South Korea’s President Visited Japan And Jammed To K-Pop On The Drums With Japan’s Prime Minister
"When we met at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation last year, Lee Jae-myung mentioned that playing drums was his dream, so we prepared this surprise,” Takaichi wrote on X.
In an unexpectedly wholesome moment, South Korea’s president Lee Jae-myung and Japan’s prime minister Takaichi Sanae played the drums together in a jam session.
Lee visited Takaichi's hometown, Nara, in Japan on Tuesday, Jan. 13, to discuss economic and trade issues, security and AI technology with Takaichi.
This was their second official meeting since the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju last October.
After the bilateral talks concluded, the two took part in a "drumming exchange" that had not been announced to the public beforehand.
In the video, the two leaders wore blue outfits prepared in advance by the Japanese side and performed together on jazz drums, with a setlist including "Dynamite" by popular K-pop group BTS and "Golden," the theme song from the Golden Globe-winning best animated film "KPop Demon Hunters."
After the performance, Takaichi and Lee exchanged drumsticks as a symbol of the friendship between Japan and South Korea.
"When we met at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation last year, Lee Jae-myung mentioned that playing drums was his dream, so we prepared this surprise,” Takaichi, who was a rock band drummer during her student years, later wrote on X.
The South Korean presidential office announced the following day that Lee had gifted Takaichi a jazz drum set, saying that the instrument "combines strength and gentleness," which perfectly echoes Takaichi's political philosophy.
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