Looking back on 2023: More K-pop concerts in Europe than ever before?
In 2022, we looked back just before the end of the year and remembered which K-Pop concerts took place over the 12 months. This year we want to reminisce with you again. We'll also answer a few questions that might interest you: Which K-Pop stars visited Europe this year, who may have been here for the first time and did more concerts take place here this year than before?
- Which K-Pop stars performed in Europe this year?
- Which artists were in Europe for the first time in 2023?
- More K-Pop concerts in Europe than ever before?
Let's start with the first question:
Which K-Pop stars performed in Europe this year?
A few artists have already announced concerts in Germany, France and more at the end of 2022:
- ATEEZ
- Kang Daniel
- The Rose
- Jackson Wang
For Kang Daniel and Jackson Wang, it was their first World Tour as solo artists, but ATEEZ and The Rose have hosted World Tours before. ATEEZ visited Europe for the first time in 2019 as part of their "The Expedition Tour". The Rose even played a concert in Brussels, Belgium back in 2018. Both bands have been coming back regularly since then and are welcome guests.
The Rose have played no fewer than 13 concerts in Europe this year. In Germany, they were able to visit three different cities: Munich, Berlin and Cologne. ATEEZ also played nine concerts in Europe. Fans from Germany and France were undoubtedly particularly happy, as the boy band performed there not once, but twice. Were you there?
That was just the beginning, of course. Many other stars joined us over the course of the year:
- Blackpink (at the BST Hyde Park festival)
- B.I
- CIX
- Epik High
- (G)I-DLE
- iKON
- KARD
- KISU
- Lee Seong Jong (Infinite)
- NCT Dream
- ODD EYE CIRCLE (LOONA Unit)
- Oneus
- pH-1
- Red Velvet
- Twice
- VAV
- WOODZ
- xdinary Heroes
- Xodiac
- Yugyeom (GOT7)
As you can see, some very popular artists were there again this year, some like NCT Dream and Red Velvet even for the first time!
But the list doesn't end there. In addition to the world-famous idols, many smaller artists also gave concerts in Europe.
These bands and solo singers are less familiar to the general public, even though they have been in the business for years.
Tip: Concerts by lesser-known artists tend to be small and cozy. Fans can interact with the singers and have much more opportunity to speak to them personally. So it's worth checking out these talents:
- Gaho
Singer-Songwriters under Planetarium Record. Former member of the PLT project group. He debuted in 2018 with the digital single "Stay Here". - JUNNY
Singer-songwriter under Mauve Company. He debuted in 2017 with the mini album "Monochrome". - Luminous
Four-member boy group under SE Group Entertainment. Debuted in 2021 with the mini album "Youth". - BLOO
Rapper under MKIT Rain. Debuted in 2016 with the single album "Drive Thru". - oceanfromtheblue
Singer-songwriter under Nostalgia Music. He debuted in 2018 with the mini album "Luv-fi (2018)". - ADOY
Band under Angel House. She debuted in 2017 with the mini album "Catnip". - Se So Neon
Rock band under Magic Strawberry Sound. Debuted in 2017 with the digital single "A Long Dream". - Gemini
Singer under Area. He debuted in 2017 with the single "Know Me".
Will you be on the lookout for these artists next year? Or have you already seen one of them live? Tell us about it!
In addition to all these world tours and solo concerts, there were also a few festivals in Europe in 2023.
These included the MIK Festival in Paris, M Countdown in Paris, Kpop LUX in Madrid and Music Bank in Paris. These festivals brought a few more stars here:
- At Music Bank in Paris , for example, NMIXX, P1Harmony, Enhypen, Mamamoo, Gravity, The Boyz, IVE, AB6IX and Stray Kids performed.
- The line-up for Kpop Lux in Madrid consisted of Enhypen, IVE, ATEEZ, SHINee, StayC, xikers and Cravity.
Festivals are a good opportunity to see several artists live at once. Above all, they often bring groups and solo singers here that we would otherwise hardly ever see. SHINee, IVE, Enhypen and most of the other acts wouldn't have been in Europe this year without these festivals! We are therefore delighted that K-Pop festivals are now also taking place regularly in Europe.
And that certainly wasn't all of them. It's actually becoming difficult to keep track and list every single concert. Have we forgotten anyone? Let us know in the comments!
Which artists were in Europe for the first time in 2023?
This year we welcomed back some stars like ATEEZ, (G)I-DLE or Kard, but we also welcomed a few groups that have never been here before. It's not just about new faces, but more importantly fan favorites that have been topping the charts for years!
