Enhypen's Bangkok fan events draw praise from former Thai culture minister
Bangkok transformed into a vibrant celebration of Enhypen, as the K-pop group brought its world tour to Thailand last month and earned official praise from the country's leading cultural office.
Enhypen is managed by Belift Lab, a subsidiary of Hybe, which has rolled out a series of fan-focused events across Bangkok tied to the 'Walk the Line' tour.
These initiatives infused Enhypen's branding into local cultural promotions, offering fans more than just a concert — they created an immersive citywide experience. Enhypen's fan engagement programs in Bangkok will continue through the end of July.
The events received high praise from Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol, who served as Thailand's Minister of Culture until last month. In an official commendation, she lauded Hybe and Enhypen for raising global awareness of Thai culture.
'The promotional designs creatively combined traditional Thai architecture with modern urban identity to express 'Thainess' in a fresh and engaging way,' she said. 'This event holds significant cultural, entertainment and economic value, and deserves recognition.'
She also emphasized the broader impact of hosting internationally renowned Korean artists.
'Hosting such stars offers unforgettable experiences for both fans and the Thai public. I deeply appreciate this visionary effort to enhance the country's image and build lasting international goodwill,' she added.
The campaign offered several standout highlights.
Limited-edition transit cards bearing the members' portraits sold out instantly, and photo booths in city centers drew constant attention. Oversized outdoor ads — including banners near Suvarnabhumi International Airport — reinforced Enhypen's presence throughout the capital.
A specially themed hotel room package sold out just three minutes after launch. Meanwhile, six Thai food and beverage brands across 116 outlets introduced Enhypen-branded menu items, selling approximately 40,000 units.
One of the most popular collaborations featured Butterbear, a beloved local character dressed in Enhypen's tour outfits. The illustrations appeared on packaging, stickers and postcards, creatively weaving K-pop imagery into daily life.
Meanwhile, Enhypen drew around 30,000 fans to the Rajamangala National Stadium, June 21, Thailand's largest concert venue. After performing at Tokyo Dome in July, the group heads to Osaka next month. 'Walk the Line' world tour will then visit 10 cities across the United States and Europe in August and September, before concluding with a stop in Singapore in October.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
11 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Six artists explore personal narratives beyond politics at Atelier Hermes in Seoul
The exhibition 'The Second Life' runs through Oct. 5 In the group exhibition, 'The Second Life,' Atelier Hermes in Seoul has gathered six artists who explore how individual lives are shaped beyond social and political discourse, drawing on personal stories. Curator Ahn So-yeon said Thursday that the participating artists — Bek Hyun-jin, Lee Yona, Han & Mona, Kim Bo-kyung and Park Min-ha — each took a "slice of life" approach to create new work for the exhibition. 'These days, an overwhelming number of exhibitions are being produced around socio-political issues such as the environment and climate crisis," Ahn said. "Rather than focusing on socially or politically 'correct' themes or collective ideas, the exhibition aims to explore how deeply personal issues can expand and evolve within those contexts." Han & Mona, a duo based in Seoul and Edinburgh, presents "Listen, I Know," inspired during the COVID-19 pandemic. The digital installation flashes of Morse code to express the situations of conflict and negotiation they encounter in cross-cultural engagement. 'During the pandemic, I was stuck indoors and when I looked outside there was a light blinking as though it was crying out to me,' the duo's Yoo Mona said of her inspiration for the piece. 'You might feel the blinking of Morse code is a bit slow, which was intentional as we wanted to reflect elements from our own way of communication in the work like the tone and glances when we talk,' Yoo said. "As we have different cultural backgrounds and grew up speaking different languages, small cracks or misunderstanding emerge time to time. That is, however, how our communication expands." Her partner Ma Hanqing is from the Hui community, composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. Most of them reside in northern China, while some of them live in metropolitan cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, Ma said. Kim, a Berlin based artist who uses knitting, paper weaving and drawing, confessed she almost abandoned her career as an artist, but was able to continue when she came up with her acanthus leaf motif, drawing inspiration from the plant's tenacious hold on life. Park shows the media installation 'Ghost Anatomy,' where she incorporates a virtual character, Noa, created with AI, into her daily life. The piece looks at the way the character explores its own subconscious. Bek, who is a singer, composer, actor and director as well as an artist, presents 21 drawings and five paintings on "hanji," Korean traditional mulberry paper, that depict moments of his current life, now marked by shoulder pain — becoming middle-aged, according to the artist — and a changed rhythm as a result. The artist said his new paintings were changed in style after he was fascinated by the ink painting "Sehando (Winter Scene)" by Kim Jeong-hui (1786-1856), a Korean calligrapher and scholar from the late Joseon Dynasty, for how it depicts the snow-covered landscape with seemingly unfinished lines. Lee, who left Busan to live in New Zealand at age 11, translates the tension that she feels between traveling and rootedness with a stainless-steel installation.
