A K-pop girl band loved by Kim Jong-un [VIDEO]

From left, Wendy, Yeri, Seulgi and Irene from Red Velvet after performing at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater on Sunday. / Yonhap

By Ko Dong-hwan

Red Velvet's Joy / Korea Times file

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed a rare interest in a South Korean K-pop girl band Sunday, when he watched an historic performance by the South's art troupe in Pyongyang.

After the two-hour show at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater starting at 6:30 p.m., Kim met and shook hands with each musician, including four members of Red Velvet. The popular band from SM Entertainment was short of one member ― Joy, also an actress.

SM announced Saturday that she could not travel to the North because she was filming MBC's TV drama "The Great Seducer," in which she has a leading role.

Before its Pyongyang visit, the band had stirred controversy, with suggestions by some netizens that the South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism had selected the band because it endorsed the North's communism. Some suggested a parallel between communism's symbolic color of red, the band's name and one of its hits, "Red Flavor."

Kim said after meeting the musicians, "many people had wondered whether I would come to the Sunday performance and watch Red Velvet." The comment hinted that he knew about the Red Velvet controversy, but he did not elaborate. He said he had planned to watch the North-South joint performance on Tuesday, but had changed his schedule.

The band, the youngest stars among the troupe, performed dance numbers "Red Flavor" and "Bad Boy."

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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, right, talks to Red Velvet members, left, after the Sunday performance at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater. / Yonhap

Joy's absence had divided fans. Some saw it as unacceptable because despite her busy acting schedule she had joined the band's Tokyo concert on March 28-29. Fans wondered that if she had performed in Japan why she could not also have found time for Pyongyang.

A South Korean cultural critic said her absence from the North was "an example of the mass-narcissism evident among South Korean celebrities."

Joy's absence was compared to efforts to join the troupe by Cho Yong-pil, who postponed his national 50th anniversary concert tour until May, and Seohyun from girl band Girls' Generation who canceled medical treatment.

Some anti-Joy fans even petitioned the South Korean presidential office's online page to complain about the band's disregard for North Korean people and SM's mismanagement of the band. There were more than 20 similar petitions on the site.

But other fans thought the critics had become too sensitive about the issue. They said Joy's absence was understandable and "nothing close to a matter to petition for at Cheong Wa Dae." They pointed out that Joy had "no responsibility to join the troupe because we are living in a democratic society."

Members of Red Velvet arrive at the Koryo Hotel in Pyongyang on Mar. 31, with staff welcoming them. / Yonhap

Joy's absence could not be avoided, according to SM, because her visit to Pyongyang would have halted work on the drama, and she had to keep to her schedule with MBC.

After the show, titled "Spring Comes," Kim thanked Pyongyang citizens for "giving me this gift of watching the show." He said he was "deeply moved to watch my citizens understanding the South's pop culture and passionately uplifted by the songs."

South Korean Culture Minister Do Jong-whan, who led the art troupe and watched the show with Kim, told reporters that Kim "showed much interest in the songs during the show, asking me about the songs and their lyrics."

During the last act by Cho, the musicians took to the stage and sang Cho's "Dear Friend" and Pyongyang songs "Let's meet again" and "Our hope."

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