K-pop stars take to KCON 2022 red carpet in Seoul

The world tour kicked off in South Korea on Saturday

Members of South Korean K-pop girl group VIVIZ on the red carpet at KCON Seoul 2022. All photos: AFP

NMIXX on the red carpet.

Loona on the red carpet.

Brave Girls on the red carpet.

Highlight on the red carpet.

TO1 on the red carpet.

Monsta X on the red carpet.

The Seoul premiere of KCON 2022 has taken place, with many veteran and emerging K-pop stars taking to the red carpet, including Monsta X, Viviz and NMixx.

Held at the CJ ENM Centre in Sangam-dong, in the western part of the South Korean capital, the glittering event marked the return of an in-person format for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

The three-hour show was opened by Monsta X, and included a mix of performances and panel sessions.

Speaking with fans, Monsta X member Joohoney explained what taking part meant to him. “It’s an honour to open the night and I’m reminded of the first time we participated in KCON. We’re happy to be performing in front of our fans and the audience.”

Band member Kihyun, meanwhile, spoke of how the pandemic has changed many things. “We’re seeing our fans in person more often recently, and it has reminded us that this is real K-pop that we’ve been missing out on.”

Monsta X were joined at the event by boy band Highlight, the four-piece originally named Beast, while newcomer NMixx was given a platform to show off their skills.

NMixx is an all-female, seven-member group that was founded in February 2022. Monsta X, meanwhile, is made up of six members (the seventh bandmate, Wonho, left in 2019) and were formed through the reality survival programme No. Mercy by Starship Entertainment.

TO1, another new band, were also present at the convention, and like Monsta X, were created from a reality survival show, this time World Klass. TO1 are a nine-member band formed in 2019, and were originally named TOO (Ten Oriented Orchestra).

The convention will head to Japan in mid May, and there are plans to take it to other venues around the world.

First held in Southern California in 2012, KCON is an annual convention to celebrate the South Korean musical phenomenon of K-pop.

Over its first decade, it has grown from one venue, to covering eight countries. It expanded to Japan in 2015, followed by events in Paris and Abu Dhabi in 2016, while in 2017 Mexico City was added to the roster.

During the pandemic, the event shifted exclusively to online, with the streamed event being called KCON:TACT.