Surprising link between Bundaberg and K-Pop mega bands

A regional Queensland town has a surprising link to some of the most popular Korean pop bands in the world after a grab from a music video recently went viral. Watch the video

The mash-up music video of popular K-Pop band Stray Kids has revealed a surprise link to the Queensland city of Bundaberg, after singer Kim Seungmin popped the lid on a bottle of Bundaberg Brewed Drinks Pink Grapefruit in his music video.

The video, which has garnered 1.7 million views in the seven days it has been online, shows the singer opening the recognisable bottle before pouring out its contents.

A short GIF of the scene went viral on X (formally Twitter) after verified fan page @SEUNGM1NE shared it and a photo of the bottle with the caption “kim seungmin aggressively opened up the bottle lid and pour this grapefruit drink AHHHH.”

With more than 150,000 dedicated followers, the post has since been viewed more than 62,000 times, and retweeted more than 290 times by fans.

kim seungmin aggressively opened up the bottle lid and pour this grapefruit drink AHHHH 😳 pic.twitter.com/qkkGpAA8iO

— 댕꾸 ◡̈ (@SEUNGM1NE) November 5, 2023

One fan shared the post with the comment “oh the bundaberg pink grapefruit is so good I approve”. Another said “bundaberg is actually a fairly popular drink sold in Korea which is pretty cool”.

Eagle-eyed fans also spotted the popular bottle shape in the hands of Bang Chan, lead singer of Stray Kids, and who has his own X thread dedicated to the trend of showing a celebrity as a household object, in this case Bundaberg Brewed Drinks.

Reportedly, Bang Chan has his own homegrown connection with the drink, due to being raised in Sydney after moving from his South Korean birth place in his youth.

Stray Kids band member Bang Chan shares a bottle of Bundaberg Brewed Drinks Ginger Beer with those joining him on his ‘Chan’s Room’ Vlog.

Stray Kids aren’t the only K-Pop fans of the iconic beverage.

In a January behind-the-scenes Vlog shared by girl group Aespa shot in Sydney, a video that has had more than 700,000 views on YouTube, members show excitement at coming across Bundaberg Brewed Drinks in a convenience store.

Main dancer of the band Karina comments on the amount of flavours on offer, pointing out the variety to bandmate Winter.

Bandmate Ningning offers her help and said:

“I normally like this Ginger Beer flavour, I already know that flavour,” before pointing out her picks; Passionfruit or Pineapple Coconut.

Bang Chan as Bundaberg - a thread

• Spiced Ginger Beer pic.twitter.com/CQvlbPVH4F

— 나지막이 혼잣말 (@ds_valera) February 8, 2022

Bundaberg Brewed Drinks CEO John McLean said the informal relationship between the musicians had been beneficial.

“The posts featuring our brews benefit our brand awareness in the region, and they are something we do not take for granted,” he said.

“The APAC (Asia Pacific) region is one of our fastest-growing markets, and South Korea is one of the core markets from within this region.”

He said the company had slowly been seeding the expansive range into the region, with Ginger Beer, Pink Grapefruit, Tropical Mango and Lemon, Lime and Bitters market favourites.

“Recently, we launched our Traditional Brewed Lemonade in the Korean market, and it’s proving popular – so we’re excited to see how that continues to perform.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (right) and CEO John McLean (left) tour the new Bundaberg Brewed Drinks brewery which opened on November 1. Photo Paul Beutel.