight off a 2NE1 album.
My two cents.
You see this, Blinks?! I was defending BP, from my fellow 2NE1 fans even, before you even knew who they were!
We can be friends here now 
