This post is half concert appreciation half thoughts post 😂 because Q3 and Q4 of 2024 have been a whirlwind. I’d thought I’d used this post as kind of a spotlight of all the iconic 2nd gen concert things that have happened this year (the most recent being JX), with my personal thoughts in between.
09/02 – Taeyang The Light Year ft. Big Bang
Describing this concert after the adrenaline trip that was GD’s Power is almost surreal. I can’t believe we got this gift from them after 7 years of hiatus, and it was totally unplanned too! A reminder that at this point, GD’s comeback rumors were still very much unconfirmed (dropped a new track when I was completely unprepared I hate him 😂) so seeing him on stage like this was incredible.
It’s crazy, before this concert, we hadn’t seen GD on stage for years, and according to what he said in Yoo Quiz on the Block, he hasn’t been practicing on his own ethier. Yet when Good Boy started playing, it was like all of us were transported back to 2014 when Big Bang were at the top of the world. With 0 practice, 0 prep, they still had the same power packed rap and stage presence, it was like the hiatus never existed!
The craziest thing of the night though was Daesung, Taeyang, and GD coming together to sing We Like to Party. The history of Big Bang is … rocky, to say the least, so it was a really bittersweet moment to see the members who are left continuing to carry on the name. But they did so so well! It was so much fun seeing them smiling and performing together. It was healing, just for them to renew the bond between VIPs and the new Big Bang.
If the MAMA rumors are true, they’ll be officially performing together as Big Bang once again (even if it’s only a ft. for GD), now in front of the public as well. But I’ll always remember this stage to the VIPs who have always been with them through this difficult journey. Seeing them together on shows after this concert, it’s almost like they’ve reverted back to the cuteness and bright-eyed nature of their debut era, and I can’t wait to see what they do next!
10/4 – 2NE1 Reunion Tour
After 8 years, 2NE1 came back (close to Big Bang lmao, truly siblings) in full force. What can I say about this concert, it was truly incredible! Seeing them perform I Am The Best gave me immediate flashbacks to thier iconic Coachella stage, but somehow they performed even better?! Thier live vocals and shouts pierced through the (admittedly way too small) venue.
For me, honestly, it was seeing thier story and thier expressions play out through the concert that made me emotional, with fans knowing exactly why they would react in ways. Minzy going full headbang in Ugly, the same phrase YG used to call these beautiful girls. Bom crying during It Hurts, no doubt thinking about the hard times she dealt with. CL reppping her team with The Baddest Female, truly a badass leader that fought for her crew and brought them back together. And Dara, playing along with her sisters during In The Club, showing that even after all these years, the friendship built by growing up together never went away.
To be honest, I definitely ugly cried during I Don’t Care a song that holds a lot of meaning for me and that’s helped me get through difficult times. Blackjacks and VIPs were one of my first kpop friends, so it immediately took me back to those middle school days. 2NE1’s stage presence was like time travel magic, commanding the entire venue just with a few words, and I felt the love and memories of stanning them coming back once again.
Honestly, watching the VCR of them in thier teens and early 20s now as woman in thier 30s ready to show the industry once again what they’re all about, it honestly gives me the drive to try new things. It’s incredibly rare groups like this get a second chance and I’ll take that as a gifted miracle, for them and for me, to fulfill any regrets we may have.
11/8 – JX Identity
After 14 years of not being able to sing their own songs, Junsu and Jaejoong finally healed all those years of suffering with JX 2024. With a live band for every. single. song. and live vocals that echoed across KSPO dome, this is what a kpop concert should be like. Their identity was and will forever be a part of TVXQ’s story and with the 3 live additional vocalists, for the first time in years, I felt the memories and emotions I had when I listened to these songs the first time.
The crowd brought everyone together, fans of TVXQ, fans of Junsu, fans of Jaejoong in a sea of lights like multicolored red, green, and pink flowers. Everyone started bawling together, including Junsu and Jaejoong, especially during Midoyeo. Songs that used to signify a complicated time for them such as Holding Back The Tears are now being brought back again. Even I personally haven’t listened to this song in years because it always made me sob, now I can finally listen again.
20 years into the game, they still improve and show newer groups exactly what being an idol encapsulates. Both Junsu and Jaejoong sounded even better than the CD! Adding ad libs, changing up the tones, every song from Rising Sun till O sounded fresh, even if they were decades old. Even their newer JYJ songs such as Empty were completely revamped in an incredible way. Jaejoong even danced his hardest, to the point of rushing to the hospital the next morning. This passion, this love for the music and the stage, stuff like this is exactly why I love kpop and the idols in it.
But my favorite of the night has to be the finale, Love in the Ice. Not a pin drop could be heard in the crowd as JX flexed thier incredible vocals, singing an incredibly difficult song meant for 5 just as 2. The emotions, the harmonizations, all came to a head and shows exactly why they were the Gods of the East.
(P.S. Listen to thier Japanese ballad medley 18 minutes of pure vocal heaven 😭)
Anyways, thank you all for reading. I’m not including the other crazy 2nd gen events this year such as SUJU reuniting and B.A.P coming back because those alone would probably make me write another essay (again 😆). Here’s to whatever crazy concert will hopefully happen in December since something new seems to be coming every month lmao🍷
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