South Korean girl group Blackpink members were awarded honorary MBEs as part of the King’s K-pop diplomacy.
The awards were given away by King Charles at Buckingham Palace, to coincide with the South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol’s state visit. King Charles hailed the global influence of the Korean pop culture and also mentioned of the group’s support for environmental causes.
The MBEs were given acknowledging the pop band’s role as ambassadors for the COP climate change summit (Cop26 Summit in Glasgow) and as champions for the UN’s sustainable development goals, assisting in bringing the environmental message to ‘millions of young people’.
The awards were presented at a unique investiture that took place in the Palace’s 1844 room, which is frequently used for the most prestigious guests.
The event was yet another example of the red carpet put out during the South Korean state visit, with diplomatic wooing reflecting the growing importance of this strategic ally and economic partner.
Blackpink members Roseanne Park, Jisoo Kim, Lalisa Manoban and Jennie Kim are now honorary members of the Order of the British Empire and attended the state banquet at Buckingham Palace.
The King’s address emphasized the South Korean popular culture’s ‘remarkable ability to captivate imaginations’ and its ‘global reach.’
While the King admitted to a personal lack of "what might be called Gangnam Style", the military band for the changing of the guard put that right by playing the song in a surprise change of musical direction.
Tourists gathered outside Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guard heard in an unexpected medley of K-pop songs, rather than marching tunes.
