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concerts

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I usually do this on my book blog, SHELF PICKINGS over at Wordpress. But I'm not much into audiobooks (yet) and anything outside the realm of reading, I'd rather put here. Plus, this little nook needs a little traffic. Won't hurt, right?

This week is an audio freebie. I have a couple of audio books in my possession. I was gifted a free copy of A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab on Audible and The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner, narrated by no other than Tom Hiddleston. I also have the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon on audio. My favorites would have to be One Bullet Away, written and narrated by Nathaniel Fick and Generation Kill by Evan Wright. Do I include radio dramas? There was a time when I was obsessed with them.

But that's about it for my audio book experience. Frankly, I don't have the attention span for them. I used to have Classics droning in the background as I worked but ultimately, my attention went elsewhere. What could hold me for more than 15 minutes though, are podcasts.

Here are my favorites:

SWORD & SCALE - This is my favorite podcast. Of all time. I found this incredible True Crime podcast by accident after finishing Serial and ended up binge-listening to this and loving it more. It's on episode 70-something now but I re-started listening from episode 1. I'm on 22 now and I still love it as I did when I listened to it the first time. I have clear favorites that have stuck with me and terrified the heck out of me. I even want to start a Sword & Scale book club. Get on it!
LORE - Oh man, if you're into creepy stuff, this podcast is for you. I also binge-listened to this from the first episode. From the narration, the topics, and the music... I can get lost into this. And I almost did miss a couple of train stops because I was so engrossed. And it's possibly being developed into a TV show. Wow!
CRIMINAL - Another one that I found post-Serial. I'm a bit behind on this because there are some topics that I just don't care about or not really related to anything "criminal" but I still like this overall.
SERIAL - Of course, where it call began. I admit, I wasn't into the second season. I guess I was more into the whole Adnan case in general rather than the podcast itself. I mean, it's still intriguing but with Sword & Scale taking the top spot, I have more than enough material to sort through on my morning commute.

And to toot my own horn here a bit. I was on a podcast. One episode but I'm pretty happy with it. I imagine that if we were to re-do this topic now, I'll have more useful things to say. But I'm still pretty proud of this. Here it is:

SHOTCAST by THE ONE SHOTS - The Highs and Lows of K-pop Concerts

So yeah, K-pop concerts... conventions... events, bring it!

I can only do five. My brother listens to more of these things, being the gamer and all. If you have suggestions, lemme have it. I love True Crime. The creepier, the better.

KCON is a tricky thing for me to talk about because I like it and hate it at the same time. This is my 3rd non-consecutive time attending. I like that it's a convention about K-pop, a fandom that is not as big as the comic book types and the otaku. I like that one concert can have five or more acts. I like that it gives fans an opportunity to meet their faves, may it be a K-pop idol, actor, or online personality. I like that this year, they have food trucks.

But that's about it. Everything else, I either don't care for or dislike completely. I'm the simplest of K-pop fans. I stan 2-3 groups, passively listen to everything else, and only go to YG Entertainment (and Block B) concerts. So half the things at these kinds of events seem irrelevant to me. But I view it as discovering new things. And in that respect, KCON has not disappointed me. I've started listening to new or new-to-me groups as well as incredible indie artists that they've invited. Although there are some things that I dislike about this convention, I always end up enjoying myself. That, 우리 친구들, is reason enough for me to go every year.

Just when you thought that 2015-related posts are so last year... ;-)

I'm so pumped for 2016 but I'm forever grateful for all the things that happened in the past year. The good and the bad. I hope the good things will continue and all the bad things will get better. For you and for me.

I'll try something different. Iconography. I'm not exactly good at it but I'm testing out a website/service that makes it easy for Photoshop dummies like me. If you've noticed, I've been tweaking the appearance of this blog. A little change for 2016, yeah?

가자!

CONVENTIONS: 6.
I can't get enough of them. They're exhausting and I tend to spend much more than my budget - not to mention, adding to the clutter in my room - but I love them. I'm looking forward to going to more in 2016. Preferably, EVO 2016.

3 times at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I can tell you where the nearest restrooms are. WonderCon is moving to LACC in 2016, by the way.

I'm going to my final convention/event this weekend so let's get this out of the way, shall we?

Do you wanna be? BLOCK B!

Le gasp! They're not from YG Entertainment! And whut? I bought a VIP ticket? With a hi-touch? Yup.

This was my 2nd time at Club Nokia. I love this place. It's intimate, the acoustics are great, and I don't think there's a bad view. The last time I was here was for the Show Me the Money 4 concert in Los Angeles. I was down there in the GA PIT area. It was fun but this late in the year, I've run out of energy to show up super early so I'll be in front. At that concert, I noticed that the seats up in the first row balcony have pretty awesome view of the stage. This concert offered that also under VIP+ (1st Block) so I got that instead. I got to the venue about 30 minutes before they let people in and I was seated in no time. I still got my hi-touch but no crowding and craziness of the Pit.

Club Nokia plays the most random music before a show. We got classical music at SMTM4 and this time, we got movie scores. Well, I guess it fit because Block B's theme for this concert is "blockbuster". Films and such.

