K-pop concerts, hometown stars and new stores fuel local fans

Last June, South Korean K-pop group TWICE performed at the Tacoma Dome as part of their Ready To Be World Tour. This was the first time one of the genre’s most successful groups had come to Washington state, and for the 18,000 in attendance, it was a magical night.

TWICE, a nine-member girl group, was down to seven members for their Tacoma performance after two members had tested positive for COVID. That did not deter the crowd in attendance from singing along to the group’s songs like instant classics “Feel Special,” “Fancy,” “Set Me Free” and “Moonlight Sunrise.”

The Tacoma Dome’s seats became a sea of synchronized lights for the evening . A staple at K-pop concerts in South Korea, lightsticks are one of the most common forms of memorabilia fans can purchase to show their admiration for the performers. During breaks between songs, the members caught their breath and talked with the audience through an interpreter.

With two of their members out of action, they admitted some concern about being able to put on a good show, not wanting to disappoint everyone who came out to see them. Their concerns would prove to be unfounded and soon they were praising the audience for bringing the energy, noise, and general good vibes.

Unprompted, the Tacoma Dome audience began to stomp their feet and through the concrete and metal bleachers, it reverberated throughout the 41-year old arena . Impressed and even a little startled by it , TWICE said they thought they were experiencing an earthquake. When they asked the crowd if they should come back, the arena erupted in deafening cheers.

Catching up on K-pop

K-pop, short for Korean pop music, combines sounds and styles from other music genres like rock, hip-hop, R&B, jazz, funk, electronic dance and many others. Songs are mostly sung in Korean, with English lyrics sprinkled in, usually in the chorus to grab your attention.

K-pop music videos — which might prompt a sensory overload with bright, highly polished visuals and rigorous choreography that borders on athletic feats — have helped it become a global phenomenon in recent years. As the world has noticed K-pop, so has the industry, branching out not only on tours, but also recruiting group members from non-Korean countries.

Not long after TWICE performed at the Tacoma Dome, K-pop stores started popping up in the Puget Sound region. Fans who were accustomed to ordering albums and related merchandise from online stores, or paying international shipping fees from South Korea, now had their own physical stores to shop.

A K-pop store might stock albums from major global acts like BTS, TWICE and BLACKPINK , plus groups with a lower profile. Most K-pop albums have an average of six songs, so they’re called mini-albums or EPs, as they’re mostly known in the U.S.

There is also the associated merchandise of collectibles and apparel that comes with any music phenomenon. In K-pop, photo cards and lightsticks dominate where fans spend their money. Collectible inclusions like a photobook, stickers, bookmarks and the aforementioned photo cards also attract fans. There is a collecting, trading, and resale market, just like with traditional sports trading cards.

K-pop stores might also offer snacks and drinks from South Korea, like you would see on the aisles of H-Mart, along with Korean beauty and skin care products.

New destinations for Puget Sound K-pop fans

The K-POP Empire, located at the Everett Mall, offers all of the above along with providing event space. Adding a spot for local K-pop fans to not only shop, but meet and socialize with one another was important to co-owners Todd Dickinson and Ricky Steinlars.

They initially considered a much smaller space for their store but a 2021 vacation to Australia made them think bigger.

“We went to a K-pop store ( I Heart K-Pop ) that had a café attached to the store and we noticed that people were buying, sitting down and trading. We thought it’d be so cool to have a place in the U.S. like that, because we never had seen that, even in the stores in California when we lived there - it was just a store," Dickinson said.

“So that was really important to us to have enough space to have that availability, even if we don’t have an event. Everything is still set up for people to come in, hang out, open their albums, and trade any day of the week. We want that accessibility to be a 24/7 thing.”

The K-POP Empire will celebrate its first anniversary in July. Both Dickinson and Steinlars said time has flown by as they worked to provide a place for the Puget Sound region’s K-pop community.

“When we first moved here, we didn’t think there was much of a community for it, and now coming up on a year, meeting people every day who talk about K-pop, telling us that they’ve needed this for a long time," Steinlars said.

"They would tell us, ‘I have friends and I’m trying to talk to them about K-pop and they have no clue, no interest in what I’m talking about,’ and so making those connections has probably been the best part for us since opening the store."

Since The K-POP Empire opened, other K-pop stores at Southcenter Mall, Tacoma Mall, and the Capitol Hill neighborhood also set up shop, greatly expanding the options to buy albums, merchandise, and be among other K-pop fans.

One of those fans is Tracy Yang, a student at Bellevue Community College and host of the show K-Wave , which airs Friday nights on the college’s radio station 91.3 KBCS.

K-pop on the local airwaves

Yang was introduced to K-pop at 7 years old when her cousin played the song “Candy” by H.O.T. She was intrigued by the sound of it, it was something she hadn’t heard before. Her cousin followed up saying that they had the music video on tape, which she watched.

