"Long Time No See"... Yoon Sings 'American Pie' Passionately at White House State Dinner

Standing Ovation from Audience at 1-Minute Performance
Biden Gifts Signed Guitar by Don McLean to Yoon
Attendees Spark Buzz on SNS

During his state visit to the United States, President Yoon Suk-yeol attracted attention on the 26th (local time) by singing Don McLean's "American Pie," his favorite song, at the White House state dinner.

At the White House state dinner held that day at the invitation of U.S. President Joe Biden and his wife, three actors performed songs: Norm Lewis, the first Black Phantom in the musical "The Phantom of the Opera"; Lea Salonga, who sang Princess Jasmine's songs in the Disney animation Aladdin; and Jessica Vosk, the lead in the musical "Wicked."

They added Don McLean's "American Pie" as an encore and mentioned, "We heard it is President Yoon's favorite song." As the intro played, President Yoon applauded, and it is known that First Lady Jill Biden requested the song from President Yoon.

President Yoon Suk-yeol sings Don McLean's "American Pie" at the state dinner between South Korea and the United States held at the White House in Washington DC on the 26th (local time), while U.S. President Joe Biden cheers. [Image source=Yonhap News]

President Biden also mentioned that his sons liked this song when they were young and that he used to change the lyrics from "whiskey 'n rye" to "whisky and dry."

President Yoon explained that this song was "one of my favorite songs during my school days," and at the request of President Biden and others, he said, "It's been a while," before singing a few lines from the introduction of the song.

More than 200 guests attending the dinner, including President Biden, cheered enthusiastically each time President Yoon sang a line. When President Yoon's surprise performance, which lasted about a minute, ended, they gave a standing ovation.

President Biden joked, "Don't expect me to sing too," but said, "Don McLean can't be here at the White House tonight, but he sent a signed guitar," and presented President Yoon with a guitar autographed by McLean.

Videos of President Yoon singing, recorded by attendees, quickly spread on U.S. social media (SNS), becoming a hot topic.

On the 26th (local time), U.S. President Joe Biden presented President Yoon with a guitar signed by MacLean at the Korea-U.S. state dinner held at the White House in Washington, DC.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

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