As Buckingham Palace glittered with diamonds at last night’s state banquet to welcome Yook Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee to Britain, the South Korean president and first lady brought along some very glamorous guests.
K-pop band Blackpink made a phenomenal entrance to the palace, dripping in gothic glamor as they attended the banquet where guests dined on poached egg tart, Windsor pheasant and a mango ice cream bomb.
As they walked the red carpet to dine with members of the royal family and high-profile British politicians, they stunned in velvet, mint chiffon, statement shoulders and sweet bardot necklines.
The foursome, consisting of Jennie Kim, 27, Jisoo, 28, Rosé, 25, and Lisa, 25, formed in 2016 and have since taken the K-Pop world by storm – even earning the admiration of King Charles who mentioned members by name in his speech at dinner.
Their achievements so far include performances at huge music festivals including Coachella, collaborations with top stars like Selena Gomez and signings with lucrative designers around the world – but their sexy performances have landed them in hot water with some fans.
K-Pop band Blackpink, consisting of Jennie Kim, Jisoo, Rosé and Lisa, attended the state banquet at Buckingham Palace last night in honor of the South Korean president and first lady
The band was originally formed by YG Entertainment in 2016 after a large number of teenagers auditioned to be part of the next hottest girl group in South Korea.
Initially, Blackpink consisted of nine members, before the original line-up was reduced to four.
The group was also reportedly going to be renamed, with Pink Punk among those selected, before Blackpink was chosen as the final name.
Blackpink was then chosen to represent their power and contradict the normal association with the color pink.
According to People , a statement at the time explained, “The meaning of BLACKPINK is intended to contradict the common perception of the color pink.
The band’s rise has been meteoric since forming in 2016, and they have toured the US in sold-out shows in recent years (pictured at Coachella)
The K-Pop band has collaborated with stars like Selena Gomez (pictured in the Ice Cream music video) and Lady Gaga
Jennie Kim fronted a Calvin Klein campaign – one of many lucrative designer deals the band has enjoyed
‘Pink is often used to represent beauty, but BLACKPINK actually means that ‘beautiful isn’t everything.’
“It also symbolizes that they are a team that includes not only beauty but also great talent.”
After the release of their first single, Square One, the band became an overnight sensation in the K-Pop world and have since produced two chart-topping hits; The album and Born Pink.
Blackpink has also collaborated with Selena Gomez on the single Ice Cream, and Lady Gaga on Sour Candy.
After breaking America, Blackpink has toured the US with sold-out shows, appeared on several talk shows including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert – and they’ve even appeared on stage at Coachella.
Netflix documentary BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky went behind the scenes of the festival, documenting the band’s journey from their early days to their career-making Coachella moment.
The members are not only thriving on the music scene, but have also risen to global celebrity status and secured a slew of impressive deals.
Jisoo has worked as a Dior ambassador, while Jennie collaborated with Chanel and became a global brand ambassador for Calvin Klein, and Rose leaned her hand towards Saint Laurent.
However, the band’s meteoric rise has not been without stumbling blocks, as they have encountered a number of controversies along the way.
Just a few weeks ago, after a raunchy performance in Paris, Lisa discovered that her social media account on Weibo, China’s largest social media platform, had been suspended.
The suspension followed growing backlash in parts of Asia against Lisa for performing a burlesque show at the famous Parisian cabaret venue Crazy Horse.
During the performance, the 26-year-old pop star was dressed in lingerie and revealing outfits as she danced on stage to a variety of tunes.
Although there was no nudity, the provocative nature of the revue combined with Crazy Horse’s racy reputation sparked outrage across Asia.
Weibo did not provide an official reason for suspending Lisa’s account, apart from a message stating: “This account can no longer be viewed due to reports of violations of laws, regulations and Weibo’s Community Agreement.”
Additionally, the official Weibo accounts for luxury brands Celine and Bvlgari, for which Lisa is a celebrity ambassador, have removed all images of the star from their accounts.
But last night, amid the glitz and glamor of Buckingham Palace’s state banquet, Lisa and her bandmates waved away any controversy to dine with the royal family – and when the King mentioned them by name in his speech, they blushed with pride.
Noting the band’s commitment to promoting climate conservation, King Charles said, “I applaud Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa and Rosé, better known as Blackpink, for their role in delivering the message of environmental sustainability.”
As each band member was mentioned, they exchanged glances and suppressed smiles in a shy display of excitement.