Epik High kicked off their North American tour in New York City last week, meeting fans face-to-face at their K-Town pop-up before bringing their trademark blend of hip-hop, humor and heartfelt honesty to the stage at Terminal 5.
Since debuting in 2002, the Korean hip-hop trio Tablo, Mithra Jin and DJ Tukutz have built a career by being unapologetically themselves. Their music can be deeply introspective one moment and irreverently funny the next, while their YouTube content often showcases exactly who they are: goofy, candid and imperfectly perfect.
That willingness to embrace who they are, flaws, humor and all, has helped generations of fans feel seen. It also extends to their love of K-pop itself, with the trio often showing that they are fans just as much as they are artists.
In true Epik High fashion, the group brought that spirit to the start of its Epik High 3.0 Tour, making a surprise appearance on Sept. 29 at their K-Town pop-up inside Grace Street Cafe on 32nd Street and Sixth Avenue.
Fans got to see the veteran hip-hop trio up close as they spent time with supporters, raffled off two signed T-shirts and gave attendees a sneak peek at the choreography for their new song, “EPIKISM.”
The last time Epik High performed in New York City was at the KOOM 2025 festival at Duggal Greenhouse in Brooklyn on Oct. 18, 2025, where Angel Kinney, 28, of Manhattan, first saw the group live.
Epik High kicked off their North American tour in New York City last week, meeting fans beforehand.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High kicked off their North American tour in New York City last week, meeting fans beforehand.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High kicked off their North American tour in New York City last week, meeting fans beforehand.Photo by Amanda Moses
Clutching a copy of Pieces of You, written by Tablo, Kinney said both the book and the group’s music resonated with them.
“When I saw them at the KOOM festival last year, I heard the fan song for the first time, and I just loved the energy they brought at the KOOM festival,” Kinney recalled. “Everyone was jumping; they threw water and just made us feel relaxed.”
Natalie Sanchez, 38, of Woodside, Queens, arrived wearing her new forest-green “EPIKISM” hoodie and spread Epik High photocards across a cafe table as she traded with another fan. Rather than the polished, carefully curated images often associated with K-pop, Sanchez said she loved seeing the trio embrace their sillier side.
“I love how creative they got compared to the ones I’ve got in the past. Most of the photocards I’ve got are so professional,” Sanchez said. “I love how unapologetically themselves they are in these photos. The most awkward and weird photos. It’s so cute. I love them all.”
For Sanchez, Epik High’s appeal goes beyond the music. It is the uplifting feeling the group gives her and the ability to share that experience with someone she loves.
“Epik High for me has a deep, significant meaning because I’ve been a fan of K-pop on and off for years, but Epik High is something I can enjoy with my partner,” she said.
Her message to the trio was simple: Don’t change.
“Don’t stop being yourselves. I love how authentic you guys are. The most raw and unfiltered versions of yourselves, just keep being, and we as your fans will always follow behind you and always support what you are doing,” Sanchez said.
That same connection carried into Terminal 5 on Sept. 30, where Epik High officially launched the New York City leg of its North American tour.
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses
The trio turned the Manhattan venue into a sweaty, chaotic celebration, jumping into the crowd, tossing water toward fans and urging High Skool, the group’s fandom, to dance along with them.
“We are Epik High, kicking off the 2026 Epik High North America in the greatest city in the world,” Tablo shouted to the crowd.
For VIP ticket holders Mia Li, 28, and Eunice Xu, 27, who held onto the barricade throughout the show, that raw energy and emotional honesty are what keep them coming back.
“I just feel like the songs are so unique,” said Xu, of Brooklyn. “What we understand about K-pop or hip-hop songs is very loud, like rock, heavy stuff like that. But if you ever click into Epik High’s song list, you will see they deliver the energy. They deliver a lot of their emotions through very soft, gentle songs.”
That softer side of the group’s music, Xu said, can be particularly meaningful during difficult moments.
“It’s very warming and kind of very healing, especially when you are in a stage of a downturn,” she said. “I feel like Epik High’s songs give you a lot of energy if you really understand them.”
Li, who traveled from Philadelphia, has listened to Epik High since she was young and credits the group’s music, along with Tablo’s philosophy and life advice, with helping her through school.
“I really like their philosophy, and I started to like them when I was really little,” Li said. “Their songs and their shows got me through, and especially Tablo’s philosophy and life advice got me through school and stuff. I think I liked them ever since middle school.”
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses 
Epik High performs.Photo by Amanda Moses
After seeing the group for the third time, Li had one message for the trio: Keep going.
“Keep making music, and let’s see you guys in your 30th anniversary,” she said.
For Li and Xu, that enduring connection is a testament to the relationship Epik High has built with its fans. For more than two decades, the trio has remained successful without pretending to have all the answers, embracing the awkwardness, humor, heartbreak and uncertainty that come with simply being human.
That humanity was on full display when Mithra Jin reluctantly agreed to perform aegyo, a Korean concept of acting playfully or childlike, only to fall backward and cut his hand on the stage. Rather than let the mishap dampen the mood, the group laughed it off, joking that after everything that could have gone wrong during a tour, the seasoned veteran managed to hurt himself doing aegyo.
It was a perfectly Epik High moment: unpolished, unexpected and completely themselves. And near the end of the Terminal 5 show, Mithra Jin reminded the crowd that the connection between the group and its fans goes both ways.
“Because in our dark times and our weak moments, you were there for us from far away,” Mithra Jin told the crowd. “We knew that we had to fight it all and win, and we hope that tonight’s concert and the songs we perform for you. We hope just as you gave us strength, we hope that tonight’s show gave you strength as well, and you can walk out of here a little stronger and a little happier than you were when you walked in.”
After New York, Epik High continued its North American run with stops in Boston and Toronto. The tour next heads to Chicago for a show at the House of Blues on Oct. 7, followed by Washington, D.C., at the Howard Theatre on Oct. 10.
Epik High’s North American tour continues through Oct. 29.