Yesterday, BoA wrapped up her tour for BoA the LIVE 2026. It’s the 20th anniversary of the BoA the LIVE concert brand, shows which differ from her usual concerts in an increased focus on singing instead of dancing, performing more lesser known b-sides than her major hits, and smaller venues for better intimacy. There have been countless iterations of BoA the LIVE over the years, but this 20th anniversary iteration is unique in its similarities to the very first BoA the LIVE 2006.
In 2006, BoA the LIVE was conceptualized due to an injury rendering BoA incapable of dancing, the circumstances of which are partially covered in this documentary from 2006. Up until that point, BoA had made her name as a dance singer. Her tours were bombastic, held in arenas she ran and danced across. That’s what she was known for; that’s what sold tickets: the energetic, obscenely talented youngster who held down the stage. To strip all that down, reduce the show to an intimate small stage with her voice and presence alone–that was the challenge BoA faced and overcame at just 19 years old.
In 2026, BoA is once again unable to dance due to an injury. This time, she’s recovering from a knee surgery whose impact has led her to be grateful just to be able to climb stairs, one that forced her to consciously restrain herself from running when she got too excited during the concert because she’s not supposed to be doing that yet. Thank god that BoA the LIVE is here, twenty years strong, proof that she can fill the stage regardless.
If those were the only similarities between BoA the LIVE 2006 and 2026, I would already be extremely emotional, but what really struck me after the first performance of this tour was the similarities between the setlists. Personally, I think this was intentional on BoA’s part, and the intentionality represented in that decision makes it hit even harder. 12/17 songs on the setlist being in the setlist of BoA the LIVE 2006 can’t be an accident, especially considering BoA herself thought she was performing Moon & Sunrise for the first time since 2006 (this actually wasn’t true since she performed it once in 2017, but official video/audio of that performance was never released and extremely difficult to find even in fan circles, so I think she tried looking up when she last performed it and failed lmao). She even introduced the band during an interlude of La La La Love Song just like in 2006.
In 2006, BoA considered BoA the LIVE as the final wall she had to overcome as a teenager before coming an adult. In many ways, it served as her true evolution from idol to artist. In 2026, BoA chose a setlist that mirrors 2006’s to serve as her first concert since establishing her own agency. At the final concert of this tour, she announced her first album since establishing that agency, her first self-produced Japanese album since 2010. She chose to reflect on that specific time of anguish leading to growth and use it as a springboard to her new future, burning bright with renewed passion and energy.
For as long as BoA decides to continue performing as an artist, hopefully until she’s a cute old lady who can sing and dance well as was her dream in 2004, I hope that BoA the LIVE can continue to function both as a symbolical venue for her growth as an artist and an oh-so-physical venue pierces through the dark and illuminates the crowd in contemplation and joy.
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