K-pop acts Stray Kids, Psy, Sunmi and others to perform live at Expo 2020 Dubai


Evelyn Lau
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The Korea pavilion has announced the full line-up for its country day concert at Expo 2020 Dubai.

It will feature K-pop acts Stray Kids, Psy, Sunmi, GI-dle, Golden Child and Forestella who will take the stage at Jubilee Park on January 16. The gig will run from 7.30pm to 9.30pm.

While ticket information will be available soon, in the meantime, here’s a preview of the acts set to perform:

Stray Kids

The eight members of K-pop band Stray Kids were chosen as the pavilion's ambassadors. The group was founded in 2017 and have released two albums, 2020’s Go Live and 2021’s Noeasy, with both hitting number one on the Korean music charts. Concert goers should expect to hear chart toppers such as Thunderous, God’s Menu and My Pace.

Psy

Psy’s 2012 smash hit Gangnam Style became the first video to reach one billion views on YouTube and peaked at No 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2018, he left his agency, YG Entertainment, after eight years and founded his own company, P Nation. In December, he announced his comeback, saying that he would release a new album in 2022, his first since 2017’s 4X2=8.

Sunmi

Once a member of the girl group Wonder Girls, Sunmi left in 2010 to pursue her studies. She returned to the music scene as a solo artist in 2013, when her debut EP Full Moon spawned number two singles 24 Hours and Full Moon. She rejoined Wonder Girls in 2015 but the group disbanded in 2017. She continues as a soloist.

GI-dle

GI-dle is a girl group founded by Cube Entertainment in 2018 and currently has five members. They’re known for being directly involved with the creation of their music, something a bit unusual for K-pop girl groups. Their 2020 album Dumdi Dumdi is the second best-selling girl group single album of all time.

Golden Child

Ten-member boy band Golden Child was created by Woollim Entertainment in 2017. The group released two studio albums, 2019’s Re-boot and 2021’s Game Changer, which peaked at number two on the Korean charts. Expect to hear songs such as Ddara, Ra Pam Pam and Burn It.

Forestella

Forestella is a crossover male quartet group formed through a singing competition called Phantom Singer 2, which was broadcast in 2017. The four members of the group auditioned individually for the show but were put together as a group, eventually naming themselves Forestella. They’re known for inventive reinterpretations of popular songs, combining traditional Korean music with rock and classic singing techniques.

Scroll below to see photos from South Korea's pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai:

ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

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Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

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'Worse than a prison sentence'

Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.

“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.

“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.

“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.

“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.

“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”

'Joker'

Directed by: Todd Phillips

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix

Rating: Five out of five stars

How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
  1. Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
  2. Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
  3. Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
  4. Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
  5. Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
  6. The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
  7. Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269

*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Volvo ES90 Specs

Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)

Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp

Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm

On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region

Price: Exact regional pricing TBA

UAE players with central contracts

Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Date: Sunday, November 25

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Updated: January 03, 2022, 5:50 PM`