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BTS completed a four-night residency at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on 16 April, while new K-pop festivals are set to debut in Europe
By James Hanley on 19 Apr 2022
More than 2.8 million fans are forecast to attend K-pop events outside of Korea in 2022, according to a new report.
South Korea-based financial investment company Hyundai Motor Securities (HMS) projects acts represented by management firm HYBE, such as BTS, Tomorrow X Together and Enhypen, to draw 1.27m concertgoers outside their homeland on their own.
BTS completed a four-night residency at the 65,000-cap Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas over the weekend, which came four months after the group’s last US dates at the SoFi Stadium (cap. 70,000) in November/December 2021.
In addition, SM Entertainment, home to NCT, EXO and Aespa, are tipped to pull in 630,000 spectators, with JYP (Twice/Itzy/Stray Kids) and YG Entertainment (Blackpink/Treasure) expected to reach 500,000 and 300,000 people, respectively, as reported by the Korea Times.
“The 2.85 million figure is approximately 43% of the total number of global concertgoers in the pre-pandemic year of 2019”
“The 2.85 million figure is approximately 43% of the total number of global concertgoers in the pre-pandemic year of 2019,” says HMS, which says the total compares with a peak of three years ago.
Last month, BTS delivered the largest concerts South Korea had seen since the beginning of Covid-19, with three in-person concerts at Jamsil Olympic Stadium in Seoul. The ministry for culture permitted the group to invite 15,000 people per night to the 70,000-cap outdoor stadium.
Meanwhile, it was recently revealed that TEG MJR is to promote the UK’s first-ever K-pop festival, taking place in London this summer. HallyuPopFest, previously held in Singapore in 2018 and 2019, is scheduled for 9-10 July at OVO Arena Wembley (cap. 12,500).
Mamamoo singer Hwasa, girl group Everglow, and boybands Astro and Oneus are among the artists due to perform on the first day of the festival, while boybands SF9 and Cravity are lined up for day two of the event.
The news followed the announcement of Europe’s biggest K-pop festival launching in Germany. The 44,000-capacity Kpop.Flex festival is to take place at Deutsche Bank Park Stadium in Frankfurt between 14–15 May.
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