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Aespa the first K-pop group at Cannes

Aespa invited as ambassadors of Cannes Film Festival's official partner Chopard

By Choi Ji-won

Published : May 26, 2023 - 13:31

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Aespa attended the 76th Cannes International Film Festival held in Cannes, France, as the ambassadors of Chopard on Wednesday. (SM Entertainment) Aespa attended the 76th Cannes International Film Festival held in Cannes, France, as the ambassadors of Chopard on Wednesday. (SM Entertainment)

Seemingly an unlikely place to see K-pop stars, Cannes film festival has witnessed the debut of so many this year, with aespa leaving an exceptional note among all.

Aespa, the four-piece girl band housed under SM Entertainment, made its first appearance at the prestigious French film festival's red carpet on Wednesday, local time.

The quartet's Cannes debut came with the screening of the festival's competition title "The Pot-Au-Feu" at Palais des Festivals on Wednesday. It was the first time a full K-pop group showed up at the international film festival.

They attended the event as the official ambassadors of Swiss luxury jewelry house Chopard, at the invitation of the brand's artistic director and co-President Caroline Scheufele, SM explained in a statement released on Friday.

With dazzling Chopard jewelry adorning their fingers and around their faces, the girls took the spotlight in long gowns, black or white, posing elegantly to the flashes of cameras.

The outdoor venue was abuzz with excitement upon aespa's arrival, as frenzied fans celebrated the moment on-site with the girls, cheering and calling out the members' names.

Chopard has been Cannes film fest's official partner since 1998. Since Tuesday, aespa has been attending various events and parties hosted by Chopard for the 76th Cannes festival.

Aespa attended the 76th Cannes International Film Festival held in Cannes, France, as the ambassadors of Chopard on Wednesday. (SM Entertainment) Aespa attended the 76th Cannes International Film Festival held in Cannes, France, as the ambassadors of Chopard on Wednesday. (SM Entertainment)

Aespa, consisting of Karina, Winter, NingNing and Giselle, debuted in November 2020 with its smash-hit single "Black Mamba." It has released a series of chart-topping hits, including "Next Level," "Savage," "Girls" and "Spicy."

On May 8, the band dropped its latest album, "My World," fronted by title song "Spicy." The album has brought new records for the girls, racking up a record high 1.69 million copies in sales in the first week, the highest number tallied by a K-pop girl group in a week. It went onto reach a milestone of 2 million units by the second week.

Recently, the quartet was selected among Billboard's list of "K-Pop Star to Watch" and Forbes' "Forbes 30 under 30 Asia 2023."

In August, the band is also set to make its historic Tokyo Dome debut with a special edition of its world tour "Synk: Hyper Line."

Meanwhile, other K-pop singers who showed up at the Cannes red carpet this year include Blackpink's Jennie and Rose, Bibi and f(x) member Krystal Jung.