In Thailand, a young girl has become quite the overnight sensation for her uncanny resemblance to Lisa, a member of the K-pop group Blackpink.
Kulthida, also known as Yeehwa, is a 17-year-old secondary school student Taphanhin School in Thailand’s Phichit province, about 300 kilometres north of the capital Bangkok.
During the school holidays, she visits and helps her mother sell fried chicken at Wat Asokaram market in Samut Prakan, south of Bangkok.
Videos of her at the stall have gone viral on TikTok, with one video uploaded by @kingstreetfood5 amassing over a million views, catapulting her to online fame.
Indeed, from having Lisa’s signature cat-like eyes, long lashes and wispy bangs, Yeehwa really does look like she had stepped out of a K-pop music video shoot.
Kinda uncanny and strange, can you imagine walking along the streets of Thailand and seeing a world-famous superstar serving fried chicken?
When speaking to the Thai press via a video call, Yeehwa confessed that she was a little embarrassed about the attention she started to garner, but is still happy and excited all the same to resemble such a successful and iconic artist.
Her newfound fame even led to a makeover by a famous Thai makeup stylist, transforming her to look like Lisa from her latest music video, Rockstar, complete with the outfits, expressions, dance moves and all!
The young Yeehwa also showed interest in the entertainment industry, stating that if given the opportunity, she would willingly enter it.
Yeehwa’s story resonates deeply with many young people in Thailand who look up to Lisa as an inspiration.
Lisa, whose full name is Lalisa Manobal, is a member of the globally renowned K-pop group Blackpink, known for their chart-topping bangers like “Pink Venom” and “Shut Down”.
Blackpink was also the first K-pop act to perform at the major American music festival Coachella in 2019 and headlined the same festival in 2023.
Lisa, despite building her career in South Korea since she was a teenager, remains proud of her Thai heritage and actively promotes Thai culture in her music. She had recently established her own independent label called LLOUD, following her departure from YG Entertainment.
The 27-year-old K-pop idol recently released her solo single Rockstar on June 28, which quickly climbed to the eighth spot on Spotify’s Global Chart in the US, marking the highest debut for a female K-pop solo artist.
The colourful music video was even shot in Bangkok’s Chinatown, one of the most well-known landmarks and tourist attractions in the city. Lisa had reportedly paid shopkeepers a generous amount of around US$540 for their troubles to make way for the music video shoot.
As of 4 July 2024, Rockstar has garnered over 14 million views within eight days of its release!