KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 18 — When I saw the invite for Doh Kyung-soo’s Kuala Lumpur stop on his Asia Fan Concert Tour I thought, "Huh. That’s the tour selling out everywhere.”
Doh, also known by his stage name D.O. and a member of popular K-pop group EXO, is big enough of a name to make it worth taking a Grab all the way from the other side of town just to cover his concert.
When I arrived at Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil at 4pm, there were already hundreds of fans present and long queues for the food trucks with the most popular being tea brand Chagee that saw a line more than 25 people long.
It made me wistful for the days when I would travel to Bangkok and Singapore just to catch my favourite group Nu’est.
Seeing the crowds and the excited concertgoers wearing sky blue, the tour’s official dress code, it transported me to the days of meeting new K-pop fans, exchanging fan merch, taking photos together outside stadiums and then participating in the fan chants during the show.
A name for a reason
How was the actual concert, though? The good news was it started right on time at 6pm, with Doh opening with his song Mars from his recent EP, Blossom.
After the first number, Doh shouted a "Long time no see!” to the raucous scream of fans.
While having light banter with the audience, the singer brought up the fact that he had last performed in the country in 2018 as a member of K-pop group EXO.
At the fanmeeting, the singer amused the fans with Malaysian-tailored fanservice by saying to his fans, "Selamat malam, sayang.”
He also remarked jokingly: "My lips get dry when I say something I don’t usually say.”
The star had a nearly hour-long session of amusing fans by singing a capella requests and waxing lyrical about Malaysian food, saying that Malaysian flavours are similar to South Korea’s, declaring laksa "amazing” but when he was made to pick a favourite, he said he was most amazed by roti tisu.
He still declared his ultimate love would always be for Korean-style ramen or ramyeon, "Ramyeon will always be first.”
Doh then continued with another song from his EP Simple Joys and then into the soothing That’s Okay, where the fans’ lightsticks were coloured a warm, inviting amber.
It’s one of my favourite things about K-pop concerts – that official lightsticks are built in such a way that a venue can sync the lightsticks’ colours to specific hues.
To keep with the casual, relaxed vibe, he then sang the relaxed I Do and the pretty My Dear, moving closer to centrestage before deciding to sing Ordinary Days and Good Night while seated.
One thing casual fans might have a slight issue with is that Doh’s discography is entirely made up of mid-tempo to slow numbers but in-between singing, he did say to look forward to future albums where he promised that he would sing songs that were more uptempo.
Still it's also impressive that he managed to keep the crowd entertained with minimal staging and not overly-wrought stage effects, instead relying on artfully designed lighting and carefully curated stage backdrops.
He also made the special effort to introduce ballad About Time from his latest EP as the song with his favourite lyrics from the album, and throughout the performance the lyrics were translated for the fans on a big screen behind him.
It’s a credit to Doh’s singing prowess that throughout the fan concert he demonstrated just why he is considered one of the most talented vocalists of his generation, and in K-pop in general.
His voice was in top form despite all the talking and impromptu a capella requests.
After his emotive rendition of About Time, he then sang Somebody, a crowd favourite with many attendees, myself included, singing along when cued.
I’d made sure to listen to his entire solo discography before going in preparation, after all, and one thing that K-pop concerts do well is coordinating fan participation with fan chants and cues.
Doh then sent off his fans with his final song of the night Popcorn.
He also promised that fans would be seeing him "very soon” as if hinting at another music release very soon.
As I walked home with the crowd taking the LRT from Bukit Jalil I listened idly to the chatter of the fans, one saying that Kyung-soo’s voice "live” was as good as his studio recordings.
As far as concerts went, organiser Unusual Entertainment managed the show efficiently with a smooth experience throughout, with clear signages and knowledgeable staff so I left feeling somewhat lighthearted from a great performance from Doh Kyung-soo and without any complaints.
Doh will be closing his tour with an encore three-day performance at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul from October 11-13 later this year.
Doh Kyung-soo's setlist:
- Mars
- Simple Joys
- That’s okay
- I Do
- My Dear
- Ordinary Days
- Good Night
- About Time
- Somebody
- Popcorn
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