Four years after its launch in Singapore in 2018, July 9-10, 2022 saw HallyuPopFest make its triumphant debut in the UK, bringing some of K-Pop’s most iconic and up-and-coming acts to London’s OVO Arena Wembley. Not only were the UK experiencing high temperatures of a rare and extreme heatwave that weekend, but the presence of these incredibly talented K-Pop stars brought an extra heat to London that fans worldwide will never forget. Held over two days, HallyuPopFest was the biggest K-Pop event, and the first ever K-Pop festival, to ever happen in the UK, with a total of 14 K-Pop acts in attendance, split with seven artists performing each day, with two acts each night taking to the stage twice to perform a set at both the Events Showcase and Evening Concert.  

With a lineup consisting of Sam Kim, P1Harmony, ONEUS, EVERGLOW, ASTRO, Hwasa, Paul Kim, Weeekly, CRAVITY, CIX, Kep1er, SF9, and headline acts Chen and KAI of EXO, it was definitely an unforgettable experience for both the artists and the fans, as this was the first UK performance for many of them, as well as being the first concert that many of the fans had attended since the COVID-19 pandemic began.  

Red Carpet

Both days of HallyuPopFest kicked off with a red carpet Q&A, hosted by Nathan von Cho (also known as B.Minor) and Ji-in, with Nathan asking the questions in English and Ji-in translating them into Korean for the acts. One by one, the idols walked the red carpet in front of their endearing fans and photographers, patiently standing behind a barrier under the scorching beams of the sun before taking to the stage to introduce themselves and answer any questions the hosts had prepared for them. The order of the red carpet followed the order of the line-up for the evening concerts, except for day one with Hwasa and ASTRO who, for unknown reasons, had switched positions for both the red carpet and evening concert, and day two with Paul Kim and Weeekly’s Showcase performances. 

Nathan and Ji-in asked each act a series of lighthearted questions related to their music, their time in London, and some fun questions that saw some of the acts perform aegyo and other poses. Some of them used this time to hint at future promotions, like SF9’s teased world tour, to others performing little snippets from their upcoming evening concert set like Sam Kim, who was the very first act to grace the red carpet and Q&A stage. A very random but stand out moment during Sam Kim’s Q&A was during his snippet of “Love Me Like That,” the hugely popular OST from 2021 K-Drama Nevertheless starring Song Kang and Han Sohee. In this drama, there is a recurring theme of butterflies, with Han Sohee playing Nabi (meaning butterfly in Korean) and Song Kang’s character having a butterfly tattoo and an indoor butterfly garden at his home. While performing the snippet of “Love Me Like That,” a white butterfly flew through the crowd, creating such a beautiful yet coincidental moment to begin the event.

To end each artists’ red carpet Q&A, they were gifted with a small HallyuPopFest mascot toy; some of the artists kept hold of them while others, like Hwasa and KAI, gave them to some lucky members in the audience. Both day one and day two’s red carpet segment was live streamed to those who were unable to attend in person, with Nathan announcing on day two that day one’s live stream was streamed to one million viewers. In total, the red carpet lasted around one hour, giving each artist the perfect amount of time to introduce themselves, answer questions, perform snippets of their set, and generally begin their day on a happy, positive note before heading off to rest and prepare for the Showcase and Evening Concert later that day.  

Saturday Showcase

Before the evening concert commenced, the audience was treated to Showcase performances from Sam Kim and P1Harmony. These performances lasted no longer than 40 minutes each and gave fans an opportunity to listen to their songs as well as interact with the idols through games via the event’s HallyuPyo app, where the audience could vote for what the acts would be doing during the games. 

Sam Kim

Kicking off the Showcase, Sam Kim performed a selection of tracks from his soulful R&B and pop discography, many of which he performed acoustically with the assistance of a pianist named Simon Petrén, who got a warm welcome from the UK crowd who could be heard chanting his name throughout the show, much to Sam Kim’s delight. During this set, Sam Kim showcased his vast array of K-Drama OSTs during an OST challenge and a couple of his non-K-Drama OST records, as well as having to make up a song as part of a Logo Song Challenge, where he successfully made up a song on the spot using the words “apple” and “London.”

P1Harmony

Following the soulful R&B sounds of Sam Kim, FNC Entertainment's boy group P1Harmony brought high energy to the stage, performing their songs “SIREN,” “Bop,” “If You Call Me,” “That’s It,” and “Follow Me.” As part of their game segment, P1Harmony were tasked with doing a “Clap Challenge” and a “Random Cover Dance” challenge, covering various iconic K-Pop dances, which resulted in the members who didn’t know the choreography having to wear a funny but cute disguise. Unfortunately for Theo, he was the first member to fall, forgetting the choreography to SF9’s “Good Guy” much to the amusement of the audience and his fellow group members, and resulting in him having to wear some snowflake glasses.

During their Showcase, P1Harmony also gave fans a small preview of “Do It Like This” to which audience members were given the chance to re-enact the dance arm movement, with some lucky audience members appearing on the screen behind them.