I did have this ready and waiting shortly after I posted the Los Angeles recap. But I decided to wait and post it on TOP's birthday (in Korea lol)... a month after the event.

This time three years ago, at the same venue, we "celebrated" TOP's birthday on stage. Seungri has a video of it shot on a Samsung Galaxy S3. We also sang to him the previous day but our November 3 is November 4 on the other side of the world which is his actual birthday. He flew to NYC to be with his family immediately after the concert, I heard.

It was so special to us that we could do that. The whole ALIVE Tour was special to me. (I didn't post a wrap up for the 2nd night because that was the only concert where I didn't take a lot of photos. Just the encore but I only had my phone and I was kind of far away.) They did Monster and that was enough for me. At least, I saw it performed live twice.

Yes, I posted a similar picture for the LA recap.

The MADE Tour has its own kind of special. Mainly that bridge thing stage extension and the best pit experience ever. I didn't opt for the Ultimate VIP but I got my money's worth for Bae Bae and more.

I don't know about you but my mother understands the importance of being to a concert 8-10 hours early. Especially if you have a general admission ticket. And in general, I want to be crazy early for these things. Get it out of the way, you know, then have the whole day sitting there and waiting. Fans took it upon themselves to have some sort of organization and together with staff, they tried to have a number system for both the general line and per ticket tier. I got there at around 10-ish and without the people cutting in line to be with their friends who got there earlier, I was the 357th person in line and 124th with the Bae Bae ticket. Already. My actual ticket/wristband read somewhere in the 140's but that's fine. The pit had more than enough breathing room for both Ultimate and Bae Bae as well as guests and special VIPs. You know, the actual very important people... not the fandom name lol.

I love soundchecks. My November 2, 2012 soundcheck was all kinds of special. It involved G-Dragon. That was the first time when I truly experienced "fangirling". This time, I knew what to expect and was pleasantly surprised at the layout of the pit. We had our own little den in between the main stage and the extended stage. And unlike the Floor, we didn't have to push and shove and fight for a good spot. I situated myself at house left right under the left bridge thing. And oh boy, was it the best decision ever.

Who takes more than a week to recover from a concert? This girl.

But cut me some slack. I went to two BIGBANG concerts in two days. Not to mention the live tweets, videos, updates on social media for the following concerts in Mexico and New Jersey. I had more than 1000 photos to comb through, a couple of surprisingly good videos, and screencapping said videos for more pictures. And oh, uploading them to FB and Youtube.

This was the farthest I've ever sat for a YG artist concert. I've always been pit or the seated area right next to GA Floor. I could've done better seats for the same price but dang, we were right across from the stage. Center!

Really, I could've gone VIP here also. But I had my rockstars with me. I mean, who goes to a K-pop concert with their mother but not as chaperon? My brother, who is a non-K-pop fan, went with me too. I was happy that they were game to experience this insanity with me - and see my total K-pop fangirl side as well. My wallet wept for a minute but it was all worth it, seeing how they enjoyed it and hearing their feedback on the whole show.

tl;dr My mom is a fan of Taeyang and her favorite BIGBANG songs are Fantastic Baby and Haru Haru. And she thinks, as everyone in this good earth does, that TOP is excessively good-looking. My brother loved the staging and lights. He liked Sober and Daesung's voice. It warmed my heart to see that he made an effort to remember their names and match it to their faces. I have the best family ever!

Honestly though... my VIP ticket for the Anaheim concert could've paid for all three of our seated tickets. No regrets, though. Absolutely none.

If you go back to the ALIVE TOUR concerts, I was in absolute overwhelmed fangirl mode. I would kiss the ground that they walked on. And my preparation started about a week before that concert weekend. This time around, I was calmer... older... wiser. Yes, I was still excited to see them in concert but having seen them twice before (3 times for G-Dragon), I was able to keep my head on straight. With the exception of some crazy screaming and jumping, of course. ;-)

I'm especially excited to see this tour because of their new songs. I love all of them. Bang, Bang, Bang is the song of 2015. Then there's Eyes, Nose, Lips. I've seen this twice live from Tablo and now, I'm going to see this live from the original artist himself, Taeyang. Twice! And of course, I would not miss another live performance of YG's national anthem... Fantastic Baby. I have so many feelings for this tour/set list. Also, this could be the last one for a while with them starting to go into military service. Sigh.

Like last time, I bought two separate light sticks to commemorate this event. (One was free the last time but I bought another one that looks exactly the same for night 2.) It's the new version so one was white and the other was black. The light reacts to the beat of the music but I still had it one solid. The "anytone" mode looked so dim.

I love that they play MVs to pass the time. Perfect for people watchers like me... the crowd screams even at music videos. There was this teenager in the row behind ours who screamed bloody murder every time GD comes on. She was a silent, crying mess for the rest of the actual concert.

I know. It's been almost 20 days since this event. It's 7 days away from my next K-pop related event. Forgive me. It's been a trying September.

