“Nearly four years ago, BLACKPINK made history. Performing on Coachella’s Sahara stage in 2019, the powerhouse group became the first female K-pop act to appear at the festival (and proved they deserved such a title).

“At the time, their booking felt like a momentous feat and a signal that a tide was turning – interest in K-pop was rapidly rising in the west, but it was still flying under the radar almost a decade after PSY’s ‘Gangnam Style’ became a global phenomenon.

“Now, as BLACKPINK are invited back to the Californian desert to take their place as headliners, things have changed.

“Korean culture is very much a dominant force right now, with creatives from the country leading everything from music to film and TV, fashion and beauty to food.

“According to Duolingo, in 2021, Korean was the second-fastest-growing language on the app.”

Read more at NME