Both BTS And TWICE Are Praised By U.S. Secretary Of State During A Press Availability

“TWICE that was also on the show that night… And by the way, they were terrific.”

On June 13, U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with the Republic of Korea’s Foreign Minister Park Jin for a joint press availability. Most of the conversation was about growing relations between the two countries, issues that they’re working on together, and other heavily political topics.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken And Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Park Jin | Yonhap News

However, early on in the event, Secretary Blinken made a comment about K-Pop artists that was unexpected, but very welcome!

U.S Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken | AFP-JIJI

When talking about the building relationship between the United States and Korea, Secretary Blinken talks about BTS‘s recent visit to the White House with President Joe Biden, which isn’t too surprising, given that this was a major event that happened not too long ago.

Now, we can’t also forget the other very notable meeting between our countries recently: BTS visiting the White House. For the ‘BTS Army’ in America, it was a thrilling day.

— Antony J. Blinken (U.S. Secretary of State)

But he didn’t end there! Secretary Blinken was actually on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert a couple of weeks ago, and just happened to be on the same show that TWICE performed on. And he didn’t miss the opportunity to share his experience!

And I have to tell you – some of you may have noticed this – I had another K-Pop moment myself a few weeks ago when I was on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. As we arrived at the Late Show, there was a huge crowd at the backstage door. And for a minute, I have to admit I thought, well, maybe they’re here to see me. No, there was a K-Pop group TWICE that was also on the show that night. That’s why they were there. And by the way, they were terrific.

— Antony J. Blinken (U.S. Secretary of State)

It wasn’t that long ago when K-Pop was a relatively unknown music genre in the United States, and it’s amazing to see that it’s grown so much that politicians are aware of Korean artists these days.

BTS with President Joe Biden

We hope that the positive messages from K-Pop artists such as BTS and the fantastic music that they create continue to reach new communities as time goes on!

Source: U.S. Department of State