I could not contain my excitement when they announced the Show Me the Money 4 concert tour stop in Los Angeles. My Inner Circle heart was cheering that I will finally see someone from WINNER but it wasn't yet meant to be. Finalist, Song Minho, had other engagements and had to skip out from the whole tour. BFF Zico from Block B wasn't going either. But that's okay; I saw him at KCON not too long ago. (And I might see him again in November. I have to see the ticket perks and prices before deciding.)

But the real reasons why I was so hyped up were... Verbal Jint and Jinusean. Meeting Tablo for the second time in the same year was a very welcomed icing on the cake. I've admired Verbal Jint's music and lyrics for a long time. I think he is a fantastic human being and to see him perform live... it took so much from me not to tear up. Who the hell cries at a hip-hop concert?! I almost did. I'm a YG stan so I'm happy to meet anyone from YG. Jinusean was one of the first ones and their song, 한번 더 말해줘, is my JAM. It's so catchy with a sort of old school 90s feel to it. Not to mention it brings me a tad bit closer to two of my favorite shows, Superman is Back and Running Man. (Upon rewatching more episodes of RM, I realized that I've met more guest stars that I initially thought.)

My love for Tablo's talent (and the rest of Epik High) knows no bounds. I could not pass up the opportunity to see him again. That alone paid for my ticket. Among other things, of course. Jay Park and almost all of the AOMG crew were there. San E and the sole representative of Team ZiPal, Palo Alto were there too. Heck, even Dumbfoundead was there. And if anyone from YG was there, Danny and Ben Baller would be too. I wish Danny and DFD joined the hi-touch event lol. (More on that later.)

I admit, I'm one of those who paid attention to SMTM4 because of Mino. Not gonna lie. But I stayed because of the other rappers on the show. I was familiar with some by way of collaborations with other artists that I know and some I'm glad I found out through the show. I do not care for Western rap/hip-hop that is playing on the radio today. AT ALL. (I've been known to say that "If it is in English, I might not listen to it. I don't know 90% of the songs on the radio today.) Most of it is empty and it's like who can spit out senseless shit faster. Make up words along the way, why don't you. It's not for me. My interest in American hip-hop ending some time before 2010. But that was when my love for K-hip-hop resurfaced. Yes, I don't understand most of it but you can just feel the passion and emotion in their voices. Look up the lyrics and you'll see that it's not empty made-up bullshit. It actually speaks to you.

(A marvelous example is LeeSsang. Do yourself a favor and listen to either Hexagonal or Asura Balbalta, look up the lyrics, and try not to feel sad and cry.)

Anyway, enough with the sales talk.

Powerhouse Live

2015 is the year the Hallyu gods smiled upon me. I thought it was 2012 when 2NE1 and BIGBANG came to the US. It was followed by 2013 with my first KCON. 2014 introduced me to WINNER but that year, I went back to my Hollywood world. Not much going on in my K-pop life... just my hoarding of anything WINNER lol.

I thought 2015 was going to be the same. I got more into conventions and anime and nerdy things. That is... until Epik High went on their North American tour. That got the ball rolling. From there, BIGBANG announced their 2nd world tour; I went to my 2nd KCON (2, 3). And if that wasn't enough... Show Me the Money 4 is coming to Los Angeles.

[I'm this close to kiss the ground where I currently reside. LOL.]

If you've been following this K-drama, you will know that WINNER's Song Minho is not only one of the contestants, he's also in the Final Two. Apart from being an idol rapper (and it seems like a part of him is not ashamed of being one in front of all these established hip-hop people), he has history as a young underground rapper by the name of Hugeboy MINO together with Block B's Zico. He actually calls Mino his "most treasured dongsaeng" which warms my heart of hearts.

MNET's been very dirty in this show, rather questionable at times. There were moments - no, whole episodes - where there was nothing but secondhand embarrassment. Sometimes, they air 90% drama and only 10% of talent. They clearly play favorites. I don't deny that Mino is their favorite since Day 1 because Mino's been involved in another MNET talent reality show that was really successful, Who Is Next? WIN. But they also screwed him up so many times. Until the very end, mind you. Either Mino wins and everyone thinks it's just because he's YG. Or he loses because everyone hates him. Poor baby.

But that doesn't really matter now. He's top 2 and I've read somewhere that only the top 2 contestants are going on the US shows. So that's Basick and Mino. At this point, I don't care who wins... I like them both and I'm going to see my word genius fave Verbal Jint perform live. And oh, Tablo for a second time in less than six months. Yeah-yuh.

The organizers said that Zico will not join Mino and Paloalto on the tour. Yes, I did see him with Block B at KCON but to see him with his precious dongsaeng on stage together would've been a dream. Being the huge ZiPal team stan, I hope Tablo jumps in if ever they'll do moneyflow ... or have Mino join them for Born Hater. Tablo, MINO, and Verbal Jint all there and play BI's chorus bit... they've done that song with less members.

