Non-Stop K-Pop: KCON LA and why it matters
In August of last year, I went to my first KCON LA. I honestly had no idea what to expect — it was the first major convention of any kind that I had been to, and it was KCON LA’s first time running since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
It was one of the best experiences of my life.
Last year’s event design consisted of three convention days at the Los Angeles Convention Center and two concert nights at Crypto.com Arena. Although I don’t remember how much I paid for all my tickets — convention and concert tickets are sold separately — whatever the price, I know that it was well worth it.
KCON is presented by CJ ENM in accordance with local entertainment organizations; KCON LA is hosted in part by iHeartMedia. Although the convention takes place year-round in different parts of the world with various artists and vendors participating, KCON LA is by far the best, in my impartial opinion. This year’s convention will be taking place Aug.18 through Aug. 20.
KCON is incredible because of its lineups. I don’t know how the event organizers pull the strings they manage to pull, but this year, they’ve managed to bring artists from every generation of K-Pop. Yes, I’m talking about all five.
Last year’s lineup was undoubtedly dominated by fourth generation K-Pop. I don’t think there was a single group that strayed outside of this era. From Stray Kids to ATEEZ to ITZY to ENHYPEN to NMIXX, it was a fourth-gen stan’s dream. The concerts were split between two nights. With so many groups performing in a roughly three-hour time span, each set lasted for around 20 minutes, with every group performing their greatest hits with immense gusto. You get to see all your favorite groups perform their best songs with a lot of energy in succession for a quarter of the price of buying tickets to their individual concerts.
Unfortunately, this year, KCON LA is breaking up its concerts into three nights instead of two. This means that unless you have about $1000 lying around for good seats for each night, you’re going to have to pick and choose between groups.
Having to choose between groups has been so stressful that I’ve refused to engage in the topic since the daily lineups were released. I’m breaking my silence for this piece. You’re welcome.
In case you didn’t catch up on KCON’s website or its Instagram, they go by KCON USA because the sites maintain all United States-related KCON ordeals.
Day one concert lineup this year consists of CRAVITY, IVE, NMIXX, Shownu and Hyungwon from MONSTA X, TAEMIN, TAEYONG and WayV. The fact of the matter is that I likely won’t attend day one’s concert but having to deny my rights to see IVE, NMIXX and TAEMIN is extremely painful.
Day two consists of ATEEZ, FIFTY FIFTY, INI, Kep1er, RAIN, xikers and ZEROBASEONE. In all honesty, I’ve never even heard of ZEROBASEONE, and I only know of INI because I saw them last year. FIFTY FIFTY only has one recognizable song and, although I like Kep1er, I saw them last year for the meet & greet and that was sufficient. My heart shatters at the thought of giving up seeing ATEEZ or RAIN, though. For those unaware, RAIN is first generation K-pop, and I’m amazed that he’s coming to KCON LA at the age of 41.
Day three, and this is the day I’m hoping to attend with front row seats, consists of EVERGLOW, (G)I-DLE, ITZY, JO1, Lapillus, Stray Kids and THE BOYZ. When I saw EVERGLOW on the lineup, I almost jumped out of my damn skin. I saw these beautiful angels perform two days before the coronavirus pandemic shut everything down in March 2020. They haven’t had a release in — gasp — two years and haven’t been on tour since 2020. This is also their first performance in the U.S. since then, and I am beyond elated.
I don’t really care for JO1 or Lapillus, but I’m obsessed with (G)I-DLE and Stray Kids. I also have high hopes for THE BOYZ. I’m not a stan, but I enjoy a lot of their music.
The three-day convention is only $30, and I think it’s worth going to at least one day. Artists do make special random appearances — I got to see STAYC up close last year — and if you’re hoping to catch a meet & greet or hi touch, you better be at the Convention Center.
One quick note about meet & greets, high touches and red carpet events: Although you can buy the pass for each of the previous categories “per day,” following my experience, you really can only pick two or three groups to be able to see up close. Last year, all these meet & greets and high touches took place in the same part of the Convention Center, which meant that, as the event with one group was happening inside, the line for the next group was already 200 people deep. Make sure the groups you choose to meet with are spaced apart.
Regardless of the chaos that might ensue, I’m still stoked. Make sure to clear your calendars this August and start the academic year off right!
Daphne Yaman is a rising senior writing about K-pop in her column, “Non-Stop K-Pop.” She is also an opinion editor at the Daily Trojan.