BLACKPINK receive MBE honours from King Charles III

King Charles III honoured the K-pop band BLACKPINK on Wednesday for their work in raising awareness about climate change. Charles made BLACKPINK members Jennie Kim, Jisoo Kim and Lalisa Manoban honorary Members of the Order of the British Empire.

Bandmate Roseanne (Rosé) Park also received an MBE, though hers came without the 'honorary' qualifier because she has dual citizenship in New Zealand, one of the 14 countries, where the UK monarch is head of state.

The honours were presented during a ceremony at Buckingham Palace in recognition of BLACKPINK's role in promoting the work of the COP26 summit on climate change two years ago in Glasgow, Scotland. The awards are part of Britain's honours system, which recognises outstanding service to the nation and the wider world.

Lisa, Jennie, Jisoo and Rosé smiled and greeted King Charles III as he presented them with the medals. Jennie and Jisoo wore black outfits, while Lisa wore a baby blue dress with a short cape. Rosé chose a grey pantsuit.

Lisa (Lalisa Manoban), Rose (Roseanne Park), Jisoo Kim and Jennie Kim, from the K-Pop band Blackpink pose with their Honorary MBEs (Members of the Order of the British Empire), awarded to them in recognition of the band's role as COP26 advocates for the COP26 Summit in Glasgow 2021, on the day of a special Investiture ceremony conducted by Britain's King Charles in the presence of the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol, and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, at Buckingham Palace, London, Britain November 22, 2023. Victoria Jones/Pool via REUTERS

Charles had lauded the K-pop girl group on Tuesday during a state banquet in honour of Korean President Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee 'for their role in bringing the message of environmental sustainability to a global audience'.

King Charles III jokingly said to BLACKPINK members at the ceremony, "It's amazing you're still talking to each other after all these years… I hope I shall be able to see you perform live at some point".

At Tuesday's banquet, the BLACKPINK ladies arrived in beautiful gowns and dresses and were spotted exchanging glances and smiles as Charles and others spoke.

BLACKPINK made history in July, becoming the first K-pop group to headline a major UK music festival and took to the stage at the BST Hyde Park summer festival in central London in front of a crowd of 65,000 for a sold-out concert.

Since their debut in 2016, BLACKPINK has become one of the most successful girl groups in the world, breaking records such as becoming the most subscribed to music artists on YouTube.