SINGAPORE - Music Bank World Tour in Singapore, a K-pop mega concert held on Friday night, was a K-pop music buffet.
More than 7,000 fans were treated to a spread of five music acts at the sold-out session at the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre.
The three-hour gig was hosted by South Korean actor Park Bo Gum, Irene of K-pop girl group Red Velvet and Singapore emcee Lim Peifen.
The live concerts are a spin-off of Music Bank, a popular weekly music programme on heavyweight South Korean broadcaster KBS, which is known for its clout to gather the biggest names in the industry on a single stage.
The Singapore leg was filmed and will be aired on KBS and local television Channel 8 on a later date.
For a price of $288, the most expensive ticket in the house, concert-goers got to sample the varied flavours of K-pop.
Powerhouse quartet Mamamoo belted out their retrolicious hits You're The Best and Decalcomanie in velvety vocals as rich as chocolate.
Red Velvet, an all-female quintet as sweet as its namesake cake, danced in candy-coloured heels to the upbeat pop tunes Russian Roulette and Dumb Dumb, which are filled with catchy sing-along hooks.
Having performed at multiple shows in Singapore previously, Rock quartet CNBlue emanated the laidback air of veteran performers. The band's talented and handsome frontman Jung Yong Hwa easily worked the crowd as he belted out pop-rock tunes I'm Sorry and Love.
Boyband SHINee's dance moves were smooth and member Minho's absence did not put a dampener on the performance. The remaining four members grooved and sang as per usual to the slick songs View and Aside.
The temperature shot up as red-hot boy squad BTS took to the stage. When the dynamic chorus of BTS' party anthem Fire came on, a female fan stood up and imitated the septet's iconic knife-like precision moves. So enthusiastic was the young fan that it did not matter that she was seated among middle-aged men in suits who looked like they were at the concert for official business. BTS, or Beyond the Scene, has amassed an army of global fans since debuting in 2013. The seven-member team dethroned superstar Justin Bieber at the recent Billboard Music Award - snagging the fan-voted Top Social Artist award.
Die-hard fans may prefer to go ala carte and pay for a standalone concert to watch their idol of choice perform the full works. This ensemble concert, however, is perfect for casual K-pop listeners who want variety.
The night's programme even had a special segment dedicated to K-dramas. Onew, a cast member of military romance Descendants Of The Sun, sang the hit K-drama's original soundtrack You Are My Everything.
Mandopop listeners had their bop-along moment too when CNBlue's Jung Yong Hwa and Mamamoo's Solar sang love duet Little Dimples, originally sung by Singapore's singer-songwriter JJ Lin and Hong Kong singer Charlene Choi. Like coy lovers on a first date, the pitch-perfect duo stood arm's length apart, belting out the lyrics with commendable pronunciation.
Adding a local twist to the K-pop feast, the entire line-up took turns singing a National Day favourite, Singapura, Sunny Island - a timely practice for the Singapore audience ahead of the nation's 52nd birthday on Aug 9.
Catch the concert on Sep 10, 10.30pm on Channel 8.