- Twice
On April 15, the girl group kicked off their fifth world tour "Ready To Be". This time, the tour not only took them through Asia and North America, but also finally to Europe! In September, Twice performed twice in London, once in Paris, France and twice in Berlin, Germany. Originally, only one concert was planned in London and Berlin, but due to high demand, more dates were added. Hopefully the girl group will visit us more often in the future!
- xdinary heroes
Twice younger agency colleagues announced their first world tour "Break the Brake" in October and visited six European cities in November: Paris, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Milan and Warsaw.
The rock band only made their debut in December 2021, but quickly sang their way into the hearts of fans with their unusual mix of K-pop and punk rock.
- Red Velvet
Almost nine years after Red Velvet's debut, European fans were able to see the talented girl group live for the first time. As part of the fourth world tour "Red Velvet 4th Concert: R to V", Irene, Seulgi, Wendy and Yeri visited Paris, Berlin and Amsterdam, among other places. Joy unfortunately couldn't be there for health reasons. We are keeping our fingers crossed that Red Velvet will return with all five members!
In addition to Red Velvet, another SM Entertainment group has announced a world tour with dates in Europe for the first time: NCT Dream. "The Dream Show 2: In A Dream" took the boy group to London, Paris and Berlin, for example. But although these were NCT Dream's first own concerts in Europe, Jeno, Haechan and co. already performed in Germany in 2022. In May, they were guests at the KPOP FLEX Festival in Frankfurt.
- iKON
iKON's fans were also able to enjoy a visit from their favorite stars for the first time this year! The 2023 World Tour "TAKE OFF" started in Seoul in May and finally made a stop in Europe in June.
A few solo artists also took a new step: Kang Daniel, Jackson Wang, Lee Seong Jong and B.I all came to Europe alone for the first time in 2023.
However, most of them had actually visited here much earlier, only they didn't perform alone back then, but as part of a group.
- Kang Daniel
The singer became famous in 2017 through the survival show "Produce 101 Season 2". He took first place and made his debut in the project group Wanna One, which enjoyed great popularity in the following years. In 2019 Daniel made his solo debut and this year he organized his first world tour "FIRST PARADE". This took him to London, Paris, Cologne and Berlin, among other places.
However, the concert in Cologne was not his first appearance in Germany. In 2018, Daniel stormed the stage at the Musical Bank Festival in Berlin as a member of Wanna One. German fans were no doubt delighted to see him again, this time as a solo artist.
- Jackson Wang
Jackson Wang gave two concerts in London in January. The rapper made his official solo debut in 2019, but is still a member of GOT7. Jackson has already been to Europe several times with his bandmates. First in 2018 as part of the "EYES ON YOU" World Tour and again the following year as part of the "KEEP SPINNING" World Tour.
- Lee Seong Jong
Seong Jong has only been on the road solo since March of this year. Fans know him primarily as a member of the boy group Infinite. It has now been 10 years since Infinite performed in Europe for the first time! The first World Tour "ONE GREAT STEP" took the boy band to London and Paris in 2013. The second world tour "INFINITE EFFECT" also brought the boys to Germany in 2015. This year, Seong Jong returned solo. His first Europe Showcase Tour included six concerts.
- B.I
B.I is the only solo artist in this list who actually performed in Europe for the first time this year. Like the others, he rose to fame as a member of a boy group, but iKON had never been to Europe until B.I's departure in 2019. His fans were all the more delighted when the first European tour "Love Or Die" was announced. In just one month, B.I gave 16 concerts in 14 different European countries!
More K-Pop concerts in Europe than ever before?
K-Pop fans want nothing more than to see their favorite idols live one day. For Asian fans, this dream becomes reality very quickly, but fans from other countries and continents such as Europe often have to wait longer. Especially big stars like BTS or Twice only visit the continent when they are on a world tour.
But something has changed over the years! A few years ago, K-Pop concerts were still rare in this country, but now there are so many that we can't even manage to attend them all!
Do you also have the feeling that there were more K-Pop concerts in Europe in 2023 than ever before?
Last year, in our review, we listed 17 artists who performed in Europe in 2022. This year there were around 32, almost twice as many! So the number of concerts in Germany and the like has indeed increased!
We hope that the number will continue to rise in the coming years, because the more often the artists come here, the more fans have the chance to see them live. Also, there are still a lot of K-pop stars who have never been to Europe.
Which K-pop stars have you seen live this year? Tell us about your concert highlights!
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