Your ultimate guide to K-Pop concerts and fan meets, as told by fans themselves

Editor’s note: This press release is sponsored by UnionBank and was handled by BrandRap, the sales and marketing arm of Rappler. No member of the news and editorial team participated in the publishing of this piece.

Picture this: You get a notification announcing the K-pop group that recently caught your eye is coming to the Philippines for their world tour. With more Korean artists making their stop in Manila or Bulacan, this might just be the perfect time to give in to that fandom your social media algorithm keeps reminding you about!

You’ll want to come into your first K-event well-prepared and properly equipped for the various activities that await you; someone going into it for the first time might get a bit overwhelmed by the information overload (so many new terms!) coupled with the excitement one is bound to feel from all the kilig posts of fans around the world. Good thing we have four K-pop superfans Sammie, King, Andie, and Juerjen, who are here to share their tried and tested tips and tricks to help you prep for your upcoming K-event! Because in the world of K-entertainment, there’s no such thing as being too prepared.

Tip 1: Dress up and share your fan merch!

K-pop encourages us to be unapologetic about being a fan. The best part? No one’s going to judge you! Go all-out with your fit by wearing your fandom’s colors, official merch, or even an exact replica of your favorite artist’s comeback outfit.

Another important part of your concert outfit is what you hold, like a lightstick, which is a portable light-up device that typically syncs with the music of the concert. Think LED wristbands, but cuter! King, an OG Blackjack (2NE1 fan) and CARAT (SEVENTEEN fan), muses about the many K-pop concerts he’s attended: “Everyone’s got their own lightstick, so it’s like standing in a sea of lights.”

Sammie, also a longtime CARAT, shares how K-pop isn’t limited to what you wear, but how fans come together to make the experience go beyond the concert arena: “Even before people get into the venue, you see fans clustered in groups handing out fan-made banners, stickers, and pins, all for free! Fandoms also pitch in money to have ads of their [favorite idols, aka bias] plastered all over the venue. Like in Macau (for SEVENTEEN’s FOLLOW Tour), there were buses with SEVENTEEN members’ faces going around the stadium all day. It was our own little K-pop bubble.”

Tip 2: Channel your inner girl/boy scout. A portable charger and fan are non-negotiable. 

A typical K-pop concert goes on for at least three hours of nonstop performances, including killer choreography, medleys to highlight their years-long vocal training, and “ments” which is when the idols give their heartfelt speeches. You will seriously regret it if your phone runs out of battery even before the concert ends. A power bank should also be a top priority for safety purposes. Remember, you are amongst tens of thousands of fans, and you need to get home safely. Andie, a certified Pink Blood (fan of SM Entertainment artists), says, “You never want to be stranded without a working phone.”

For outdoor venues like the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bulacan, you should also bring: cooling wipes, a raincoat or foldable umbrella, a collapsible bottle (venues usually have water stations), a foldable mat (or cloth) you can sit on while waiting (especially if you’re in Standing VIP!) and a comfy bag you don’t have to hold on to during the event (fanny packs and slings are great). Indoor venues like the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay and the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, which tend to be comfier due to their location and accessibility to malls, are no exception to these aforementioned necessities, but you might want to bring a jacket too when it gets cold in the middle of the event.

Tip 3: Block off your whole day, please!

You think a K-pop concert is only three hours long? Think again. “If the concert happens in Bulacan, regardless of [it being] in the Philippine Arena or Stadium, you have to dedicate a whole day for it,” Juerjen, a CARAT and ARMY (BTS fan) shares. “No questions asked. It’s just easier to do what you need to do in the area versus coming in late.” King reiterates this statement: “It’s a full-day mission. Go early, like, way earlier than you think. Budget time for insane check-in lines and security.”

Another thing to consider time-wise is whether you’ve availed of the soundcheck or send-off which are additional perks that usually come with a VIP ticket. The soundcheck usually happens a few hours before the concert starts, where a couple hundred attendees get to watch their rehearsal. A send-off, on the other hand, is done after the concert, where attendees can bid the idols farewell.