Also, Jinusean will only be doing the Los Angeles show! A-yooooo! I don't get what they're doing on this show but I love them, okay? Sean 삼촌 is my bb Daehanie's favorite. And here's the obligatory "Jinu oppa is hawt". (He shares the same name as WINNER's Kim Jinwoo but I can call Jinu "oppa" while Jinwoo is my dongsaeng.) I don't know how to feel about San E only that it gave me a smidge of pleasure seeing Mino diss him (and MNET) for that Black Nut fiasco. I'm not the biggest Jay Park fan when he "raps" but I like a couple of his "singer" songs.

I would've liked a few more contestants to come along but... logistics. WINNER even has a Japan tour date on the same day at the NYC show. Poor baby. He's going to be so tired and I don't think he'll have time to sight-see. Maybe he can do that when he has his WINNER members with him... on their own world tour or a YG Family Concert? *wink*

I got the P1 ticket, of course. Like with my previous VIP ticket for the BIGBANG Alive Galaxy Tour, I got mine straight from Powerhouse Live which means I didn't pay the nasty service fee from AXS/Ticketmaster. It's going to be first come-first serve so I have to be there early to get a good spot. Ya know, shrimps like me need all the help we can get. And according to Powerhouse, there will be a special fan service event planned out! Yes, fcking please!

So there you go. Another event to add to my already eventful 2015 calendar. Hopefully, all goes well and I can meet Mino... that will tide me over until I meet the rest of WINNER.

EDIT:
The show is now going to be at Club Nokia LA Live. YES!

I know, I know. It's been more than a week after KCON NY/NJ which means even more weeks have passed since KCON LA but only now am I putting up my Day 3 recap. Whut... I'm busy and lazy at the same time, okay? Plus, after the monster recap of Day 2, I didn't have the energy to dive right in with the final day. But I'm here now. What else can you do? ;-)

Aaah, the calm before the cray. By Day 3, I really didn't have any more plans at the Expo Hall. I was all bought out and I mean, how many times does one go around a small-ish convention floor? (Although I did regret not buying the TOP bear, Japan version. Oh well.) Most of my day was spent sitting down next to an outlet. I've learned my lesson in Day 2... never trust a power bank. Mine failed on me at 47% battery and I had to turn it off and then put it on ultra battery saving so I can call my ride after the concert. Yes, I'm anal when it comes to my gadget's battery life. I flat out panic when I reach below 50% with no charger.

I didn't go to any panels anymore. I was interested in one, something about traveling to Seoul on a budget but I got lazy getting up and making my way to LACC that "early" when all I really had planned was the 7pm concert. I would've loved to put in my 2 cents about my "16 hours in Seoul" experience. Plus, it was moderated by Professor Oh again.

Day 3 meant Block B. The day before, my AliExpress order finally came in. Just in fcking time for the final day of KCON LA. Why was I so excited? Well, I was able to represent Zico's most precious dongsaeng...

Song Minho of WINNER. The other one that I got is for Kim Jinwoo. I got to wear that about a week after KCON. (PS: In my head, it's always "Zico-hyung"... ala- Mino, but the funny thing is, he's not even an oppa to me LMAO.) But really, I was just too excited that there's YG on the front of the shirt. You bet that I went ahead and got the other 3 WINNER members. Hee!

And it was an awesome choice to wear this particular shirt. As I was sitting somewhere, charging my devices, minding my own business... and actually listening to Verbal Jint, I heard a familiar beat. (I was actually trying to tune out the events on the main stage because... well... let's just say that if you're not BIGBANG, please don't even try to cover Bang, Bang, Bang. The song, I mean. The dance is fine.) In between songs, I heard the first few bars of I'm Him. What are the fcking chances of this song being played at KCON while I'm wearing a Song Minho shirt?! The Hallyu gods love me.

In my KCON ticket post, I might have said that it only took one reason to tip me over the edge. I decided to just fck it and attend this year's KCON because Ki Hong Lee of The Maze Runner movies was invited. Along with Daniel Henney and Kim Soohyun, the actor lineup actually was the reason why I decided to go. And hey, I might as well go to the concert. At least I can say that I saw Super Junior live. (Psst, Mr. Simple is my forever guilty pleasure.)

I'm no stranger to lining up and waiting. I've waited 8+ hours just to see actors. I was interested in two panels from the Day 2 schedule, one of them was Ki Hong Lee's panel. The other one was the Hallyu Culture Shock Q&A hosted by KWOW's Professor Oh. In past conventions, people have started to line up hours before a panel. I knew that Ki Hong Lee's panel is going to be a big one so I timed my schedule around that.

I got to LACC early to have lunch from one of the food trucks. I love Bibigo and since there wasn't a The Return of Superman representation, I had bulgogi 비빔밥 and 식혜. My bbs 대한, 민국, 만세 love 고기 and 밥, and in a recent episode, 민국이 cried over spilled 식혜. Yep, I'm overthinking things. At least, my ringtone is the triplets' theme song. (No joke!)

After a quick lunch, I went straight to the assigned room. I was one of the first 10 people in line. Kudos to those who had the same idea as me. XD A Soompi panel was still going on. The staff lady kept saying "Sohm-pi" instead of "Soom-pi", I thought she was saying zombie panel that first time. Anyway, I did some reading while I was waiting. The line started to get longer and longer until, the last I heard before going in, that it was almost all the way across the building. Yes, he might not be as huge as the other K-pop acts but he's got Hollywood creds. And I'm sure a lot of those who wanted to see him were The Maze Runner fans.

