cr. annanuna zelo
The boys brought it…and they brought it HARD!
There are really some days (actually a lot) when I forget that our lovely alien bunnies debuted just last year. Never once did they seem like rookies: They rocked it with their debut MV and took to the stage like pros. No other group in the history of KPOP, I believe, can really say the same thing. They kept the consistency, knocking out multiple GOOD albums in less than a year. It’s no surprise that Verizon thought of the group when they were planning their Verizon APAHM (Asian Pacific America History Month) Tour this year.
What seemed like thousands of fans (Babies) lined up around Los Angeles’ Staples Center complex to get ready for the concert on May 7th, including more than a few that started around 2-3AM the night before. By the time I made it to the line (around 3PM), the lucky fans that had shown up before noon were gifted with a stamp on their wrists and the ability to go upstairs to wait. The rest of us “latecomers” stayed downstairs outside, wrapping around a few blocks for the next few hours. B.A.P. fanclubs passed out banners, stickers, and lightsticks and fans mingled with the likes of choreographer Aimee Lee Lucas, Danny Im (1TYM, Danny From LA), and host of the evening, comedian/Kollaboration creator, PK.
Around an hour and a half before the show start, our group (or at least part of it) was allowed upstairs, where the crowd performed for the cameras on site, including B.A.P songs and chants. Korean-American actor, James Kyson (Heroes), jumped into the crowd to join in the revelry and to interview a few fans. The doors opened and cheers of excitement followed everyone inside.
At first glance, the stage looked dark and uneventful, but soon commercials started to play as more of the crowd poured in. Images of B.A.P, mixed in with footage from worldwide performances from other artists, mingled with the frantic chants for B.A.P to take to the stage.
MC Paul Kim (PK) came out to greet the crowd, announcing that he cannot wait for his young daughter to grow up so that he can accompany her to KPOP concerts. Jason Chen, Youtube singing sensation, performed a few of his hits as the fans in the crowd sang and swayed along. Next, Youtube cutie, Clara C, bounced onto the stage, with the fans whispering their admiration of how bubbly and cute she is in person. Clara lit up the crowd, performing her hits, a few covers, and announcing that her new music video, involving jumping on trampolines, was released that same day. She spurred the crowd along, asking them to scream and cheer as they would for B.A.P. As she bowed and left the stage, the lights lowered……the fans got louder, chanting “B.A.P!”
The lights came on and the action started. The boys performed hit Warrior with a more mellow, acoustic flair. The magic never ceased, from beginning to end.
THE SETLIST:
1.Warrior
2.What The Hell
3.No Mercy
BREAK
4.I Remember Acoustic Ver.
5.Secret Love
6.Rain Sound
MEMBER INTROS
7.I Believe I Can Fly (Daehyun & Youngjae)
8.Teach Me How To Dougie & Never Give Up (Zelo & Jongup)
9.Sexy Clap (Himchan & Bang Yong Guk)
10.Bang Yongguk – DJing
11.Oneshot
12.Punch
13.Fight For Freedom
14.Power
15.My First Kiss
16.Goodbye
ENCORE
17.Coma
18.Dancing In The Rain
19.Stop It
20.Crash!
HIGHLIGHTS:
1) For Secret Love, Jongup sang Bang Yong Guk‘s part and Himchan sang Daehyun‘s part
2) This was one of the rare live performances of Himchan joining the rest of the members to perform One Shot
3) Daehyun cutely pronounced “Fly” as “Pry/Ply” during his emotional duet with Youngjae.
4) Yong Guk blew kisses, did body rolls, and grabbed his crotch suggestively a few times during My First Kiss. All the other guys followed suit, with a few (ala Youngjae) looking embarrassed to do it.
5) During one of the “down times,” the members took turns climbing the steps of the stage to stand in a body outline of themselves. A meter turned on, revealing details (age, height, weight, mannerisms) of each member as they took turns. Yong Guk’s mentioned his gummy smile and love of sports, to which he asked the crowd if they liked The LA Dodgers and other local sports teams. Youngjae’s mentioned he was emotional and he displayed his various “emotional outbursts.” Jongup danced during his turn, while Zelo beatboxed during his. Daehyun’s revealed that he knows 7 different high notes, and with Yong Guk’s urging, he displayed his octave range to a very impressed crowd. Himchan smiled shyly to the crowd during his turn (I was highly amused that one of his talents that showed up was “counting calories”). The display revealed that Zelo was 6’03″ tall (the tallest) while Jongup was the shortest (at 5’77″).
6) Fans started throwing toys and items of clothing on stage, although various members (including Himchan and Youngjae) urged fans to stop. [We at 24-7KPOP urge fans of the future shows to NOT throw things on stage. They can be a hazard to the boys and their dancers.]
7) Jongup and Zelo did the Dougie until a dancer (staged) showed up with a light to break it up. Then, the boys started dancing/rapping to Never Give Up.
8) Himchan bowed to the audience and took pics of the venue, the fans, their signs, etc., with his own personal camera. Then B.A.P’s photographer stood atop a high point on the stage and took a group shot of the boys in front of all the fans.
9) B.A.P bowed to the fans after their last song, joined by their dancers. Yong Guk laughed as Zelo popped up while everyone stayed bowed, saying something apparently very funny but unheard over the fan noise.
All-in-all, it was a great show. It was very upsetting to me (and other media personnel at the concert) that press access was not given for this concert. This is a complete 360 from last year’s festivities that involved Jay Park. If anything on the night needed improving, it was on this front. The boys of B.A.P was wonderful, giving their all in only their second performance stage in the United States (KCON’12 was their first). The remaining 3 cities on the tour (San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and New York City) will be in for quite a show!
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