Korea Herald
16 hours ago
- Korea Herald
S. Korea's foreign population reaches all-time high of 2.73 million
South Korea's foreign population has reached an all-time high of more than 2.73 million, data showed Sunday. The number of foreign nationals staying in the country for purposes including education, employment or tourism stood at just under 2,733,000 as of the end of June, marking a 1.5 percent increase (40,068 people) from the previous month, according to data from the Korea Immigration Service under the Ministry of Justice. Of the total, some 1.55 million were long-term foreign residents staying 90 days or more, who registered personal information such as name, date of birth and purpose of stay with local immigration offices. Half of these registered foreigners were found to reside in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area. The Yeongnam region, which includes major cities such as Daegu, Busan and Ulsan, was home to 317,286 (20.3 percent), followed by 200,939 (12.9 percent) in the Chungcheong region and 136,990 (8.8 percent) in the Honam region. Another 552,000 of the total foreign resident population were overseas Koreans holding F-4 visas, who established a place of residence and reported it to their local immigration office, entitling them to rights similar to those of Korean citizens, such as opening bank accounts and enrolling in the national health insurance program. The remaining 620,000 foreign nationals were short-term visitors staying fewer than 90 days, most of whom were tourists. Chinese account for one in three The largest share of foreign residents was held by Chinese nationals with 972,176, accounting for 35.6 percent of the total. They were followed by Vietnamese (341,153), Americans (196,664), Thais (173,710) and Uzbeks (98,457). When categorized by visa type, F-4 visa holders, who are foreign nationals of Korean ancestry, represented the largest group, totaling 554,895. Following them were 341,453 foreign nationals on E-9 visas, issued under the Employment Permit System, which permits stays of up to three years. Launched in 2004, the temporary worker program allows small and mid-sized companies facing labor shortages to legally hire foreign workers for low-skilled jobs. F-5 permanent residency visa holders came next at 214,036, followed by 191,297 on D-2 student visas and 171,063 on B-2 tourist visas. By age, foreign residents in their 30s made up the largest segment at 25.7 percent, followed by those in their 20s (23.1 percent), 40s (16.7 percent), 60 and older (13.5 percent), 50s (12.3 percent) and under 19 (8.7 percent). The previous all-time high foreign population was recorded in 2019 at around 2.52 million, but the figure declined for two consecutive years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, falling to 2.04 million in 2020 and 1.96 million in 2021. But as COVID-19 reached the endemic stage, the figure rebounded to about 2.51 million in 2023 and rose further to 2.65 million last year. This year, the number peaked at 2.72 million in March, then dipped to 2.71 million in April and 2.69 million in May, before reaching a new record high of 2.73 million in June.
