On May 17, an article in the U.S. magazine Time focused on the popular K-pop custom of holding marketing gatherings at which fans get to line up and high five their favorite singing stars. In particular, Time reported on B.A.P’s “hightouch meeting,” as such events are called in Korea.
The Time article said, “As part of their LIVE ON EARTH U.S. tour, the K-pop sextet known as B.A.P hosted high-touch events in Los Angeles, San Francisco, D.C., and New York City, which the tour’s organizers say are the first ever held in the United States. The events, which took place alongside concerts, were open to 100 lucky contest winners each—and although the events were more modest in attendance numbers than their analogs in Asia, their impact on the fans was anything but. For one thing, many American K-pop fans were introduced to the concept for the first time. A number of entrants for the May 16 event in New York City—even those who had traveled from as far as from Puerto Rico and Canada, hoping to meet B.A.P—had never heard of a ‘high touch’ before.”
According to an interview with Time, a staffer of Mnet U.S. said, “The diversity in the room in New York was typical of K-pop events.” The strength of K-pop events is to make it easy for American K-pop fans to approach their favorite performers.
Time also reported that B.A.P member Bang Yong Guk said that the idea for the high-touch event came from the members of B.A.P themelves. They thought hard about how to connect with their U.S. fans, who always support them from far away, so they decided to do the high-touch event.
B.A.P have successfully ended the U.S. leg of their tour B.A.P Live on Earth Pacific. Starting from the first concert in Los Angeles on May 7, it continued in three other U.S. cities, San Francisco (May 10), Washington D.C. (May 14), and New York City (May 17). The group received an enthusiastic response, and the concert tickets sold out early.
M/s : kenvilthomas@kpopupdates.com
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