New York City summers are hot enough without All That Korea heating up the town with one of the littest nights of the year! On August 5th, 2018, All That Korea hosted the event K-Pop United Vol.3 at (Le) Poisson Rouge, riding the Hallyu wave with a variety of K-pop acts -- headlined by H1GHR Music's Ted Park and CUBE Entertainment's newest girl group, (G)I-DLE.
Fans eagerly waited outside the venue despite the heat, and their efforts were paid off with the small moments they were able to interact with the girls of (G)I-DLE walking to their tour bus (and, of course, being able to snag a great view during the show). Once inside (Le) Poisson Rouge, the vibes were already lit: a live DJ smoothly transitioned from K-pop hit to K-pop hit, which gave fans a chance to sing along to their favorite songs and show off their K-pop dance knowledge and skills. The DJ made sure to play lots of songs from Pentagon, Hyuna, CLC, and Triple H, repping Cube Entertainment for headlining group (G)I-DLE!
The night's performances were prefaced by a video showing off the Hallyu wave and a sincere apology for the cancellation of (G)I-DLE's flash mob the day prior. Due to security concerns and too many people showing up, the scheduled flash mob of (G)I-DLE, I LOVE DANCE NYC Team and other volunteers performing Latata was unfortunately cancelled. (G)I-DLE later had an appearance at a store in NYC's Koreatown, and scheduled a short, free Meet&Greet outside of their concert venue in order to still be able to say hi to fans.
The first act of the night was Jei Yu, a contestant from the fifth season of the Korean competition show K-pop Star. With her soulful rendition of Beyoncé's Listen and her smooth, strong vocals, she definitely blew the crowd away.
Following Jei Yu were performances by I LOVE DANCE, an NYC-based K-Pop dance team. Their first performance was a cover of BLACKPINK's latest hit DDU-DU DDU-DU, complete with BLACKPINK's signature 'Girl Power' energy. The team followed up with a cover of NCT U's BOSS. Many audience members were dancing along -- I LOVE DANCE hosts K-Pop dance classes in New York City, so you can learn to move just like your favorite idols (and the I LOVE DANCE team!)
After an intermission with the night's live DJ featuring everyone chanting along to BTS' Anpanman, H1GHR Music's Ted Park took the stage with a "Yo, play that sh*t." It was the NYC native's last show before heading to Korea, and he spent his time playfully dancing around and praising the audience's good vibes. Ted Park was very flirty with fans, hitting the audience with a "Y'all got me in the right key!" before jumping into Right Key, off of his first EP "Plugged In". Fans went crazy with screams when he held their hands and did trendy moves like the "Shoot" dance.
Ted Park followed up with Zeus, getting the crowd grooving and swooning -- especially when he hopped off of the stage and interacted closely with the audience. He then expressed his gratitude for the success he'd been able to achieve in just a few months, due to his fans! He drove this gratitude home with his tender song, "Let It Go". Ted Park ended his set with "Hands in the Air", a collaboration with Jay Park, and his first single "Broke". Last year Ted Park might have been broke, but he's now rich with both money and love from his New York fans!
The final act of the night started with no lack of applause: the audience went wild for (G)I-DLE! They came out performing "Maze", the B-side off of their first album release "I Am". After self-introductions, the girls cutely proclaimed "Lesgeddit!" and launched into their title track "Latata". (G)I-DLE took every opportunity to make warm eye contact with fans and wave at them, creating a cute contrast between their loving actions and the fierce choreography of "Latata".
(G)I-DLE ended their performance with their cover of "Light My Body Up", previously performed at the UNITED Cube concert. The audience went wild with love for (G)I-DLE, with many finger hearts and kisses thrown upon their departure. The night wasn't over yet, though -- All That Korea kept the K-Pop love going with their live DJ, and fans were free to dance the night away (à la the latest Twice release!) at (Le) Poisson Rouge.
All That Korea continues to push the Hallyu wave into New York City with their 2018 K-Expo, held on September 30th, 2018! With The Rose, A.C.E., Astro, Infinite's L, and many other special guests, it is bound to be another night to remember. Tickets are available now! Check out https://www.k-expo.com/ for more information, and make sure to keep supporting KpopStarz and All That Korea!