Saturday Evening Concert

Following the Showcase, Sam Kim and P1Harmony graced the stage once again, performing a shorter set of just three songs each, before their fellow acts took their turns to perform. Sam Kim began his evening concert set with “Make Up,” his incredible collaboration with K-R&B singer Crush, followed by a jazz bar-inspired rendition of “The Juice” and a full performance of the Nevertheless OST “Love Me Like That” while P1Harmony performed “Scared” and “Reset” followed by a full, high-energized performance of “Do It Like This.” 

ONEUS

Taking to the stage as the third act of the night, this was ONEUS’s first ever concert in Europe, and they certainly did not disappoint. The group performed a selection of songs, each with a phenomenal dance performance: “Intro: Who Got The Joker,” “Bring it on,” “LUNA,” “LIT,” “Life is Beautiful,” “BLACK MIRROR,” and “No Diggity.” Their set was so energetic and alluring, and one of the most memorable acts of the HallyuPopFest weekend. Each member had such a powerful stage presence, especially Leedo, who caught the attention of many audience members that night. The group also had a great appreciation for their culture, paying homage to their Korean heritage through the use of traditional fans during “LUNA” and with the sounds of a traditional Korean string instrument during the opening of “LIT.” Watching them from a casual listeners’ perspective has definitely made us want to join the To Moon fandom and stay updated with ONEUS’s ongoing journey in K-Pop. 

EVERGLOW

The only girl group of day one to grace the HallyuPopFest stage, EVERGLOW wasted no time in making their mark and showing their infectious energy and talents. Opening their set with the incredibly addictive “Adios” before moving on to their other hit songs “Bon Bon Chocolat,” “LA DI DA,” “Pirate,” and “DUN DUN,” EVERGLOW proved themselves to be a top contender among K-Pop girl groups with their energetic songs, intense dance movements, and their cute yet fierce stage presence; they are certainly ones to watch and I can’t wait to hear and see more of them in the future.

ASTRO

Being depleted by two members due to the absence of MJ (currently in military service) and Cha Eunwoo, it didn’t stop ASTRO from putting on a great performance that night. Splitting into their sub-unit groups, ASTRO’s set opened with Jinjin and Rocky who performed their tracks “Lock down” and “Just Breath” followed by Moonbin and Sanha and their performances of “Bad Idea” and “WHO” before reuniting as a four piece for a fun, energetic performance of “Candy Sugar Pop.” Despite missing two members, the ASTRO stage still felt full, but hopefully next time London can witness the presence of MJ and Eunwoo too. 

HWASA

Hwasa was one of Saturday’s most highly anticipated acts of the night, and she proved once again why she is one the most supported and beloved artists within K-Pop. Opening her set with her 2019 debut solo track “TWIT,” Hwasa was able to take the audience on a journey through her solo tracks with “I’m a B,” “Bless U,” and “Intro: Nobody else” before ending the set with a hauntingly powerful version of “Maria.” Dressed in an animal print bodysuit throughout, Hwasa was able to get in touch with her animalistic side and express her fierce and fiery nature through each of her songs and choreography, but later allowing her sweet side to shine during the talking breaks, as she sweetly sang “Happy Birthday” to one lucky and very unexpecting audience member. 

CHEN

Closing Saturday’s Evening Concert was the night's headliner and EXO member Chen, who showcased his beautiful and emotive vocals through a collection of ballad performances consisting of “Shall we?,” “My dear,” “Beautiful goodbye,” “Love words,” “Best Luck,” and his iconic OST “Everytime” from K-Drama Descendants of the Sun. Ending the festival with ballads after the venue had been filled with such high energy was an interesting choice, but it was a poetically smooth ending that the audience, most specifically EXO-Ls, seemed to love and patiently waited for. Chen’s smooth vocals and presence filled the venue with a lot of love and gentleness to end the day. 

Sunday Showcase

For day two of HallyuPopFest’s pre-evening concert showcase, fans were gifted with performances from hi-teen girl group Weeekly and sweet-tones vocalist Paul Kim. Both artists engaged with the crowd well as the fans' energy engulfed the venue and created a fun atmosphere.

Weeekly

As Weeekly came out on stage, all phones were out to record “After School” and “Tag Me (@Me),” as both songs are a must in everyone’s girl group playlists. The groups’ exciting energy filled the arena as the members looked like they were enjoying themselves just as much as the crowd. The previous day, P1Harmony did a wave challenge. To switch things up on Sunday, Weeekly did a wave challenge with the crowd! The members took charge and guided the arena into waving from the left to right, right to left, then from the fans at the front of the stage all the way to the back. The group took further charge as they performed “Solar” and “Ven para,” songs that showed the members in a different light with a stronger concept. The members performed these songs in the evening concert as well.

