Hong Kong K-pop concert sparks hope for cultural exchange

K-pop announced their concert to be held in Hong Kong in February.

In the recent news, it is said that the concert will be held in Hong Kong in February and aired across mainland China by a state-run broadcaster.

According to the organiser, there are high hopes for cultural exchange between China and South Korea after a decade of unofficial ban.

Chinese President Xi Jinping last ‍month visited South Korea for ​the first time in 11 years and held a summit with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, where the two leaders also discussed cultural exchanges, raising hopes of China lifting its unofficial ban on Korean culture.

Dream Concert 2026 will be held at Kai Tak Sports ​Park for two days from ​February 6, and the recording will ‍be broadcast by China’s state-run Hunan Television, according to From Entertainment, a South Korean ⁠firm organising the event.

In the official statement from Entertainment, on Tuesday, said, “It will be the first time for a K-Pop concert to be broadcast in mainland China since cultural exchanges were severed. First in years”.

The unofficial ban was introduced in 2017 as China protested against the U.S. deployment of a missile shield system in South Korea, and has, in effect, meant that no Korean concerts or TV shows have been approved by the Chinese authorities.

On Tuesday, China’s foreign ministry said it was not aware of any planned concerts or lifting of the unofficial ban on K-pop.

The ‌two countries are also coordinating a visit by Lee to China early next year, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said in an interview with Yonhap News on Monday.

The From Entertainment official gave no details of which K-pop acts would be performing.

However, shares of K-pop agencies rallied on Tuesday, with HYBE rising 5%, SM Entertainment gaining 8%, JYP Entertainment adding 3% and YG Entertainment jumping 4%.

A K-pop event hosted Dream Concert, annually by the Korea Entertainment Producers’ Association, was held this ​year in ⁠Abu Dhabi in November, after South Korean media reported that earlier plans of holding it in mainland China and Hong Kong were cancelled.

South Korean ​entertainment firm CJ ENM also hosted its annual ​MAMA Awards ​in Hong Kong last month.