Sriya Lenka becomes India’s first K–Pop star
New Delhi: Popular K-pop band named the Blackswan group announced that Indian singer Sriya Lenka has been chosen as the fifth member of the group. The 18-year-old Lenka from Odisha was named the fifth member of the renowned all-girl group.
Lenka’s journey began when she started auditioning for several K-pop bands in the year 2020. She was finally shortlisted for a training camp at Seoul after a series of auditions. She honed her artistic skills in an intense 5-month programme.
On the other hand, 19-year-old Brazilian Gabriela Dalcin was named as the sixth member of the group.
Lenka’s father, Avinash Lenka, told that he was overjoyed after learning that his daughter became the first Indian K-pop star. The fifth member is trained in Odissi, freestyle, hip hop, and contemporary dance forms.
She was chosen from among 4,000 applicants through a YouTube audition programme. Lenka learnt Korean online and watched Korean dramas to strengthen her grasp of Korean language and culture.
The Blackswan group is a four-member band comprising leader and Korean singer Go Young Heun (Youngheun), Belgium-based Senegalese singer-rapper-model Fatou Samba (Fatou), Korean singer-dancer Kim Da Hye (Judy), and Brazilian-Japanese singer Larissa Ayumi Cartes Sakata (Leia).
The group debuted in 2020 with a full album Goodbye Rania followed by its first single album Close to Me in 2021.
(Avya Mathur)
