The screaming fans. The stages. The merch. The panels. The idols. This was KCON.
From August 10-12, I attended my first ever KCON in L.A. I’d been looking forward to it ever since April and it was finally here! I wasn’t just a regular KCON attendee: I had a press badge. It proved to be a great experience having one during my first KCON since it allowed me the privileges of participating in interviews and filming panels.
Friday:
Upon my first look at the convention hall on Friday, I took in all the sights. Vendors sold everything from beauty products to clothes to CDs and posters (which were always the busiest stands). At the end of the weekend, I even went home with my very own NCT 2018 poster, which hangs up on my closet right now! Our first day as the press team was packed and busy with panels, interviews, and more!
Our first interview was with songwriter Andreas Oberg. Oberg has composed more than 25 number one hits, and is a household name in the K-Pop songwriting industry. It was my first time being a behind-the-scenes hand for an interview, and I enjoyed having that inside look into the mind of a songwriter since I have dabbled in songwriting myself!
Our second interview was with the vibrant and warm Alex Reid. Alex used to be a member of BP Rania, but is now pursuing a solo career. During the interview, she discussed her experience in Korea and how it’s shaped the projection of her career now. After the interview, we dropped off some fruit with her dad who was watching because we’d heard she hadn’t eaten yet that day! Then before I even knew it, Day 1 was finished!
Saturday:
Day 2! I attended a panel called “K-Pop Journal 101″ which was hosted by Christine (cllalagram) and Jae (cloudyyeolie) who both have quite the social media following for their bullet journaling skills. I’ve always been an arts and crafts kind of girl, so finding a way to intersect that with my love for K-Pop seemed like the thing to do. We practiced lettering on worksheets and got a sneak peek at Christine and Jae’s personal journals. Simply seeing the aesthetically pleasing nature of them, I was fully inspired to go home and get to journaling which I, happily, have kept my promise on! The panel ended with an extensive giveaway and I won a series of fine black pens in different point values (for my pen-loving self, this was quite the catch!)
I spent a fair amount of time at our KPOP-TV booth as well, which was quite popular throughout the entire convention. We had multiple giveaways and gave away “ASK ME ABOUT MY BIAS” tote bags. (C’mon, who doesn’t want to talk about their bias?) It was a cool opportunity to see the people who attend KCON, ranging from elementary school girls to middle aged mothers. The reach of the genre is so vast and all-encompassing; it’s touched so many people. We met so many sweet and stylish people there from all walks of life, excited to hear about TV channels with K-Pop programming.
Saturday night was the first night of the MNET KCON concerts! I was so excited as we waited in line to get into the Staples Center. Before this trip, I’d never even been to downtown L.A, so just looking at my surroundings was a fun and new experience. Once we were seated, I realized we were quite close to the stage, especially in comparison to the vast space that the Staples Center occupies. The concerts are a unique format that emulates a music festival — each act performs just a few songs, at most four, and then exits the stage. It makes for a diverse experience where you witness all the current state of K-Pop has to offer. The lineup for night one included Mia, Dynamic Duo, Golden Child, IN2IT, Crush, Davichi, Ailee, Momoland, TWICE, and Wanna One.
Dynamic Duo’s smooth tag-team rapping got the crowd nodding our heads, and they brought out Crush for a collaboration song as well. Crush’s voice is equally seamless in person and he showcased it with an a cappella rendition of his massively popular OST “Beautiful” from the drama Goblin!
The most popular groups of the night were TWICE and Wanna One. TWICE’s Jihyo, Momo, and Tzuyu sent the crowd into a frenzy with their special performance of “End of Time” by Beyonce! It was refreshing to see them take on a more sassy, mature piece of music that strayed away from their typical fare. All together, TWICE performed crowd favorites like “Dance the Night Away,” “What is Love?” and “Cheer Up” as well. The girls were dressed in beautiful, beachy outfits to fit their latest comeback too! My personal favorite was Jihyo’s high-low white dress, which was very graceful and mermaid-like.
Both of Davichi’s members, Lee Haeri and Kang Minkyung, have vocal talent that goes beyond comprehension. Their skill gives people goosebumps and I was in awe of the resonance of their voices. Before seeing to them live I had only partially been a fan of Davichi, but witnessing their voices in person, I gained so much respect for them.
Wanna One donned all purple outfits as they performed intense songs like “Energetic” and “Light.” It was brought to my attention that this may be Wanna One’s last performance in America ever, since they will be disbanding at the end of the year. The impressiveness of their choreography in music videos translated to real life; I only wish they’d performed “Boomerang” too.
Overall, it was a fun and peppy night of music and I came away smiling and wishing I could keep dancing the night away.
Sunday:
Sunday was the last day and because of that had a bittersweet feeling to it. Despite my sadness, the energy itself was so happy within the convention center; everyone was genuinely glad to be there and partake in the K-Pop fandom together. KCON is truly like a mecca for Kpop fans, since the mainstream public doesn’t really understand the amazement that is K-Pop. Typically, fans can’t let out their true passion for it but at KCON, the wilder the better!
I especially enjoyed catching glimpses at the Toyota booth, where fans would participate in choreography together. It’s fascinating to see just how many people have taken the time to learn K-Pop dances. Attendees also had the opportunity to dance during workshops within the convention center, as well as see artists perform and be interviewed on the KCON stage.
I was even more pumped for night two of the concert as two of my favorite groups, Pentagon and Seventeen, were set to perform!
Pentagon is my most recent obsession, so I was looking forward to seeing them. I’ve like them since the romantic “Pretty Pretty,” just before the huge surge of popularity with their single “Shine.” At KCON, they performed the viral hit “Shine,” as well as the ballad “Beautiful” and the EDM-infused jam “Runaway.” Despite missing members Yanan and E’Dawn, the members held their own and made the stage their own.
Seventeen were shining like the sun with their bright performances of “Oh My!” “Our Dawn is Hotter Than the Day,” “Very Nice,” and “Mansae” while dressed in summery yellow outfits.
Their time on the stage was especially significant to me given the song selections. “Mansae” was the first song that got me into the Seventeen fandom, so to have them perform that live was a truly special moment for me. “Very Nice” was the first song that made me a hardcore Carat, so to witness that in person gave me a full-circle feeling!
The other performances each had their strengths as well. Chung Ha is the breakout star of I.O.I and rightfully so. Fans screamed their heads off to her singles “Love U” and “Roller Coaster”. Chung Ha is fully equipped to become a solid soloist, and she’s already made her mark on the industry.
By the end of the concert, the finality of the weekend hadn’t hit me yet; I reflected on how good of a weekend it had been,and how it had exceeded all of my expectations. I went away from KCON feeling very grateful, for the awesome experiences and the wonderful company of my fellow girls from KPOP-TV! We made an excellent team. I was able to see and enjoy so many different aspects of the convention and the concerts. It was one of the biggest highlights of my year and I’m so curious to see what next year’s KCON brings!
This post was written by our guest blogger, Lauren Jiang.
