CL has opened up about Asian representation within the music industry and what she hopes to change about it.

• READ MORE: CL – ‘ALPHA’ review: an incandescent return well worth the wait

The South Korean musician recently met up with R&B singer Jhené Aiko as part of Rolling Stone’s ‘Musicians on Musicians’ franchise to discuss their experiences as singers of Asian descent in the music industry.

CL praised Aiko’s contributions to music, telling Aiko that she “paved a lot of ways and did amazing things” for the Asian community. “And I want more of us [Asian pop stars],” she added.

The former 2NE1 singer also added that while growing up in the MTV era of music, she had “never [seen] an Asian pop star, where I was like, ‘OK, she looks like me’.” She added: “I felt that was impossible. So that’s what I want to do, for 12-year-old me.”

Elsewhere in the musicians’ conversation, CL had also spoken about K-pop system and why she left. “You’re almost like an athlete – you’re trained to dance, it’s all scheduled, all those things. I was always in that program,” she revealed. “Recently, I decided to get out of it. I didn’t really get to live my life.”

Released yesterday (October 20), CL shared her hopes for her debut studio album ‘ALPHA’, saying she hoped her album would “empower” other idols in K-pop. “[I want them] to be like, ‘Yes, you can continue doing this independently whether you decide to go to another label, however way it is’,” she added.