King Charles made BLACKPINK honorary Members of the Order of the British Empire on Tuesday. Rosé, Jennie Kim, Jisoo Kim and Lisa’s special recognition from His Majesty was part of a state visit from the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol. As part of the celebration, the K-pop group also received a tribute from the military band of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, who played a rendition of the BLACKPINK’s song ‘DDU-DU DDU-D’ outside Buckingham Palace.

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British and South Korean dignitaries are out in force this evening in their finest outfits for a Buckingham Palace state banquet. And among them is pop royalty in the form of K-pop girl band Blackpink who took their seats in the ballroom for the four-course dinner.

The band’s four members—Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie and Rosé—were among around 170 guests on the horseshoe table to which the King and President addressed their speeches before the meal. And they were even mentioned in the King’s speech as he praised them for using their huge profile to champion environmental concerns.

“It is especially inspiring to see Korea’s younger generation embrace the cause. 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 U.K.’s Presidency of COP 26, and later as advocates for the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals,” the King said. “I can only admire how they can prioritise these vital issues, as well as being global superstars.”
The King’s speech referenced several aspects of Korean popular culture including Bong Joon-ho, Squid Game, and BTS.

Blackpink is believed to have traveled to the UK specially to attend the state banquet. In July, they made history as the first Korean band to headline a major UK festival when they played at the BST Hyde Park festival.

The King and Queen sat at the top table for tonight’s meal alongside the South Korean President, First Lady and Prince William and Kate. For the first time at a banquet, glasses on the table featured the cyphers of King Charles instead of Queen Elizabeth. The glassware is being gradually changed rather than replaced so today only the top table had the new glasses.

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Blackpink, the multinational female music act that is the biggest girl group in the Korean pop (K-pop) firmament, may finally be close to renewing its collective contract with YG Entertainment.

The news was widely reported in Korea on Monday and comes after months of speculation

that the four-piece act – Jisoo (real name Kim Ji-soo), Lisa (Lalisa Manobal), Jennie (Kim Jennie) and Rose (Roseanne Park) – would take their acts to another shop. Blackpink’s previous contracts with YG expired in August.

The Munhwa Ilbo (or Culture Daily) publication Monday claimed an exclusive with the information that Blackpink will re-up with YG, but the four individuals will not renew their exclusive contracts with the agency. It also added that two of the four have signed the new Blackpink-YG contract.

The information boosted YG’s KOSDAQ-listed shares by 3% on Monday morning. But the company put out a press statement saying that nothing is confirmed and that talks are ongoing.
Over the past months, the company has filed a succession of regulatory notices, saying much the same thing and trying to dampen speculation that it will lose its biggest single act and its biggest source of revenue. Its shares recorded two steep dips – of 9% and 13% — in September as rumors swirled.

Blackpink was formed under YG in 2016, but as the quartet hit new levels of recognition and popularity worldwide there has been speculation that the old seven-year deal would need to be substantially renegotiated in the artists’ favor. Blackpink’s recent world tour included 66 performances in 34 cities and was watched by 2.1 million spectators, YG has reported. They also headlined at Coachella in April.

There has also been speculation that the four band members are increasingly looking to develop their individual careers. The Munhwa Ilbo appears to echo this line of thinking. “Exclusive contracts between each member and YG Entertainment were not signed. In the future they plan to carry out individual activities and come together only for Blackpink activities,” it said.

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BLACKPINK is up for the 2023 Billboard Music Awards‘ newly established top K-pop touring artist honor thanks to the success of its Born Pink World Tour. Whether or not the quartet takes home the trophy Sunday (Nov. 19), the group will still give fans a reason to celebrate with a gift just after the Christmas holiday.

Billboard can share the exclusive first look and details for BLACKPINK: A VR Encore coming to fans this holiday season. For BLACKPINK’s first concert in virtual reality, viewers can return to the Born Pink World Tour’s special finale show held in Seoul’s massive Gocheok Sky Dome that featured their Billboard Hot 100 hits such as “Pink Venom,” “Kill This Love” and “How You Like That” live, but also solo performances from Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé and Lisa.

Emmy Award-winning production company The Diamond Bros. is producing and directing the 70-minute concert custom-made for VR in partnership with Meta. Exclusively available in VR inside the Meta Horizon Worlds’ Music Valley, Meta Quest VR headset owners in select regions get a front-row ticket to the social experience.

“We’re thrilled to embrace the dynamic world of VR because it allows us to reach an even wider global audience and share our music in an entirely new, immersive way,” BLACKPINK said in a statement. “This VR concert is not just a show; it’s an extension of the tour we poured our hearts into. We can’t wait for you to see the magic we’ve created with The Diamond Bros and Meta, and thank you to our incredible BLINKs for your endless support.”

Josh Diamond, director and executive producer at The Diamond Bros, echoes the excitement for the major collaboration. “BLACKPINK is an iconic, groundbreaking group, and being able to capture them in VR in Seoul, South Korea, for the final performance of their Encore tour was incredible,” he says. “We couldn’t be more excited to have partnered with Meta on this amazing opportunity. We can’t wait for everyone to experience it!”

Meanwhile, Vishal Shah, VP of Metaverse at Meta, points out how A VR Encore changes a typical concert viewing.

“Artists like BLACKPINK are transforming how music fans experience performances and connect with their favorite artists,” Shah adds. “We’re excited to feature this creative, social VR experience from The Diamond Bros in Horizon Worlds and can’t wait for Meta Quest owners to take a front-row seat for this amazing show.”

BLACKPINK: A VR Encore premieres in VR on Tuesday, Dec. 26, at 5 p.m. PT in Meta Horizon Worlds. Attendees can RSVP for the event now, with replays available for a month in Meta Horizon Worlds after the concert.

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