Minho goes topless, Exid’s ‘hottest’ stage: 5 highlights from music festival Waterbomb Singapore

Waterbomb Singapore

Siloso Beach, Sentosa
Aug 30 and 31

Blessed by a weekend of mostly mild weather, K-pop fans had a rollicking time of dance, music and beachy fun at Waterbomb Singapore.

The second edition of the water-themed music festival, held at Sentosa’s Siloso Beach over the weekend, saw scintillating performances from stars such as two members of boy band Shinee, girl group 2NE1, as well as a host of DJs such as South Korea’s Raiden and duo Insidecore.

Throughout the event organised by video-streaming service Viu, 32 water cannons tucked below the stage doused attendees, while another four pivotable cannons onstage let performers and dancers get in on the action too.

There was even a minute-long, free-for-all “Waterbomb time” segment every hour, where the water-spraying went into overdrive.

The 10,000-plus attendees, who mostly appeared to be in their 20s and 30s, were drenched, and their wide smiles and wild screams indicated plenty of good cheer.

Here are five highlights from Waterbomb Singapore.

1. Minho

Often considered the prince of Shinee due to his handsome features and washboard abs, the boy band’s tallest member at 1.81m charmed the crowd with his 26-minute, five-song solo set on Aug 30.

Initially sporting a white singlet and denim jacket, the 33-year-old South Korean singer “lost” both by the middle of his third song, Something About U (2024).

When the performance ended, the tanned hunk put on his jacket again, saying he felt “a little shy”.

Shinee – which also comprise Taemin, Onew and Key – last held a concert here in 2024 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium as part of their World VI: Perfect Illumination tour.

Minho gave fans hope when he closed his set with Body Rhythm (2021), off Shinee’s album Don’t Call Me, saying: “Next time, I will try to come back as quickly as possible with my members.”

2. Taemin

Regarded as one of K-pop’s best dancers, Shinee’s youngest member has a unique dancing style that incorporates elements of contemporary dance and funk, giving his presentation – which came after Minho’s – a feline grace.

The 32-year-old South Korean singer’s six-song set was full of fluid spins and sharp transitions, keeping the audience on its toes over 26 minutes.

Perhaps the biggest surprise came when Minho, dressed in a baseball jersey, joined Taemin on stage for the closing deep house number View (2015) off Shinee’s album Odd, which closed Day 1 on a high.

3. Exid

It has been seven years since the five-member girl group were last in town for the HallyuPopFest music festival in 2018.

Solji, Elly, Hani, Hyelin and Jeonghwa – who are in their 30s – were so happy to be back, they pulled out all the stops during their 33-minute set on Aug 30.

On the saucy opening number Fire (2022), their foxy moves were accompanied by bursts of flames from the bottom of the stage. They then followed up with the electro-pop numbers DDD (2017) and L.I.E (2016).

Jeonghwa said it was the “hottest” stage they have experienced, while Hyelin was among the most enthusiastic when it came to dousing the crowd.

Their closing song Up & Down (2014), accompanied by 12 firework fountains, wrapped up their celebratory return to the Lion City.

4. Lee Young-ji

Bold and boisterous, the South Korean rapper wasted no time in unleashing the torrents.

On Aug 31, towards the end of her third song Fraktsiya (2024), the 22-year-old got her six backup dancers to fire at her with water guns while she revelled in the attention.

During a banter segment, she also encouraged the crowd to take their best shot at her.

In keeping with her take-no-prisoners attitude, she ripped through the rapid-fire lines in Blue Check (2023), and did many a hair whip on Fighting (2023) – an unfiltered display of sass from this performing powerhouse.

5. 2NE1

If you attended the popular second-generation girl group’s Singapore Indoor Stadium concerts in December, you might have been disappointed that all eight songs from their 37-minute Waterbomb Singapore gig had been performed at their earlier shows – and in the same order too.

Nonetheless, experiencing chart-toppers such as I Am The Best (2011) and I Don’t Care (2009) with water effects added a new dimension to the tracks’ themes of defiance and independence.

Leader CL, Dara and Minzy took the stage as Day 2’s closing act. Remaining member Bom may be sitting out 2NE1’s current activities due to health issues, but her voice was played over the speakers during her solo parts in numbers such as Ugly (2011), so her presence was still felt.

CL and Dara are no strangers to the Waterbomb stage, having performed in Singapore as solo artistes for the inaugural 2024 edition. But it was 31-year-old Minzy’s first time, and she said: “I feel good. You guys are so amazing.”

Dara, 40, added, “I feel like we should come back to Singapore every August. What do you think?”, to cheers from the crowd.

CL, 34, chimed in: “I like that idea a lot.”