I definitely am a fan of that series. I met James Dashner when he was doing promos for the first movie. The 2nd movie, The Scorch Trials, will come out September 18th, a day after my birthday. And I told him that! Oh you know me, I won't pass up a chance to talk to a famous person. ;-)

I'm sorry. I lied.

I'm going to KCON 2015 in Los Angeles after all. ^.~

If you've been reading my posts for the past few months, you'll gather that I'm almost exclusively a YG fan. Meaning, I tend to favor the artists from YG Entertainment over other acts/agencies. But unlike other "stans", I don't treat them as gods nor excuse them for things they do that the public frown upon. Yet I can't deny that their stuff are really that much better than majority of the stuff out there. I can't bear to listen to some K-pop songs, let alone follow groups that are made up of 48615 members.

Having said all that, I am open to expanding my horizons. I do like a handful of non-YG talents. More the songs than the artists themselves. I will listen to the songs/albums but don't ask me the names of the members. I've ventured out of the YG building many times and found favorite tracks from other artists. But at the end of the day, I come home to YG.

Last year, G-Dragon was at KCON 2014. I didn't go. I was exhausted the day before because of the Josh Hutcherson charity basketball game. As much as I respect GD's talent, nothing - NOTHING - can replace that experience. (Read all about it; click the link.) And like the previous one that I attended, KCON 2013, GD was really the only reason why I wanted to go. But it ended up being such a YG experience! And Missy Elliott feels, no less. ;-) I never got around to writing about the concert night with all those acts. I had something to say about the rude fans of ~other artists but I think it's a good thing that I never talked at length about it. Let's just say that YG fans will never do that to your idol. At least BIGBANG is still one unit after all these years. #kanyeshrug

This year, there's not a YG act in the lineup. But I'm going anyway. I have a handful of Sistar songs in my iPod. Sistar19's 있다 없으니까 is one of the loveliest songs ever. One of my earliest guilty pleasures is Mr. Simple by Super Junior. I also like Sorry Sorry. If you're a K-pop fan for a couple of years, you should know Shinwha. Without them, your bias wouldn't be there too. Zion T. made an appearance in GD's song 너무 좋아 in the Coup d'Etat album. And if you know Zion T, you should also know Crush. I thought Spring, Spring, Spring by Roy Kim was cute when it was released. Then he followed that up with a song called Love, Love, Love. Oh-kay. And I can't leave out the biggest reason (out of this lineup) why I decided to go to the concert nights... Block B. Nillili Mambo is so hot up to this day. I don't have a clue what it means but I've listened to it on repeat from time to time. If they are to do that live, that's my ticket right there.

(If I haven't mentioned the artist, that means I don't know them. I may have a clue but I probably haven't listened to their songs. I'll get around that eventually. I have two more weeks. Suggestions? The video message from Monsta X is so freakin' adorable though. Such tourists! LOL.)

But it's not the artist line up that finally pushed me into buying that ticket. It's the ACTOR LINEUP. Daniel Henney. I don't need to say anything else really. Gimme my Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders now. Kim Soohyun... every one in my workplace watched My Love From the Star. I watched the first episode but as the lazy ass that I am, I haven't gone past that LOL. But hey, it would be cool to see him... maybe it'll make me watch the rest of the drama. And yes people... Ki Hong Lee... Minho from The Maze Runner. I knew he was coming but what convinced me to go too was the panel. That's the only panel that I was interested in. I can get there and line up the whole day if needed. And besides, I know the Los Angeles Convention Center better than my own backyard. For $25 for all 3 convention days, that's a STEAL compared to the other conventions that I go to.

I think I scored good seats having just bought them two days ago. Level Premier P3. I'm not after any artist engagements but if I have a free one, I'll probably go for Block B. If not, I might just give it away. I'm actually looking forward to the concert now. Not looking forward to mingling with people but I'm good at keeping to myself anyway. Where is the open mic room when you need it? On second thought... no, no open mic rooms for KCON please. Hee!

So yeah. An expensive spur of the moment decision. I hope I don't regret it. See you, KCON 2015 LA!

Well guys, I did it.

So everything that I said in my previous post was utter BS. I didn't buy the cheapest ticket for the Anaheim show. Instead, I got the 2nd tier VIP, Bae Bae. Forget the newbies to BIGBANG and K-pop, I'll be right there one the floor with them. That VIP ticket is for the Anaheim show, the one that I was discouraged to attend. I did not get my mother and brother cheaper tickets to LA. We are all seated together. Yes, seated. Forget standing room... LA is not offering VIP packages after all.

But the biggest surprise of them all... this was the easiest concert ticket sale. EVER. Easier than when I bought my Epik High ticket. Okay, my brother scored me those but we refreshed our pages for a good 30 minutes before he got it. For the Anaheim presale, June 9, I searched for the Bae Bae VIP package and got it just like that. For the LA presale, June 10, my brother and I both scored P4 level tickets but his seats were better than mine so he scored us that as well. But I would not call it a blood bath at all. Maybe because it's a presale and not all of VIPeople came out full force. Ticket sale will be open to public tomorrow at 12nn PDT. Glad to have avoided that.

