{"id":508672,"date":"2026-10-26T19:36:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T19:36:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/508672\/"},"modified":"2026-10-26T19:36:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T19:36:12","slug":"82world-la-explores-two-sides-of-the-k-pop-festival-experience-annenberg-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/508672\/","title":{"rendered":"82WORLD: LA explores two sides of the K-pop festival experience \u2013 Annenberg Media"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Oct. 17-18, K-pop fans made their way to Los Angeles State Historic Park for 82WORLD: LA, music label hello82\u2019s first two-day outdoor music festival. Live performances unfolded alongside interactive games and fan activities, bringing artists and audiences together beyond traditional concert stages.<\/p>\n

The two days followed different formats. Saturday brought together emerging girl groups and boy groups, with P1Harmony headlining the night. Sunday was dedicated to ATEEZ through TINY ISLAND, a day of activities and performances centered on the group and its fans, known as ATINY.<\/p>\n

Girl groups opened Saturday\u2019s main performances. Jia and Bay of fiveALIVE took the stage in matching pink leopard-print miniskirts to perform \u201cBad Ideas<\/a>,\u201d followed by cosmosy and GIRLSET. GIRLSET also performed its unreleased song \u201cYoung & Dumb.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"K-popfiveALIVE\u2019s Jia and Bay performing at 82WORLD: LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

As the sun began to set over the park, 8TURN kicked off the boy group performances, with flame effects and stage fireworks accompanying its set. Stage lighting became more prominent against the darkening sky as AMPERS&ONE, xikers and Japanese boy group BE:FIRST followed.<\/p>\n

AMPERSE&ONE opened its set with \u201cGOD<\/a>,\u201d pairing energetic choreography with a traditional ink-wash-style bamboo backdrop. The group later shifted to a brighter, more playful sound with \u201cSweet & Sour<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"K-popAMPERS&ONE performing at 82WORLD: LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

Cover performances were a prominent part of the day, with most of the newer groups putting their own touches on familiar songs. AMPERS&ONE changed into school uniforms with a rebellious edge for a performance of BTS\u2019 \u201cBoy In Luv<\/a>,\u201d while xikers covered NCT 127\u2019s \u201c2 Baddies<\/a>.\u201d xikers also incorporated the viral ballet-inspired backbend from \u201cAin\u2019t in LA<\/a>\u201d into its performance of \u201cBREATHE<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe performances and the covers. I wasn\u2019t expecting NCT 127 from xikers,\u201d said attendee Kelly Vasquez, who was attending her first music festival.<\/p>\n

The lineup also introduced audiences to artists they had not previously followed.<\/p>\n

Alejandra Diaz, who attended the festival on her birthday, said cosmosy was among the groups that caught her attention. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was not familiar with [cosmosy\u2019s] music, and I really, really enjoyed it,\u201d Diaz said.<\/p>\n

\"K-popcosmosy performing at 82WORLD: LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

Fan interaction extended beyond the music. At the Play82 Stage, groups took part in \u201cThis or That\u201d games, giving fans opportunities to see the artists up close and interact with them. During the main stage performances, all of the boy groups, except BE:FIRST, also stepped down towards the front rows to interact directly with the fans.<\/p>\n

Attendee Kaylee Andrea, who came mainly for P1Harmony and AMPERS&ONE, pointed to the interactive games as one of the festival\u2019s highlights.<\/p>\n

P1Harmony closed Saturday\u2019s performances with its first festival headlining set. Diaz, who had previously attended the group\u2019s first U.S. festival appearance, said she wanted to witness another milestone in its career.<\/p>\n

During a break between songs, member Yoon Keeho, who goes by the stage name Keeho, also spoke about how far the group had come since its early performances in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started off in a small theater, and the fact that we were able to headline in the same city is honestly something so honoring and something we\u2019re so thankful for,\u201d Keeho said.<\/p>\n

He also thanked fans for their continued support and encouraged them to keep believing in their dreams.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith you guys, we know no matter how big or small the dream is, it\u2019s possible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"K-popP1Harmony\u2019s Intak and Jongseob performing at 82WORLD: LA (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

P1Harmony returned for an encore of \u201cICE(VVS)<\/a>,\u201d bringing Saturday\u2019s performance to a close as fans continued cheering, reluctant to see the night end.<\/p>\n

While Saturday was cloudy at times, Sunday brought stronger sunshine and hotter conditions. Staff, hosts and even artists repeatedly reminded fans to stay hydrated, while staff members handed out water.<\/p>\n

Sunday\u2019s activities centered on ATEEZ through TINY ISLAND, with interactive sessions leading up to the group\u2019s evening performance.<\/p>\n

\"K-popATEEZ performing at 82WORLD: LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

During the BAD Mega Dance Challenge, Seonghwa, Yunho and Yeosang joined fans in dancing to the group\u2019s hit \u201cBAD<\/a>,\u201d whose music video had surpassed 100 million views on YouTube shortly before the festival. ATEEZ also performed the song during its concert later that evening, drawing loud cheers from the crowd.<\/p>\n

\"K-popATEEZ’s Seonghwa and Yunho participating in the \u201cBAD\u201d Mega Dance Challenge at 82WORLD:LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

At TINY RADIO, Hongjoong and Jongho read and responded to stories and concerns submitted by fans, offering advice and recommending songs in a live radio-style segment.<\/p>\n

For fans who attended both days, the different formats came with their own advantages.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like [the second day] is more relaxed because it\u2019s only just ATEEZ,\u201d Natalie Gallardo said. Vasquez agreed, saying Saturday\u2019s overlapping activities sometimes made it difficult to decide where to go.<\/p>\n

However, Gallardo also missed the variety of the first day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I enjoyed it more when there were a lot of groups involved because there were so many more things to do,\u201d Gallardo said.<\/p>\n

For Gallardo, the festival experience went beyond seeing artists perform.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were more people that were into certain groups that you also were in, so it was easy to communicate about those certain groups,\u201d Gallardo said.<\/p>\n

Across both days, the afternoon heat gave way to cooler evenings. Fans who had spent hours waiting grew more animated as the artists they had been waiting to see took the stage one by one, greeting each act with cheers and screams.<\/p>\n

\"K-popFans watching performances at sunset at 82WORLD: LA. (Photo by Xuanyi Li) <\/p>\n

Vasquez said the long hours did little to diminish her excitement. She described her first festival experience as \u201cmagical\u201d and said she still had energy after two days of performances and activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether my body\u2019s tired or not, my mind\u2019s not tired,\u201d Vasquez said.<\/p>\n

Gallardo also acknowledged hello82\u2019s efforts in organizing its first festival, though she hoped future editions would feature more artists and activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are some things that they need to change for sure, but I really hope to see more groups involved in the festival,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Edited by Justin Ha<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On Oct. 17-18, K-pop fans made their way to Los Angeles State Historic Park for 82WORLD: LA, music…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508673,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[196243,196235,196246,196236,196244,196247,29274,196239,196238,196240,14876,196234,196249,19726,48,52,51,47,50,49,196248,133716,196242,196237,196245,196241],"class_list":["post-508672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-2-baddies","tag-82world","tag-aint-in-la","tag-ateez","tag-boy-in-luv","tag-breathe","tag-bts","tag-cosmosy","tag-fivealive","tag-girlset","tag-god","tag-hello82","tag-icevvs","tag-k-pop","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-nct-127","tag-p1harmony","tag-sweet-sour","tag-tiny-island","tag-xikers","tag-young-dumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508672"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508672\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}