K-pop sensation BLACKPINK, consisting of members Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa, and Rosé, was bestowed with honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) medals by King Charles on November 22. The ceremony took place amid the South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s state visit to the United Kingdom. Buckingham Palace highlighted that the MBEs were awarded to BLACKPINK “in recognition of their role as Advocates for the COP26 Summit in Glasgow.”
King Charles, displaying his wit, jokingly remarked to the band, “It’s amazing you’re still talking to each other after all these years. I hope I shall be able to see you perform live at some point,” as reported by Reuters.
🌎 First appointed to the role by the UK Government in January 2021, @BLACKPINK encouraged millions of young people to engage with the global UN climate change conference and the topic of climate action.
Congratulations to Rosé, Jennie, Jisoo and Lisa! 👏 pic.twitter.com/odjv3oRKxZ
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) November 22, 2023
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The monarch had previously acknowledged BLACKPINK during a state banquet at Buckingham Palace on November 21. “It is especially inspiring to see Korea’s younger generation embrace the cause,” King Charles stated, according to PEOPLE.
He applauded the individual members, saying, “I applaud Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa, and Rosé, better known collectively as BLACKPINK, for their role in bringing the message of environmental sustainability to a global audience as Ambassadors for the UK’s Presidency of COP26, and later as advocates for the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”
In his speech, King Charles also celebrated Korea’s burgeoning influence on pop culture, citing examples like pairing Danny Boyle with Bong Joon-ho, James Bond with Squid Game, and The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’ with BTS’s ‘Dynamite.’ He underscored the shared superpower that both cultures have in captivating imaginations worldwide.
#BLACKPINKRoyalHonors #BLACKPINK
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