“It was so funky and weird, the dance was so catchy and I was like, ‘Oh my God, I love it,” Yang said.

It would be a couple more years before she truly went all in on becoming a K-pop fan, but she acknowledged that what caught her attention with H.O.T lined up with what was big in America's late 90's music scene: the rise of boy bands headlined by Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC.

So how does a lifelong fan of K-pop become a host/DJ for a college radio station? It turns out by simply mentioning in a bio for work that she loves K-pop.

“I’m helping them with their marketing and membership, and my boss was like, ‘Can you write us a little bio so we can put it up on the website?’ So I put in the bio that I love K-pop," Yang recalled.

"My boss sees it and says, ‘Girl, we’ve been trying to add a K-pop show to our station for years! We’ve just never been able to find somebody to do it. So if you’re interested, I can bring you up to our general manager we go from there.’”

They first discussed creating a K-pop show in December 2023 and that process carried over into the new year, including recording a couple of demos. Yang said those were well-received by the station’s music director and with that last hurdle cleared, K-Wave premiered on Friday, March 1 at 11 p.m.

As someone listening to K-pop since age 7, Yang has lived through generations of groups coming and going, following the evolution of the music. She has an extensive knowledge of songs.

“These moments in K-pop have been the ones that have shaped, defined, and continue to influence the coming generations," Yang said.

When it comes to TWICE, Yang added: “They were the ones that set the standard of third-generation K-pop idols.” She recommends listening to "any song" by TWICE for a budding K-pop fan.

From Seattle to K-pop stardom

Seattle invented grunge. Everyone knows that and you only have to go as far as a national sports broadcast to be reminded when Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, or Soundgarden are played around commercial breaks. However, it may come as a surprised to learn how many K-pop singers call Seattle their birthplace.

Rapper Jay Park was born in Edmonds and still makes return visits to the area to see friends and family. A YouTube video posted in April documented one of Park's recent trips back to Seattle.

At the end of the video, Park says: "Shoutouts to Seattle for always showing me love and making me the person I am today."

Rapper and member of boy group g.o.d Danny Ahn was born in Seattle. Jay of ENHYPEN also calls Seattle his birthplace, as does singer-songwriter Sam Kim. Additionally, Japanese girl group NiziU member Nina Makino-Hillman was born in Seattle, and was even a member of Seattle's ACT Contemporary Theatre.

Recently debuted groups KISS OF LIFE and AMPERS&ONE have members who call Seattle their birthplace - Belle, Kamden and Kyrell respectively.

In an interview with FOX 13 Seattle earlier this year, AMPERS&ONE members Kamden and Kyrell talked about not only being born in Seattle, but how they spent some of their formative years in the region before moving to South Korea to embark on their K-pop careers.

Kamden shared that he lived in Seattle in his early childhood, moved to South Korea, but returned to attend Issaquah High School. Kyrell said that it was only this past July that he moved to South Korea, and he had been living in Seattle up until that time.

In a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) last year, Belle of KISS OF LIFE said performing in Seattle is a dream of hers .

While they may have left Seattle to start their careers in music, there's always the chance that these K-pop artists with local connections will be back to perform. When it's showtime, it's a chance for the region's K-pop community to celebrate, like any other musician playing for a hometown crowd.

Upcoming K-pop concerts and events

Known for being a solid stop for any music tour because of the rich music history and great crowds, Seattle has its fair share of K-pop groups swinging by and that will be the case with the upcoming concert season.

A number of K-pop bands have already come through town: ONEUS performed at the Moore Theatre back in March and ENHYPEN performed at the Tacoma Dome in late April. For ENHYPEN member Jay, the homecoming also included throwing the first pitch at the Seattle Mariners game the night after their concert. Earlier this week, TOMORROW X TOGETHER performed at the Tacoma Dome.

Upcoming concerts include:

• ITZY, June 6 at WAMU Theater
• PURPLE KISS, June 14 at Washington Hall
• LUCY, June 18 at El Corazon
• ATEEZ, July 14 at Tacoma Dome
• ARTMS, September 5 at Pantages Theater
• (G)I-DLE, September 6 at Tacoma (venue TBD)

This weekend, May 18-19, the Seattle Convention Center will host K-Play Fest , a convention for all things K-pop. It's the first time the event has come to Seattle.

The K-POP Empire will be among the vendors at K-Play Fest, a large scale opportunity for fans to congregate and socialize like they do at the store. Rapper SIK-K is holding a free concert for attendees on Saturday evening.

Meanwhile, Tracy Yang aspires to keep growing K-Wave, week in and week out. Asked about this recent awakening of the region's K-pop community, she said: “It feels great, it looks great. It definitely cultivates community. You have a place now as a K-pop fan where you can belong. I’ve dreamed of this. It’s about time.”