Korea Herald
16 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Lee Jung says dance is her 'source of life'
Star dancer and choreographer reflects on Bumsup's defeat on 'World of Street Woman Fighter' K-pop continues to dominate the global stage — not just through its chart-topping idol groups, but also thanks to the choreographers and creative minds behind the scenes who are now gaining long-overdue recognition. Among them is one of the hottest names in the game: Lee Jung, the 26-year-old star choreographer who recently appeared in Mnet's dance survival competition "World of Street Woman Fighter," the third installment of the hit competition franchise "Street Woman Fighter" (2023). The series aired its finale Tuesday, concluding with a showdown between dance crews representing countries around the world. Japan's Osaka Ojo Gang ultimately took the crown, beating out five other teams: South Korea's Bumsup, the United States' Motiv, Japan's RHTokyo, New Zealand's Royal Family and Australia's AG Squad. Though the nine-episode series pulled in modest TV ratings — averaging around 1 percent viewership — it became a sensation online. Across platforms such as YouTube and social media, the show dominated digital conversation, topping the non-drama rankings from Good Data Corporation's Fundex for the first three weeks of June. The rankings are based on an analysis of program-related information and netizen responses generated from sources including news articles and social media. The homeground team, Bumsup, was made up of some memorable dancers from the show's breakout first season, including Lee Jung, Aiki, No:ze and Honey J. On July 15, fans were stunned when it failed to make it past the semifinals and missed out on the finals. It was an emotional moment for Lee, who rose to stardom following her breakout appearance on 'Street Woman Fighter' two years ago and has choreographed some of K-pop's most iconic routines, including Twice's 'Fancy' and 'Feel Special,' as well as Blackpink's 'Pink Venom' and 'Shut Down.' After Bumsup's elimination, Lee sobbed on camera, a moment of sincerity that resonated with fans. Speaking at an interview in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on Thursday, she reflected on the defeat. 'Since there are so few chances to perform live on stage, I thought this would be a rare opportunity to express my gratitude for all the support I've received, but I was really upset because I felt like I missed that chance,' she said. Lee, who began dancing professionally in 2014, credited "Street Woman Fighter" for helping bring dance into the cultural mainstream. 'In the past, dance was something shared and loved only by those who pursued it professionally. But now, even people who don't do it as a job genuinely love dance. That's what has really changed. These days, people are curious about who choreographed a routine, and they're interested in what someone like me, Lee Jung, will do next. That shift is incredible.' Lee's path to the stage began humbly: What started as a talent show gig for school eventually became her life's calling. For Lee, over time, dance evolved into something far more personal. 'Dance makes me incredibly happy. And what meaning is there in a life without happiness?' she asked. '(Dance) is not just an art form, genre or profession — it's a source of life itself and a form of salvation.' With "World of Street Woman Fighter" now wrapped, Lee is turning her attention to larger-scale, more varied creative ventures. One standout project was her role in choreographing the Netflix animated global hit "KPop Demon Hunters," marking another major step in her international career. Reflecting on the film, which had been in development for three years before its release in June, Lee shared her excitement about how the medium of animation shattered traditional limitations for dancers. "I was so excited when they told me, from a technical standpoint, 'Huntrix has no physical limitations.' They said, 'Lee, you can do everything you want.' ... That's why I was able to enjoy it even more." She also recounted a memorable moment from working on the track "How It's Done." "While working on the song 'How It's Done,' I heard that Huntrix members would be dropping from a plane and landing in the dome. I got super excited, because I'm also someone who thinks the way a performance begins — the entrance — is incredibly important. So hearing that kind of entrance idea even before we shared our visions made me think, 'This is going to be so much fun.'' Looking ahead, Lee said she's eager to explore choreography across a wider spectrum, embracing new formats and global platforms. 'I want to dance in a much broader realm. I want to go wherever dance is needed. Whether it's collaborating with a singer and making headlines, performing in commercials through dance or running a YouTube channel as a dancer, I believe there are things only I can do. I want to turn those rare, less-traveled paths into my own unique space. I want to dance on a bigger stage while staying true to the 'real me' — the version of myself in that underground practice room,' she said.
