K-PLAY! FEST LA’s first event of 2024 took place at the Pomona Fairplex on January 13th and 14th alongside ANIME Impulse, Asian American Expo, and Sneaker Expo. While past events featured one headliner, K-PLAY! FEST LA brought two headlining acts for the event — K-pop soloist YUJU, and dancer and choreographer Audrey Lane. The two participated in fan engagements and other events.
Designed by fans for fans, K-PLAY! offers experiences such as photocard decoration stations, photocard trading areas, random play dance, artist alleys, and more. Taking place over the course of two days, the event also featured various K-pop dance cover group performances, dance workshops taught by cover groups, a DJ performance, and trivia games on the expo main stage. Aside from the artist alley booths and expo stage, the event did not feature many other activities for fans. The photocard decoration and trading areas were outside of the main hall in the sun, and the artist alley was so crowded it was difficult for fans to shop and walk. Additionally, a lack of seating within the expo hall made the event even more inaccessible for ADA attendees.
For previous K-PLAY! Fests, fans were able to enjoy the headlining performances as part of the expo, without the need for an extra ticket. Access to Audrey Lane’s dance workshop and YUJU’s concert were separate ticketed events, meaning that fans needed to pay for an additional ticket to see each of the two headliners. This led to some confusion and disappointment among the attendees, sadly souring the event for some.
YUJU’s concert performance also took place in a separate area, but her set unfortunately did not go without a hitch. The concert started an hour late due to a delay caused by lack of communication with expo neighbors ANIME Impulse, leaving VIP and GA concertgoers waiting outside in the cold. When YUJU finally stepped onstage, the concert hall quickly warmed up with passionate cheers from the audience.
Her set was comprised of two parts — the first part to showcase her vocals, and the second to showcase her performance. Starting the show, YUJU posed a question for her fans: “Are you ready to dance with me?” This segued into her first song, “I’m in the Mood for Dancing,” from the True Beauty OST. YUJU attempted to give a quick introduction before she was cut off by the instrumentals for the next song, “Evening,” which she performed live while accompanying rapper BIG Naughty’s part was played over the speakers. The solo singer then tried to hold her first official talk segment, but she was met with another hurdle. Repeating herself in Korean multiple times, the singer could be seen looking confused as no translator was assisting her with speaking to her fans. After a few minutes, the translator finally appeared, but even that caused more troubles. From the translator’s microphone not working to him not understanding what YUJU was saying, the singer eventually made an effort to speak in English herself. “My parents are English teachers, but my English is not very good,” she said, to which the fans strongly disagreed.
While YUJU was sharing a sentimental moment with the crowd and talking about how much she missed her fans in LA, it was distracting to see the lights flickering on and off. Despite having a soundcheck prior to the concert’s start, the lights were still too dim, and adjustments were being made while the concert was ongoing. The show continued on with “Without U,” a meaningful song YUJU penned for her fans. “This is my message for you. When I wrote this song, I just wanted to tell you that it’s okay to say that you’re not okay; it’s not a bad thing,” she shared. The next song was “Full Circle,” finishing off part one of the concert, which put YUJU’s steady and stable vocals and relaxed high notes on display. The singer left the stage briefly to remove her jacket and touch up her makeup, before kicking off part two of the show.
Returning to the stage, YUJU performed “Bad Blood” and “Play,” before taking a break to speak with the audience once more. While the first segment was more laidback and casual as the soloist showcased her vocals, the second segment was more powerful as the former girl group member brought out her dancing skills. The strong backlit screen and red lighting emphasized the sultriness of YUJU’s performance to songs like “Peach Blossom,” full of body rolls and hair flips. The last song of the evening was “DALALA,” which easily earned the loudest cheers of the night. Despite the short show, YUJU showed off all her charms, showcasing both her vocal and performance abilities. The singer then came back out for a quick Q&A session, and the show was officially over. Even with the technical difficulties, YUJU still gracefully put on a great show for her fans, thanking them for their endless support and promising to return again.
Thankfully, Audrey Lane’s events went much more smoothly than YUJU’s. The youngest Jam Republic member held two dance workshops — a beginner’s class on Saturday teaching her original choreography to JUNGKOOK’s “Seven,” and an intermediate class on Sunday teaching her crew’s choreography to LE SSERAFIM’s “Eve, Psyche & The Bluebeard’s Wife,” as seen on the competition show STREET WOMAN FIGHTER 2. Audrey broke down each piece, teaching the choreography in parts and checking in with students for any questions. Her sweet and funny personality truly shined through as she giggled and made jokes while throughout the workshop, finding some of the choreography silly while teaching. Towards the end, Audrey even went into the crowd to select a few dancers to dance with her, before performing together with the whole crowd once more. To finish off the workshop, Audrey got up close and personal with her students, kneeling on the ground to thank them and encourage them in their dance journeys.
Although the weekend was far from perfect, headliners YUJU and Audrey Lane were certainly the highlights of K-PLAY! FEST. With more K-PLAY! FEST events planned for 2024, the last thing left is to hope that the next event will be better organized and executed.
Click on the photo below to view our photos from the event:
