BLACKPINK becomes first K-pop girl group to receive Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit

BLACKPINK was awarded the Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit at the 17th Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards in Seoul on the 29th. The group, which recently surpassed 100 million YouTube subscribers, became the first K-pop girl group to receive this fourth-grade honor for their global contributions to music.

YG Entertainment announced on the 30th that BLACKPINK was selected as a recipient of the Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit at the 17th Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards, held on the 29th at the Haeoreum Grand Theater of the National Theater of Korea in Jung-gu, Seoul. Celebrating their 10th anniversary this year, BLACKPINK was recognized for their contributions to promoting Korean popular music to the world through both group and solo activities. The Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit is the fourth-grade Cultural Merit awarded to individuals and organizations that contribute to the development of culture and arts. This marks the first time a K-pop girl group has received this honor.

Through their agency, BLACKPINK stated, “We are happy and honored to receive such a meaningful Cultural Merit,” adding, “We express our sincere gratitude to the public who have loved our music for a long time and to BLINK, who always support us by our side.” They continued, “We will strive to be artists who convey comfort and emotion through good music in the future.”

According to media reports, BLACKPINK, who debuted in 2016, achieved consecutive number one rankings on the US Billboard 200 and the UK Official Albums Chart with their second full-length album, ‘BORN PINK’, in 2022. In February this year, they became the first musical artists to surpass 100 million subscribers on their YouTube channel.

Their third mini-album, ‘DEADLINE’, released this year, set a new record for first-week sales by a K-pop girl group, recording 1,774,577 copies according to the Hanteo Chart. BLACKPINK has completed the ‘DEADLINE’ world tour, which consisted of 33 performances across 16 cities worldwide, and they are continuing both group and individual solo activities.

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