The prices were RIDICULOUS. Insane! Let me put it this way... I bought THREE tickets to the LA show for the price of ONE ticket to the Anaheim one. What gives, YG? Last time, I paid $303 for VIP. This time, $200 separated MADE VIP and Bae Bae. Already, I thought $399 was too damn much. I love BIGBANG to bits but I don't think a "send-off" and merch justify the $700 price tag. Sorry. Ridiculous.

Like I previously said, I was thinking of not going to Anaheim. I had that dilemma even after clicking on that VIP ticket, watching the counter count down from 3 minutes. Should I go or not? I made the decision to just fuck it and go with literally 10 seconds to spare. It turned out to be the best decision because LA does not have a VIP package.

Apparently that's the word going around. I had a feeling that that was the case. I mean, Ticketmaster handled Las Vegas, New Jersey, Canada, and Anaheim. But AXS handled Los Angeles. Ticketmaster had all the information. AXS, even amongst themselves, had conflicting and inconsistent information. I mean, if you're having a presale, the least you can do is provide information about the tickets you're selling. AXS had GA PIT and GA Floor but the only thing that they had on them was "these tickets are first come, first serve" or something to that effect. I had a bad feeling about that so I opted to sit with my family and enjoy the LA concert with them.

So it's the same story as the last concert. I'm VIP for one and non-VIP for the other. This was honestly, the most stress-free ticket sale. Oh my, I'm laughing at how stressed out I was when I was composing the last post. OMG. So looks like I'll be seeing my boys again. I'm so happy!

(I'm still not going to KCON. Unless you're bringing WINNER, I ain't goin'.)

EDIIIIIIT! SEE BOTTOM OF POST AFTER THE JUMP.

My main source of stress this fine June. But first:

See? Seeeee?! It happened! I talked all about it here and now I have proof!

(I may have to lighten up on Epik High thing because my dreams these past two nights have been with them. One night, it was my endless quest to take a selca with them. Last night, I was at a random Starbucks and they decided to share tables with me. I mean, whut? I wish!)

Anyhooo... it's another start of the week. I look forward to Monday nights thanks to Mostly Walking. They have yet to announce the next game or if they are doing a show tonight but still, my body's been trained to love Mondays partly because of this show. (Edit: No show today and next week.)

We also have family coming over this weekend. One of my relatives from the Philippines will be spending a week with us starting Friday to tour Los Angeles. As you know, I love taking people around. I love playing tour guide and really, I don't mind taking time out to do so. And really, I love going to Universal Studios and Hollywood and the several different museums and tourist spots in this lovely city.

So it seems that I'm going to have an awesome week, right? Well, I sure hope so. But already, I am so very stressed out. The BIGBANG MADE in USA tickets are going on sale this week. From my experience during both bloodbaths of the last tour, this one is going to be the same. Never mind the ticket prices, I can handle that. But the stress... oh god. Siva Group, you spoiled me. It was so hassle-free with them. The Epik High concert is one of the very best that I've attended partly because of how well it was handled. How I wish they did this tour too. Alas... we are to rely on this huge promotion monster... quantity over quality.

At first, I'm willing to fight for VIP for the Los Angeles leg of the tour. I know how fcking awesome that experience was, from the sound check to being on the dance floor during Fantastic Baby. Plus, I got a VIP pass, special bag, shirt, and free light stick with it. All that plus the incredible experience was worth its steep price tag. And I went the next date as well, with my original, non-VIP ticket to just enjoy the show without taking pictures. It was the best two-night concert of my life.

This time around, they're doing LA and Anaheim. Ticket sales will be open to public on June 12, at 12nn. Going back to the paragraph about having family over, we've scheduled a trip to the Universal Studios Hollywood on that day. If I need to be at home in front of a computer with a fast internet by 12nn, it's not going to leave much time to enjoy Universal Studios. If it were just me, I don't mind... I have an annual pass. She doesn't. I've volunteered to buy per a pass and take her around. I can't just bail on that. Then there's this BS about the Anaheim date having a pre-sale starting tomorrow at 10AM. Originally, I was planning to get the cheapest ticket just to enjoy the concert. Now... I think I have a better chance of scoring a VIP there vs Los Angeles.

I was talking to my mom and brother about this, my unofficial voices of reason. They both said to forget about VIP and just go with the 2nd best ticket. I won't get the VIP swag or I won't be that close to the stage but I will have a reserved seat and a better view of what's going on as a whole. Having experienced that on my 2nd ALIVE Tour night, I did enjoy the view. But then again, this conversation happened after my EPIK night. I was pit and loved it. Waaaaah, I'm so torn. I can see the reason, the practicality, behind what they were saying but my fangirl heart wants to try for VIP still.