Paul Kim

Paul Kim partook in the second half of Sunday’s showcase and made a fan out of everyone in the venue, performing his famous OSTs during the OST crowd game with tracks like “안녕” from Hotel del Luna as well as his own track “Coffee With Me,” and with being in the UK, he couldn’t miss out on teasing the fans without referring to cups of tea. Despite his voice being very popular in Korea, Paul Kim didn’t think people would know his songs and was surprised how reactive the crowd was when asking them to decide between two songs to perform. He was able to bring everyone in during both his showcase and evening concert sets, specifically when performing “Me After You” and “Every day, Every Moment,” which caused a few sniffles in the crowd. Paul never ran out of hearts to give to the crowd, and the audience reciprocated. He exclaimed many times that this stage would be a performance he would remember forever, and that if we were to ever meet him in the future to show him the famous “Gyaru” peace sign.

Sunday Evening Concert

Weeekly and Paul Kim returned to the stage to perform their songs for a second time without the interactive games, but brought the tension up as if it were the crowd’s first time hearing them. For many of the audience, if they had missed the Red Carpet event, this would be their first time seeing the next few groups in person and the excitement could be felt in the air.

CRAVITY

CRAVITY was the first boy group to take to the stage on day two of HallyuPopFest, and they began their set with “Adrenaline.” This was the first track that made me familiar with the group, and hearing it live felt as thrilling as the song suggests. Seeing how full the stage was with all nine members, “Bad Habits” and “My Turn” were the perfect songs to unveil a powerful performance with their switch in formations and alternating members coming forward to shine in their parts. Those songs definitely caught the eyes and ears of casual CRAVITY listeners and new fans in the making. Similarly, if comparing “Mammoth” to their first song “Adrenaline,” the crowd were introduced to two different sides of the nine-member group. Hearing how the crowd reacted with “VENI VIDI VICI” only fueled CRAVITY’s excitement as they performed “JUMPER.”

CIX

CIX took to the London OVO Wembley Arena with their intense and atmospheric title track “Jungle,” showcasing their vocal abilities, rap skills, and performing talents for their first performance in London. The group continued with “BAD DREAM” and “Cinema,” both engaging the crowd. “20” and “Everything” were fan-dedicated songs CIX decided to perform for their first time meeting with UK FIX. From their well-received debut song “Movie Star” in 2019, CIX garnered the attention of international fans who patiently waited through the pandemic to meet their faves. Having to spend time apart from fans so early on in their careers left the absence of one of the main parts of the K-Pop community–the interactivity. With a festival like HallyuPopFest, idols are able to travel across the world to meet with their international fans, which is slowly but surely coming into full effect post-pandemic.

Kep1er

Kep1er made the perfect start to their set as their debut track “WA DA DA” filled the arena. As girl groups rarely come to the UK, all the Kep1er fans in the crowd were yearning to hear this song live for the first time. The choreography hit every mark as well as their vocals. The voguing beat of “MVSK” was addicting and caught the crowd's attention with the minimalist beat drop and sharp choreography. During one of their ments, the members revealed that they would be performing an unreleased song which everyone looked forward to. As the beat started, many recognised the song as being “See The Light” from one of their performances on Queendom 2. For their fans, Kep1er performed the second track of their DOUBLAST album “LE VOYA9E,” which touched many. The group closed their set with their most recent title track “Up!,” which had fans both seated and standing joining in with the choreography during the chorus.

SF9

Although SF9 members Inseong, Youngbin, and Rowoon were unable to make it to the capital, SF9 shook the arena just the same with their performances. The group’s iconic choreography for “Tear Drop” had the crowd captivated and left everyone swooning. Their set continued with universally liked songs “Good Guy” and “Now or Never,” which personally were my favorite performances alongside “Play Hard.” As a gift to their fans, SF9 prepared “Stop It Now” and “Love Again” as a sentiment which commemorated the last time they were in London in 2019. With a fun and interactive track like “Play Hard,” fans could only imagine how their teased world tour will be. 

KAI

The arena lit up with EXO lightsticks as Sunday’s headliner KAI took to the stage with the title track off his second mini album “Peaches.” The chemistry with his dancers in “Vanilla” went unmatched as the sexiness exuded off of each and every one of them on the stage. At one point during KAI’s set his pants ripped, but that didn’t stifle the rest of his performances as he knows how to put on an incredible show. Songs such as “Reason” and “To Be Honest” had EXO fans in the crowd partying along with him as he was enjoying himself on stage. To the surprise of many, KAI even performed the last track of his first mini-album “Hello Stranger,” an R&B track which he had yet to perform outside of Korea. KAI finished his stage with his solo debut song “Mmmh” which everyone sang along to. Chen, who headlined Saturday, was seen in the standing section cheering on his fellow member too. KAI reminds us time and time again why he is named one of the greatest performers in K-Pop and didn't fail to win the crowd over in London’s own OVO Wembley Arena.

Next for HallyuPopFest

The final artist goodbye left fans with warm hearts as they got covered in confetti. The weekend was filled with fun memories which for some artists served as their first time performing in London. HallyuPopFest brought UK fans closer to some of their favorite artists and created lasting memories for fans and artists alike. With the abundance of world tours occurring, hopefully UK fans won’t have to wait too long to meet their favorite artists again.

Catch the next HallyuPopFest in Sydney, Australia on the weekend of August 13 and 14 at the Qudos Bank Arena.