BLANK2Y is a nine-member boy group under Keystone Entertainment with artists from South Korea, Japan and China. — Photo courtesy of the Korea Tourism Organisation

HÀ NỘI — K-pop boyband BLANK2Y have been named as South Korea's honorary ambassador for tourism to Việt Nam.

During their one-year tenure, the nine-member band will promote tourism between the two countries through K-pop. They are scheduled to perform during the Korean Days cultural event in Hà Nội in November.

Lee Jae Hoon, chief representative of KTO Vietnam. — Photo courtesy of the Korea Tourism Organisation

Lee Jae Hoon, chief representative of the Korea Tourism Organisation Vietnam, said: "Việt Nam has shown a bigger interest in K-pop as well as Korean culture than any other region, so in the future, together with the 'Korea Tourism Honorary Ambassador in Việt Nam' BLANK2Y, we intend to actively promote tourism through the Korean wave (Hallyu) aimed at young people."

BLANK2Y is a nine-member boy group featuring young and talented artists from South Korea, Japan and China. The members are DK, Louis, Donghyuk, U, Siwoo, Mikey, Youngbin, Sungjun and So Dam. They had a pre-debut weekly reality show which first aired on March 20, this year. They released their first track on May 24 called Thumbs Up from their debut album K2Y 1: Confidence – the first of three albums planned in the K2Y series.

As the number two is pronounced as ‘e’ in Korean so the group's name is a combination of the words “blank” and “key” giving the meaning “a key to open a blank space”. This refers to the blank (empty) hearts of people living without passion, which BLANK2Y will heal.

The meaningful name of the band is the first reason KTO appointed the band as the tourism ambassador. The second reason is their first debut entitled Thumbs Up, that’s the same thing KTO wants people to say about South Korean tourism.

Lee Jae Hoon added that BLANK2Y is a newly-founded band gathering emerging idols from different countries so their influence would help people know more about South Korean tourism and culture.

Leader of the band, Dong Hyuk, said he’s happy that BLANK2Y had a chance to visit Việt Nam and become Korea Tourism Honorary Ambassador. He wants to introduce Korean culture and tourism to Vietnamese audiences and vice versa.

“We have tried phở in South Korea but the one served in Hà Nội is really different. We all love phở. Other members love bánh xèo (Vietnamese pancake) and bún chả (noodle with grilled pork),” he said.

Si Woo said he couldn’t eat herbs before he came to Việt Nam but after trying bánh xèo and bún chả, he discovered a new love for herbs.

“It’s amazing to enjoy the landscape, food, and people’s hospitality in Việt Nam. I have totally felt in love with the country,” said Si Woo.

The South Korean government has lifted most COVID-19 restrictions and resumed visa waivers to attract Vietnamese tourists. South Korea had become a favourite tourist destination for Vietnamese before the pandemic began, with more than 550,000 visiting in 2019.

Việt Nam reopened to international tourism with quarantine-free entry from March 15 and resumed 15-day visa waivers for tourists from South Korea, its second-largest market before the pandemic. — VNS