If you’re attending a fan meeting, those are usually shorter—sometimes lasting just an hour and a half tops! Andie says, “You get a lot more time for the artist to talk with fans, sometimes even playing games or having one-on-one or group interactions onstage with lucky attendees.” The energy of fan meetings is less chaotic than concerts, but it’s still a worthwhile and whole-day experience amongst fans as well.”

Tip 4: Plan, plan, plan—from transportation to logistics.

You must plan very, very strategically, specifically for your transportation and logistics. Andie says, “It’s important that you coordinate your transportation before the actual concert day. There’s always a lack of [mobile network] signal, so if you are traveling with friends and are seated separately, then agree on a time and location where you’ll meet.” After King’s first Bulacan concert, he says of the experience, “I learned my lesson after getting stuck in post-concert traffic with zero plans and a dying phone. Now, I schedule transport—whether I’m carpooling, booking early, or driving myself home.” And if the concert is abroad, King makes sure to “scope out the venue and pick a hotel as close as possible. Survival mode unlocked.”

Being aware of the layout of the venue, inside and outside, is crucial as well, according to Sammie, who spends time on TikTok researching which seats not only have the best view but also proximity to emergency exits. “It’s great that co-fans share this type of info online, so we’re all super informed. It’s a collective experience.”

Tip 5: Always keep tabs on pre-sales.

Let’s face it: Attending the concert in person is only the second half of the battle. The first half is actually securing your tickets online. It’s not rare for concerts to sell out in less than an hour. Remember: People in the country are probably not the only ones trying to buy a ticket! With venues having a limited capacity and events usually spanning only a day or two in each country, you can just imagine the intense competition you’ll face just to get a single ticket.

Enter, pre-sales. UnionBank has introduced exclusive pre-sale offers online to Filipino fans who are UnionBank cardholders to take the edge off the intense (and sometimes heartbreaking) ticketing experience. With tens of thousands of fans queuing up online, having the advantage to purchase tickets ahead of the public sale “made the whole ticket-buying experience way less stressful,” says King, who availed of the pre-sale promo for 2NE1’s Welcome Back in Manila in 2024.

In the past two years, almost half of the 19 exclusive entertainment initiatives sponsored by UnionBank have been dedicated to Korean artists, from SEVENTEEN’s last two world tours (FOLLOW Tour and RIGHT HERE) and the much-awaited 2NE1 reunion concert (Welcome Back), to intimate fan meetings of BLACKPINK’s Jisoo (Lights, Love, Action!) and our beloved Queen of Tears, K-drama actress Kim Ji Won (Be My One).

“I always see those UnionBank exclusive pre-sale offers pop up every time there’s a ticket war,” King explains, referring to a fan term for ticketing periods. “And for 2NE1, it felt like I actually had a fighting chance instead of just relying on my questionable internet speed. If there’s another concert I really can’t miss, you’ll definitely see me trying for those perks again.”

Juerjen has also availed of the pre-sale privilege for SEVENTEEN’s FOLLOW Tour in 2024, and she only has the best things to say about it: “We had a smooth experience and didn’t [encounter] any hiccups. It was actually such a relief that I am a UnionBank cardholder ‘cause I noticed they have a lot of K-pop partnerships. So, it’s honestly something I look forward to.”

With a slew of acts coming our way in the Philippines for the rest of the year, there will be more chances for you to purchase a ticket to possibly your very first K-pop concert or fan meeting with your UnionBank Credit and Debit Card. And who knows, you might even snag the coveted VIP perk for a soundcheck or a send-off session with your bias! – Rappler.com

Photos provided by interviewees with consent.

To learn more about UnionBank’s wide array of Credit Card offers, visit the Cards Promos section on the UnionBank website: https://www.unionbankph.com/cards/credit-card/discounts-and-promos.

Union Bank of the Philippines is regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (https://www.bsp.gov.ph.) For more information, please visit our website. For any concern, you may contact us through our UnionBank Online app (Mailbox → Support → Create New Ticket) or our Customer Service Hotline at (+632) 8841-8600.

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