Mom and bro also expressed that they want to join me at the LA show. Not with the same ticket but somewhere cheaper. They just want to see/hear them live. I would LOVE to have them there. I really don't mind buying them tickets, to be honest. They were also telling me that I'm not a K-pop concert noob. "Give chance to those who are," they both said. I call BS on that but I kind of get it. Then, I was cleaning up my room last night and I saw my VIP lanyard and all those doubts came running back to me. ;_____________;

어떡해???!!!

And as for the Anaheim show, they're telling me not to go. 헐. 헐. 헐.

A part of me totally gets it and agrees. Yes, I've been VIP before and it would be selfish of me to want another one. It's unfortunate that I will not be at home in front of a computer on the day of sale but maybe that is a sign. Can't be too greedy.

But on the other hand... VIP was such an incredible experience that I don't want to miss out on it. I know how it felt like and it was leaps and bounds better than any other ticket out there. Back then, I scored it by chance and I saw it as a sign that it really was for me. But this time... should I look at it as a sign too? Or am I being too philosophical about it? DX

As for Anaheim, that's another can of worms all together. Especially now that VIP Nation has released the perks of VIP. I mean... you get why I'm stressing out, right? If you're a huge fan of anything, you'd know the feeling. Presale starts TOMORROW, June 9 at 10AM. I'll be at work and our internet reminds me of stupid dial-up. I might pester my brother again for help on this because he has a faster computer and internet connection. Thinking about all this gives me the shakes.

So yeah, I'm legit stressing out. Both Staples and Honda Center have released seating map and while I'm this close to giving up on going VIP for the LA show, the Anaheim show is giving me hope. But I think this VIP package information served only to stress me out so much more.

My HIGH is EPIK. UBER EPIK.

And it still is. Normally when I see a band in concert or meet a celebrity, I tend to stay away from their music and films for about a week after the event. It's too fresh and my feelz are still too strong. But with Epik High, nope. I was listening to their Pieces, Part One album on my way home and all their other stuff days after. Sure, it took me a while to get to this blog post but I've been listening to them (and BIGBANG's new songs, duh) nonstop since last Friday's concert.

You all know me as as K-pop fan. Scratch that, a YG fan. So it makes sense that I like Epik High, right? Ehhhh... well... I've liked them even before they signed with YG. Back in the Woollim Entertainment days, remember those? That's the closest that I'll ever get to SM Entertainment. I stumbled upon Swan Songs, the particular track was Fly. Then Elements. I couldn't understand a smidge of Korean back then but I remembered Epik High. I already know that Ride was going to be my favorite song from them. It was not until Remapping the Human Soul and the magical song called Fan... and my whole musical perspective changed.

If I were to be 100% honest (and yes, I'm not a saint lol), I put Epik High about a hair's width higher on my list than the whole of YG Entertainment. When they joined the agency, my life became so much easier. XD Fangirling all in one go. Plus all the possible interactions. You already know about the BIGBANG/EH special stage from years ago performing my favorite song ever, right? Oh so ominous. Now, Tablo had written so many songs for other YG artists and the most important thing is that they have a home that supports their ideas and an avenue where they could share their music.

Epik High is one of the few artists - not just in Hallyu - that I could really tell are super passionate with what they are doing. They always are creating, sharing, collaborating. And yet, they are super humble. It warms my heart reading Tablo's posts on how thankful he is throughout this North American tour so far. Big Bang and 2NE1 were able to tour the world with a huge machine behind them but with this Epik High tour, it feels more organic and personal. I'm very sure they also have YG monies supporting them but fans in North America wanted to see them and without much hype and fanfare, they made it happen. (EPIK shoutout to SIVA Group. You guys are rockstars!) Their dreams are coming true. OUR dreams are coming true as well.

I can always count on BIGBANG remembering that there is a whole area of "world" outside Asia. As much as I would want to join my fellow Pinoys in partying it out K-pop style, I'm not due for another uwi yet. Just when I thought YG needs to be schooled on geography again... they pull out 32 dates in my area.

Remember last year's bloodbath? I got my non-VIP ticket from that firefight. And how about the 2nd bloodbath? I was fcking victorious in that bout. I never ever regretted spending that much for those two epic days. (Read about the sound check experience and concert picspam.)

This time, D-day will be on JUNE 12, 7AM PDT.

Seven... in the damn morning. It's okay on a Friday since I don't work Fridays anymore but we have a guest that day and I have a whole Universal Studios day planned out for her. I - and my bank account - will be bruised and battered by midday. But no worries, I have a fellow warrior to help me with ticket buying. I will be enlisting the help of my champion brother who scored me the Meet & Greet tickets to this Friday's Epik High show. He could work on LA and I can work on Anaheim. Or we can just both work LA. Gaaaah, this is a much harder decision than last time.

(At least G-Dragon can truly say "What's up, LA," and it's gonna be correct lol.)

VIP is still my preferred ticket. Having experienced that previously, I mean, those moments were worth more than the $300 price tag. And back then, I had a 2nd date where I could just enjoy the show and not worry about pictures. Looking at this year's dates, LA in on Saturday and Anaheim is on a Sunday... hmm... I have 3 weeks to decide. But definitely LA, for sure.

