MUSIC stars from South Korea have performed two rare performances in Pyongyang, the capital of neighbouring North Korea with whom it is technically still at war.
MUSIC stars from South Korea have performed two rare performances in Pyongyang, the capital of neighbouring North Korea with whom it is technically still at war.
Hundreds of audience members including the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his wife Ri Sol Ju this week watched the 160-member troupe of South Korean K-Pop singers, the first event of its kind for more than a decade.
As tensions thaw between the two rivals, it was the first time a North Korean leader had attended a South Korean performance in the North’s capital. Kim was seen clapping in time to the music and later took photographs with the performers.
“Our dear leader comrade said his heart swelled and he was moved by the sight of his people deepen their understanding of South Korean popular culture and cheer with sincerity,” the North’s KCNA state media said.
Culture Minister Do Jong-whan told reporters afterwards that Kim “showed much interest during the show and asked questions about the songs and lyrics.”
Kim reportedly particularly liked the K-Pop band Red Velvet, one of the South’s biggest girl groups who recently stirred controversy after netizens claimed it had been chosen to perform in the North because they endorse communism, according to The Korea Times .
“Many people had wondered whether I would come to the Sunday performance and watch Red Velvet,” Kim was quoted as saying.
Tension over North Korea’s tests of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile surged last year and raised fears of US military action in response to North Korea’s threat to develop a nuclear weapon capable of hitting the United States.
But tension has eased significantly since North Korea decided to send athletes to the Winter Olympics in South Korea in February.
