Following A Coup Attempt, Tensions In Burkina Faso Are Rising.

Morocco's top music event, the Mawazine Festival, has announced K-pop girl group Aespa as its main act. On June 25, 2025, the quartet—Karina, Giselle, Winter, and Ningning—will take the stage at the festival in Rabat with their trademark exuberant performance. This is an important turning point for Aespa as well as the global expansion of K-pop into African countries. Here are five facts regarding Aespa's relationship to Africa that will generate excitement for their performance:

1. Nigeria's Longest-Charting K-pop Album According to the TurnTable Charts, Aespa's Armageddon: The First Album was the longest-charting K-pop album in Nigeria in 2024. The album peaked at number 32 after 20 weeks on the Official Album Chart.

2. First SM Entertainment Act to Perform in Africa: Aespa will be the first SM Entertainment act to perform on African soil. Although other members of the label have traveled to the continent—TVXQ's Yunho in Ghana, SHINee's KEY in Ethiopia, Taeyeon filming in Morocco, and f(x) in Kenya—none of them have actually performed. Aespa will also be the second SM girl group to visit Africa.

3. First K-pop Girl Group to Perform in Africa: Although it has long been rumored that groups like TWICE and BLACKPINK will perform in South Africa and Morocco, Aespa is the first K-pop girl group to headline a live show on the continent. Alongside soloist Henny, who performed in Angola and Gabon, Aespa is facilitating connections for more K-pop women.

4. Worked Together on a Project With Artists from South Africa Aespa contributed a guest verse to the song "Over You," which featured Chris Martin, on Jacob Collier's Djesse Vol. 4 album. The same production also includes South African stars Sho Madjozi and Kanyi Mavi on “Box of Stars Pt. 1.” Aespa is now one of the few K-pop artists to collaborate on an album with African musicians, much like Stray Kids and Burna Boy on Lil Durk's All My Life Remixes EP, or Jay Park and Ghanaian rapper E.L.'s collaboration with Young Paris.

5. Well-liked among Radio Listeners in Africa Aespa came in at number six on YFM's list of the Top 10 Most-Played Girl Groups for the year in 2021. The only girl groups from the 2020 rookie class to make the list were Aespa and Secret Number, whose songs like "Black Mamba" and "Next Level" were heavily played on Pop Central.

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