My only decent group picture of my boys.

+++++

This wonderful news comes in the same week as the Epik High North American tour stop in Los Angeles. Can you believe... it's this FRIDAY already! No way can they call me in for work that day lol. I'm listening to 고마운 숨 right now, one of my favorites from Tablo's solo album, Fever's End Part 2. I know that the chances of him performing that is slim to none but here's to hoping. Like I said, if they perform Fan, that's my ticket's worth right there.

But it also comes with the news of the Comikaze 2015 ticket sale. June 3. Brother and I are planning another Saturday and Sunday badge. I know this doesn't sell out fast but maybe they will have some kind of early bird discount just like Anime Expo. And then there's that Universal Studio trip. Oh lordy. (Don't get me started on KCON and hopefully, another year of Josh Hutcherson Nike 3on3 Charity Basketball Game.)

In 25 days. I will be sharing breathing space with Epik High. Tablo, DJ Tukutz, and Mithra Jin. The last time I was this excited was at the Big Bang concert. That was just VIP pit with access to the sound check. This time, I have meet & greet - a professional photo op (ala Josh Hutcherson) that automatically comes with a "hi-touch" and because these guys are such sweethearts, they said yes to autographs. Squee!

If you don't know who Epik High is... well, you should. I mean, even if you're not into K-pop, go check them out. They're one of the first Korean acts that I listened to and I think I fell in love with them before I even know who Big Bang was. *gasp* Even if you don't understand Korean, you'll definitely fall for the beats and the rhythm. Much more when you read the meanings of the song. Tablo and Mithra are poetic geniuses. Pair that with DJ Tukutz's mastery of beats and you got yourself a winner.

I loved them when they were in Woollim. I love them even more now that they're with YG Entertainment. The story of how Tablo - and eventually the rest of Epik High - ended up with YG is such a good one. I kept repeating that part of the YG Strong Heart episode because it's so endearing and very inspiring. The main reason why I started watching Superman is Back is because of Tablo and Haru; I ended up loving all the dads and babies. Tukutz and little Yunu made appearances while Tablo and Haru were there. And Mithra Jin... let's just say I have a thing for rappers with low timbre voices. ;-)

And speaking of autographs, I want my Pieces of You signed. But that's Tablo's book. How about Tukutz and Mithra? I think I'll just have a copy of 신발장. As much as I want my Pieces of You signed... can't have them all. Ah, decisions...

I originally have the VIP floor ticket, the one that came after this one. I bought it just as a buffer in case I wasn't able to score a Meet and Greet ticket. I had my brother working with me. I was at work with the slow as heck internet and he was at home where both the computer and internet were faster. He was the one who got me the M&G ticket. I had him refreshing over and over until he got the one that costs $190. I almost screamed at him via Twitter DM. Actually, I think I did lol. (I will borrow his services again once Big Bang comes around.) I managed to sell off my other ticket for less than face value. That's okay... I got my M&G ticket and that's all that matters.

I have all sorts of wish lists for this Los Angeles stop. Especially guest performers. I'm pretty sure they will be performing my favorites such as Fan, Don't Hate Me, Love Love Love, Spoiler, 우산, and some of Tablo's solos. But what I would give to see Ride performed live in front of my eyes. And how about for Born Hater? As much as I would want them to bring over Song Minho with them, he might be busy at that time. There are a good number of awesome Korean-American rappers in LA so maybe one of them...? Hope so. YG talents are spotted in LA venues whenever one of their own is in town. I mean, Danny Im... how about having a sort of 1TYM reunion on the Epik High stage? Lydia Paek to feature on Happen Ending? One could dream.

Whatever happens, it's going to be a fucking blast. They already ruled K-pop night at SXSW and definitely caught people's ears. My appreciation for Epik High knows no boundaries. I hope they continue doing what they do for a long long time.

Remember this post I made last May of this year?

If At First You Don't Succeed... Myth Busted!

Seven months in the making. Actually, almost three years if you count the first Mythbusters: Behind the Myths tour. One of the many promises I made my brother (if you've been keeping up with my blog, you'd know what the others were) is to take him to see the Mythbusters. He missed that first show by a week. This time, I didn't only take him to see the show... we were VIP.

I managed to score the VIP package deal that had the best seats in the house (in my opinion), an up-close encounter with Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage, and a photo-op. It was an awesome deal even for the price tag it had. But I did sacrifice The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies opening day for this though. Both fell on December 17 but both of us already saw the movie with the cast. No biggie. ;-)

We have been fans of Mythbusters for close to ten years. Same with LOTR, we have a deep history with this show. Our mother was the one who got us into the show. I did mention it to Adam during the meet and greet and he said, "Well, tell your mom we said hello." I told her that and she said that's bragging rights for her!

My brother and I had dopey smiles on our faces days after this moment. Both of us couldn't believe that we actually spoke and shook hands with these two incredible people. It's real. OMG. *moves to the side to fangirl a bit*

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미안해. 나는 거짓말했다.

찹쌀떡 찹쌀떡...

Tickets, 어떡해?!

#EPIKHIGHLA [20150529]

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