The ASEAN-Korea Music Festival ROUND 2021, hosted by the Korean broadcasting company KBS and sponsored by the Government of the Republic of Korea (RoK) through the ASEAN-Korea Cooperation Fund, will be held online on January 9, 2022, according to the ASEAN Secretariat.

Illustrative photo (Source: asean.org)

Sixteen top talented musicians from the ten ASEAN member states and the RoK will take part in the event. The first lineup will feature Filipino boy-band SB19, rising Vietnamese popstar My Anh, Sophia Liana, a female rapper from Malaysia, Jambinai, a group renowned for their fusion of Korean traditional music, and ADOY, a synth-pop band.

ROUND 2021’s concept is “Hello to New Normal”, which aims to strengthen the cultural bond and support among ASEAN states and the RoK through the power of music to connect with each other. It aims to provide an opportunity for younger generations from various countries to communicate through music and promote the formation of an active pop music network connecting all countries.

“ROUND 2021 will be an online festival where global music fans will be emotionally moved and ASEAN and Korean musicians can communicate with each other even amidst the pandemic,” said KBS producer Hwang Kuk Chan.

ROUND 2021 builds on the success of ROUND 2020, held on December 6, 2020 which featured well-known ASEAN and Korean artists. ROUND 2020 won the 2021 Digital Content Award at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union for its innovative use of online communication technologies to engage with the audience.

Source: VNA