Better, Bigger, Stronger: KCON NY 2019 Takes Over Madison Square Garden

Check-out part one of our KCON New York 2019 coverage diving into the convention!

The Concert

As much fun as you have at the convention, nothing beats the concert experience. Festivals and collective concerts often worry fans. Not seeing your favorite group headlining their own tour often means you might not see them in full force or hear your favorite song. While there is a limited setlist, groups at KCON never fail to bring an energetic and surprising performance, as if everyone in the crowd were their fans. And for the 30 minutes that that group is up on stage, we all are. Fanchants come naturally, banners pile up from groups you haven’t heard prior, and anyone who’s on stage makes your heart beat a little faster. If there’s a festival lineup that disappoints in their production, KCON is not it.

Photos: KCON USA

Day 1

KCON is the place to be for special stages, and we started off day one with ATEEZ and The Boyz giving us amazing dance performances to “Sicko Mode” and “Bad Guy” respectively. Seeing both rookie groups for the first time performing songs I already knew was a breath of fresh air. Instead of focusing on whether or not I liked the song, I was vibing to melodies I already knew, enjoying their dancing talents. The first group to claim the stage as theirs was BigHit Entertainment’s super rookies, TXT. All of Madison Square Garden was taken over by bright colors and cheerful dance-along songs, with some barking here and there. Though they were the youngest group to perform on the first day, TXT did not disappoint. Day one belonged to the rookies. ATEEZ and The Boyz brought double the energy they did during their special stage to their headlining moment. It’s hard to sit back and try to calculate just how long ago these groups had their debut because they can easily pass as seasoned artists. I also don’t recommend doing the math on their ages, if you’re an older K-Pop fan like me. 

EVERGLOW sadly couldn’t join this year’s lineup, but IZ*ONE held down the girl group fort brilliantly. It was nice seeing a softer, sweeter performance take over Madison Square Garden. The arena’s energy remained at its height as the girls performed, giving everyone a nice sit-down break to watch them cutely pass missions in order to give fans gifts. And, of course, it was then time for the night’s headliners. After seeing Baekho and Minhyun perform an emotional cover of “Lost Stars” as a special stage, we now had NU’EST in its full glory. Performing their newest hits, the veterans joined this year’s KCON lineup to prove that veterans still got it. I do have to embarrassingly admit that I might have gone overboard on my fangirl moment while seeing one of my favorite older groups and the voices behind one of the first K-Pop albums I bought when I was a younger fan, performing live right in front of my eyes. Day one’s lesson was to never underestimate rookies but to also never forget those we’ve loved for years.

Day 2

I was far more excited for day one than I was for day two. I knew all of the groups performing on the first day (at least by name) and am a big NU’EST fan. I thought day two would be a chill day for me, sitting down quietly enjoying the performances and meeting new groups. Boy, was I wrong. I now have three new favorite groups and around 10 new biases to deal with. Apparently, it’s also 2015 again and I’m back to being a full-blown CARAT. Day one, you’ll forever be in my heart, but day two took the cake this year.

VERIVERY came as the night’s nicest surprise. Fresh-faced cuties took on the stage with softer looks and high-energy melodies. From Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic” to their own set, I was sad I had not discovered the group prior, but very (very) happy I was having the opportunity to see them live. It was nice to have two girl groups balance out all of the boys up on stage. Having fromis_9 and (G)I-DLE performing on the same night was a perfect choice, proving once and for all that girl groups are diverse and can serve a multitude of concepts to perfection. If your preference lies with upbeat, cute concepts and pretty dresses, fromis_9 was there for you. If you enjoy rap-heavy songs and street style, (G)I-DLE had you covered. (G)I-DLE is right up my alley and I can now say, with confidence, that I am in love with Jeon Soyeon. No other rapper on stage that night could deliver their lines while flawlessly dancing as Soyeon did.

The three groups who really made day two my favorite were AB6IX, SF9, and SEVENTEEN. None of them were brand new to me. I was a big SEVENTEEN fan even before their debut and still love the members very much, despite not being such an avid CARAT. SF9 always finds their way back to my Twitter timeline. Anyone who knows the very basic about Wanna One has at least heard about AB6IX. I was excited and curious, but any expectations that I didn’t even realize I had were suppressed.

AB6IX is certainly not a group designed for me. Against all odds, I am in love. After doing my best to avoid the Wanna One craze due to my own past traumas with survival shows, Lee Daehwi has now officially found his way to me. “Breathe” is the perfect club-house mix and exactly what K-Pop needs right now. Woojin performed while sitting due to an injury, but that did not take one bit away from the group’s performance. The other four members (it shocked me too that a group named AB6IX would only have five members) performed their choreographies to perfection, integrating Woojin whenever they could. 

Seeing SF9 live for the first time in suits with no shirts under their blazers performing EXO’s “Love Shot” was both shocking and something I won’t ever be able to forget. Sometimes when I find myself void of thoughts, my mind goes back to Taeyang in that red suit. Yes, I’m a Fantasy now. And, of course, there was SEVENTEEN. As stoked as I was to see them, never did I think I would have ended up an emotional mess. Even with Seungkwan missing, the 12 members redefined synchronization while on stage together. After their “Adore U” performance, they hit the crowd with “Very NICE” and all of Madison Square Garden was up on their feet doing the “WOAH.” KCON New York 2019 was as entertaining as it was history-making, leaving us on the edge of our seats waiting for what’s next.