K-pop girl group BLACKPINK’s member Lalisa “Lisa” Manoban has joined a charity initiative that seeks to fund education for children in Thailand, a South Korean foundation announced Thursday.
Lisa, the only Thai member of the popular group, vowed to help improve children’s educational standards in her home province, Buri Ram.
Speaking to the Korea Times on Thursday, the rapper and dancer said she planned to join the social program run by the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange in the province. “I would like (children) to be able to play freely in a better educational environment and follow their dreams without constraints,” she was quoted as saying.
“I want to encourage and support the precious dreams of many children,” she added.
The foundation also said Lisa had launched an online account to collect donations.
“I am here to give you good news. We have opened a donation box for foreign children and adolescents. We plan to help our friends who study in worn premises to have a better space. I will also support our friends, join us,” she wrote.
The culture exchange program comes as a partnership between the foundation and BLACKPINK’s YG Entertainment label. This year, its goal is to build a 160-square-meter cultural complex at Non Suwan Phittayakhom School in Buri Ram.
The pop star and the foundation also expect to build a K-pop dance academy with local instructors.
Moreover, the foundation plans to provide projectors, computers and other multimedia equipment to the school, which taught traditional dance classes before facing problems due to poor facility conditions.
Buri Ram province is featured in the music video for the Thailand-born Lisa’s first music single, titled “Lalisa.”
The music video, released last week, showcased other distinctive elements of Thai culture and reached a YouTube record for solo artists by garnering the most views in its first 24 hours.
Lisa has used her influence to promote projects and movements that benefit vulnerable communities.
On September 14, it was announced that the singer would join the Korea Habitat foundation and state entity KOFICE on the Dream Space Project to address issues in low-income communities. The initiative seeks to help children who do not have the adequate infrastructure to study.
