China to host first all-Korean pop concert in nine years, Yonhap says

Straits Times

29-04-2025

K-pop boy band Epex are scheduled to hold a concert in Fuzhou city on May 31. PHOTO: OFFICIALC9ENT/INSTAGRAM
China to host first all-Korean pop concert in nine years, Yonhap says
SEOUL - Nearly a decade after China imposed an unofficial ban on K-pop performances in the mainland, Beijing appears to be lowering one of the non-trade barriers that kept South Korea's cultural phenomenon out of the country.
A South Korean boy band Epex are now gearing for a concert in China in May, raising expectations that Beijing may ease restrictions on K-pop culture in mainland, Yonhap News reported on April 29.
The timing may be coincidental, but it adds to growing evidence that China is seeking to improve relations with regional partners as countries grapple with increasingly hostile and unpredictable trade policies under United States President Donald Trump.
In March, trade chiefs of South Korea, China and Japan met in Seoul, where they renewed calls for an open, fair flow of goods and pledged to deepen economic ties.
The concert by Epex, an eight-member boy band, is scheduled for May 31 in Fuzhou city in Fujian province. It will mark the first performance in nine years in mainland China by a K-pop group comprised entirely of South Korean nationals, Yonhap said.
K-pop stars with foreign nationalities have occasionally appeared on Chinese television shows, Yonhap added.
Epex's management, C9 Entertainment, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment.
China imposed the so-called 'K-wave ban' in 2016 in retaliation for Seoul allowing the US military to deploy the missile defence system called Thaad, or Terminal High Altitude Area Defence. Before the restrictions, China was among the fast growing market for K-pop.
But the reported move raised doubts among curious Chinese fans, and some took to the social media asking: 'Has the Korea ban been lifted?'
Epex's plans come as some South Korean movie and K-pop stars have cautiously resumed their activities in the mainland China.
Some attended a Ralph Lauren fashion show in Shanghai, holding fan meet-ups in major cities that have been shunned since China's ban. South Korean producers have also begun talks over content exports, while there have been no official approvals on K-dramas yet by the Chinese government. Bloomberg
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