Since I was about nine-years-old, I had been listening to kpop. However, ten years later, my interest dwindled. However, I still listen to my fair share and care enough about two groups (one currently inactive atm) to stay updated.
About three weeks before I arrived in Korea, I had purchased a concert ticket to watch one of my (only) favorite kpop groups: Seventeen! In fact, a week before I had arrived in South Korea, I had actually seen Seventeen as they were performing in Los Angeles. It felt only right for me to buy yet ANOTHER ticket to see them less than two weeks later. I won't bore you with the details of the concert but in short words, it was an incredible experience.
With that being said, one of my biggest takeaways is the difference between concerts in America vs. concerts in Korea.
First things first, you are not allowed to be filming during concerts!
This was came as a sad surprise to me. One of the best parts of a concert is leaving your snapchat story an hour long for all your friends to enjoy, right? I actually thought I could get away with it towards the end of the concert but one of the staff took my phone and deleted all the videos I had taken (even ones that did not even have the artist in it).
Second, the artists feel INCREDIBLY genuine towards their fans.
I had seen this group three times in Los Angeles performing alongside other kpop groups before finally seeing them in their own concert in Korea. It is quite unexplainable but seeing the way the artists interacted with their fans is something I had never seen or felt in any concert I had been to, whether it be a Bruno Mars concert or any other kpop concert.
Third, the connection between the fans and the artist.
This relates to the previous one, but focuses more on the fans. Whenever I would go to concerts in the states, I feel as if fans are so caught up with being noticed by their favorite artist. I didn't feel that here. I truly felt the fans were there to support the artists and enjoy the music in the most wholesome way.
Despite being to a wide range of concerts and music festivals, I can say that the concert-going experience in Korea is like nothing I have ever experienced. In fact, I enjoy it more.
