K-pop Makes Further Inroads into China Despite the HANHAN ORDER...Yoon Soo-hyun and BLACKSWAN Spark a New Wave of Hallyu with Performance in Hainan

K-pop is making renewed progress in the Chinese market, which had been stalled due to the HANHAN ORDER. Korean trot singer Yoon Soo-hyun and the global K-pop girl group BLACKSWAN performed at an event held on April 12 in Haikou, Hainan Province, China, serving as a catalyst for revitalizing Hallyu there. Yoon Soo-hyun, famous for hits such as “Cheontaemansang,” “Kkotgil,” and “Sondineonda,” holds historical significance as the first Korean pop singer to perform on a Chinese domestic stage since the implementation of the HANHAN ORDER. Invited to the cultural exchange performance commemorating 30 years of sister city ties between Hainan and Jeju on April 12, she delivered her Korean song “Cheontaemansang” as well as the Chinese song “Chenmimi” in fluent Mandarin, earning enthusiastic applause from the large crowd of Chinese fans. Yoon Soo-hyun said, “South Korea and China are precious neighboring countries, and I want to study Chinese and contribute to exchanges with China’s cultural community to further strengthen bilateral friendship.” Following the deterioration of relations between the two nations over the THAAD deployment issue, no performances by Korean pop singers were allowed in China since 2015. This performance indicates a positive trend as relations begin to improve. There are also signs that President Xi Jinping emphasizes the importance of cultural exchanges between the two countries, as seen during Speaker Woo Won-sik’s visit to China in February. Woo Soo-geun, president of the Korea-China Global Association, said, “The Chinese government will use this opportunity to support the full resumption of K-cultural and artistic performances across China, including by popular Korean idol groups, depending on how relations improve going forward.” Meanwhile, BLACKSWAN, a four-member global K-pop girl group composed entirely of foreigners—Patu from Belgium, Sreeya from India, Gaby from Germany and Brazil, and Anbi from the United States—successfully concluded their performance at “Waterboom Hainan” in China on the same day. BLACKSWAN performed over 10 songs, including hits like “KARMA” and “Roll Up,” and even previewed an unreleased new track, heating up the venue filled with 100,000 attendees. Their agency, DL Music, said, “Following the successful Hainan performance, more shows are being scheduled in various regions of China. This is expected to serve as a signal for revitalizing Hallyu in China, which had been stagnant due to the HANHAN ORDER.” BLACKSWAN made their debut in October 2020 with their first album “Goodbye RANIA,” and they are set to embark on a world tour starting in May in Uzbekistan, followed by tours in the United States (Washington, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, LA), and concerts in Germany in July. Yoon Deung-ryong, the agency’s representative, is a first-generation entertainment producer who helped pioneer Hallyu’s entry into China with the girl group Baby V.O.X. in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He has been preparing for the revival of Hallyu in China, including visiting China last September for the “FULLMOON FESTIVAL.”