BLACKPINK’s Lisa recently stepped away from her packed schedule to visit Punch, the viral monkey, during a trip to Japan.

The singer and actor stopped by Ichikawa City Zoo in Chiba Prefecture, located just outside Tokyo, over the weekend on Saturday March 7. While there, she shared photos from the visit, including moments where she saw the monkey that has recently captured attention online.

Punch is a young macaque who gained widespread attention on social media after videos showed him being picked on by other monkeys in his enclosure. Zoo staff later gave him a plush toy for comfort, and he has since been seen carrying the stuffed animal around almost constantly.

During her visit, Lisa brought along a stuffed orange orangutan that closely resembled Punch’s own toy. She was seen lifting it up so the baby macaque could notice it from his enclosure.

She also shared her excitement about the trip through Instagram Stories, uploading several photos of herself posing with the plush toy.

The outing comes during an especially busy stretch for Lisa, who recently reunited with her fellow BLACKPINK members to release a long awaited EP titled ‘DEADLINE’.

The project, described as a mini album, includes last summer’s popular single ‘Jump’ along with additional tracks titled ‘Me And My’, ‘Go’, ‘Champion’, and ‘Fxxxboy’.

The release follows the group’s return to the stage for a huge stadium tour last year after Lisa, Rosé, Jisoo and Jennie had each focused on their own solo projects in previous years.

Lisa is also continuing to build her acting career. She is currently working on a new film titled Tygo in South Korea and has been rumored to join a Netflix romantic comedy inspired by Notting Hill.

She previously landed a major role in the third season of the HBO series The White Lotus, where she appears alongside Patrick Schwarzenegger, Walton Goggins, Aimee Lee Wood, Jason Isaacs and several other cast members.

 
 

Not for the first time, Moby is speaking out against Donald Trump’s administration with clear frustration.

“The U.S. is collapsing under a deeply corrupt and shockingly ineffective administration,” the longtime electronic musician shared on social media. “These are unbelievably dark times.”

Moby went deeper into his thoughts through a video message, where he explained that people outside the United States keep asking Americans what is actually happening in the country.

“So many of my friends outside the United States keep asking me, ‘what the hell is happening over there?’ And honestly, we don’t even know,” he said. “The country is being controlled by one of the most corrupt, dangerous and incompetent administrations imaginable. Nobody fully understands what’s happening right now. These are very dark times in America.”

Moby joins a growing list of artists publicly criticizing Trump and MAGA politics, including Bruce Springsteen, Jack White, Eminem and Billie Eilish.

Earlier this year, Moby uploaded another statement to social media where he addressed how people should respond following the killing of Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis. “The real question isn’t whether people should feel horrified or outraged by what’s happening in the United States,” Moby explained in the Jan. 26 clip. “The question is what are we actually going to do about it?”

The musician and activist also encouraged people to protest, saying demonstrations are a constitutional right and something he believes Trump’s administration is attempting to weaken.

In the end, he urged people to vote regularly, “not only during the upcoming midterms, even though those matter, but also in every special election throughout the year.” He also encouraged supporters to “stop giving money to the scumbag corporations backing Trump and ICE. We all know who they are. Boycott them.”

His newest remarks arrive as the U.S. Justice Department unveils a nearly $1.8 billion compensation fund for Trump allies who claim they were unfairly investigated. At the same time, the Strait of Hormuz remains shut down following military action launched by the U.S. and Israel against Iran in late February without approval from Congress, leading to rising gas prices across the globe.

Throughout his independent music career, Moby has earned 10 entries on the Billboard 200 along with two songs on the Billboard Hot 100 and an enormous catalog of sync placements. Overseas, particularly in the United Kingdom, he is viewed as one of the defining artists of his era. He scored two No. 1 albums there with Play from 1999 and 18 from 2002, alongside 18 top 40 singles and two nominations for Best International Male at the BRIT Awards.

Check out Moby’s newest social media post below.

 

 

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