KCON’s fun and star studded line-up did not stop at the convention, as from 7:30-10:30pm every night was the long awaited MCountdown concert that was full of high-energy, special covers, collab stages and up-close fan interactions to leave a lasting impression on everyone until KCON LA 2027.
Once the doors opened and fans began to enter and fill up the floor, the excitement set in as soundcheck began for VIP ticketholders. Day 1’s soundcheck artist was Treasure, Day 2 P1Harmony and Day 3 MEOVV. All three artists performed fan favorites, giving them the perfect opportunity for the crowd to sing along.
A little while after soundcheck, the “MCountdown Pre-Show” began at 7:30. This stage gave rookie and rising groups a chance to shine and expose their talents on the big stage. This year also included a special performance from the ever-loved Kuromi, who earned smiles and laughs all throughout the crowd each night. With performances from artists including from20 & Hello Gloom, ONE PACT, So!YoON!, and KEYVITUP – it set the perfect tone for each night.
Day 1’s main lineup included performances from TREASURE, KickFlip, WING, KO1KEYZ, H//PE Princess, Santos Bravos, &TEAM, Wanna One and headliners NCT 127. For some of these artists, KCON was their very first performance on US soil, so the pressure was on for them to put on their best performances- gaining hundreds of new fans in the process. Santos Bravos and & TEAM stepped up to the plate with a hyped up collab stage, covering “Hooligan”, “2.0”, and “Permission to Dance” by their fellow HYBE label mates, BTS. The crowd erupted in fanchants and screams alike, as this was a 100% surprise to all attending that night.
Photo credit: CeCe.
Wanna One reunited as a group for the first time in 9 years to give fans a special performance, including their debut song “Energetic”. NCT 127 headlined a strong performance and visuals, with members Taeyong and Jaehyun finally back from their military services. Included in their setlist were fan favorites “Lemonade”, “Touch” and “Summer 127”. They also gave KCONers a special first time performance of their new song “Piñata”, off their latest album ‘Blingy’. NCT127 closed out the show with their Dreamstage performance of “Kick It”, including fans that spent hours practicing during the convention for the performance.
Photo credit: CeCe
Day 2’s line up consisted of performances from ILLIT, izna, Taeyong of NCT, Yeonjun of TXT, Modyssey, P1Harmony and headliners ZEROBASEONE. Standouts from the night were Yeonjun’s debut performance of “Fxxking Star”, Modyssey’s love-filled cover of “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction and P1Harmony’s US debut performance of “ICE (VVS).” ILLIT were the Dreamstage artists of the night, dancing with fans dressed in pink and white alike to their newest comeback, “It’s Me”. The choreography for the song is fast-paced and intense, yet every single fan on the stage matched ILLIT’s energy perfectly.
ZEROBASEONE closed out the night, entering the KCON LA stage for the first time as a five-member group. Performances included “Top 5”, “V for Vision”, “Exotic” and “Zero to Hundred” from their newest album ‘Ascend’ – also including some old favorites, “Doctor, Doctor” and “Slam Dunk”. Fans also got to experience special stages from all members, including an emotional performance of “Love Wins All” by IU from Taerae, a first ever performance of Jiwoong’s new song “Closer”, and a never-forgetting cover of “SexyBack” by Justin Timberlake from Hanbin, Matthew and Gunwook.
Photo credit: Britt
Day 3 and the final day of KCON LA included All Day Project, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, JO1, MEOVV, NEXZ, Rescene, WING, Evan and headliners TXT. A special performance from Sunday night was from Evan, formerly known as Heeseung, from the group ENHYPEN. This was his debut performance as a solo artist, and while you could tell the nerves were high for him, the crowd did not falter and showed him so much love and support during his three song setlist – which included “Ride or Die”, “Overflow” and a special cover of “As It Was” by Harry Styles. ALPHA DRIVE ONE also came out with a special cover of BTS’s “Fake Love” and MEOVV covered “Jump” by BLACKPINK – giving the older K-POP fans some nostalgia and energy to keep the final night going. TXT ended the night with the longest setlist of the three headliners, including performances of “Good Boy Gone Bad”, “Deja Vu” and their Dreamstage performance of “I’ll See You There Tomorrow”.
Photo credit: KCON USA
This year’s KCON brought amazing performances and artists. Next year’s KCON will take place from August 13-15 and fans are eagerly awaiting more information.