Koreatown grandmothers' harmonicas become Kings' playoff charm

A group of Korean American grandmothers from Los Angeles’ Koreatown have become a symbol of good luck for the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings after performing the U.S. national anthem on harmonica before two recent playoff games at Crypto.com Arena.

Fourteen members of the Koreatown Senior and Community Center (KSCCLA) harmonica class, dressed in traditional Korean hanbok, were invited by the Kings to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” before their playoff opener against the Edmonton Oilers on April 21. As the silver-haired musicians began playing at the cue, nearly 20,000 fans joined in singing along.

After the Kings pulled off a dramatic 6-5 victory, the team shared a video of the grandmothers’ performance on its official X account. The post drew a flood of comments from fans urging the team to invite the group back for the next game. The Kings responded by bringing them back for Game 2 on April 23, when the seniors, now sporting Kings jerseys instead of hanbok, played once again. The Kings went on to win 6-2.

“We don’t know hockey, but when we saw the Kings were going to win, we just started shouting,” said Donna Lee, 80, who performed at both games, in an interview with The Washington Post.

Founded in 2013, the KSCCLA is a community-based nonprofit with about 1,500 members. Its harmonica class, launched seven years ago, has performed at Lunar New Year events, Los Angeles City Council meetings and other occasions.

The group’s connection with the Kings began March 23, when the team asked them to perform the national anthem during its annual “Koreatown Night.” After fans responded enthusiastically to the unique performance — and the Kings notched a victory that evening — the team decided to invite them back for the playoffs.


Jeong-Soo Hong hong@donga.com