The Music Bank event that almost didn't happen finally welcomed K-pop fans from over 87 countries to the Auditorio Miguel Ríos in Madrid for a stellar night of music from an exceptional line-up of artists.

The road to Music Bank in Madrid was not easy, but the night was an astounding success that was worth the struggle it took to get there. 

Event organisers, Korean Power, had a huge curveball thrown in their way a month before the concert, when the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (the original venue) announced that all concerts held in the stadium over the next few months were being immediately cancelled, due to ongoing noise complaints from surrounding neighbours. 

Ticket holders went into a frenzy of uncertainty, awaiting news from the organisers about the much anticipated event. They quickly revealed that they had received no contact from stadium officials and were finding out about the cancellation in real time alongside the fans. After many days of extremely hard work and restructuring from Korean Power, it was announced that the event was moving to the Auditorio Miguel Ríos in Madrid, much to fans' relief.

The event, held on 12 October 2024, began with a dual-language introduction from event officials, thanking the fans for their commitment and dedication to K-pop to see the event through to fruition despite the troubles. As if the concert hadn’t faced enough hardships, the weather was not exactly on its side, rain pouring down over fans as they waited for it to commence. 

The host of the event, well-loved actor and K-drama star, Park Bo-gum next entered to rapturous applause from the crowd of over 35,000 devoted K-pop fans. He was not at all fazed by the downpour, welcoming fans with a charming smile and uplifting prelude.

He then welcomed to the stage the 41 idols who made up the phenomenal line up of eight diverse, multi-generational K-pop artists: KISS OF LIFE, P1Harmony, RIIZE, NMIXX, BOYNEXTDOOR, MAMAMOO+, aespa, and ENHYPEN.

KISS OF LIFE

The first artists to take to the stage were the 2023-debut girl group, KISS OF LIFE. Members Julie, Natty, Belle, and Haneul stunned viewers in their black leather and green camo outfits.  The girls opened with their debut song “Shhh”, followed by fan favourite “Midas Touch”, and ending on high with their summer hit “Sticky”. 

At one point, fans were puzzled by a sudden pause in their set. However, this became a thankful interlude, as event organisers were clearly holding the idols’ safety in high regard, needing a chance to clear the extended stage of surface water before they allowed them to make their way down closer to fans. This was something that continued throughout the entirety of the concert; regularly crew members would rush to the stage and hurriedly clear it for the idols’ safety.

P1Harmony

Next to the stage was boy group, P1Harmony. The six-member group, consisting of members Keeho, Theo, Jiung, Intak, Soul, and Jongseob, caught the worst of the rain during their set, but didn’t miss a single beat. 

They started with their most recent title track, “SAD SONG”, followed by their 2024 album namesake track, “Killin’ It”. Next, they performed their energetic hit, “JUMP”, before hyping up the crowd for their closing song, “Follow Me”. Leader Keeho got the whole audience involved, encouraging them to sit and jump at particular moments during the performance.

RIIZE

The crowd was buzzing by this point, and the show moved swiftly into its next act, as international favourite, RIIZE, took to the stage. The SM Entertainment boy group used every second of their performance to impress and cherish their European audience. 

Shotaro, Eunseok, Sungchan, Wonbin, Sohee, and Anton astounded in their black-and-red outfits, bringing incredible energy and passion to every element of their music and choreography. They opened with their upbeat hit “Impossible”, before surprising fans with their lesser-performed favourite, “Love 119”.

Next, they performed their 2023 debut track, “Get A Guitar”, before pleasing BRIIZE with their popular hit, featured heavily on TikTok this year, “Boom Boom Bass”. After a false end to their stage, RIIZE shocked fans by breaking out into yet another iconic favourite, “Siren”.

After this, it was time for the first special stage of the night. Girl group stans were gobsmacked when KISS OF LIFE’s Julie and Belle, took to the stage with MAMAMOO mother, Solar. They performed a remarkable rendition of ROSALÍA’s “BIZCOCHITO”, in stunning white glitter outfits, that really made the Spanish fans ecstatic.

NMIXX

JYP girl group, NMIXX, followed after the special stage, beginning with their early 2024 hit, “DASH”, followed by 2023 favourite, “Love Me Like This”. Spanish fans got another big treat, when Haewon, Lily, Sullyoon, Bae, Jiwoo, and Kyujin launched into their newly released Spanish version of “Soñar”. The girls then finished with a bang, performing their groovy new release, “See that?”.

BOYNEXTDOOR

It was now halfway through the line-up and time for KOZ Entertainment’s leading boy group, BOYNEXTDOOR to meet with their fans. 

The six-member group, part of this fairly new HYBE division, is a stellar example of what it looks like to absolutely adore the job of being an idol. Jaehyun, Sungho, Riwoo, Taesan, Leehan, and Woonhak brought an unyielding performance filled to the brim with pure love, joy and fun. 

They opened with their recent hit, “Nice Guy”, then jumped straight into their charming 2023 debut song, “One and Only”. Next, they amazed with their playful recent title track, “Dangerous”, before bursting into their notoriously fast favourite, “Earth, Wind & Fire”. To finish, the boys expressed their adoration to their beloved ONEDOOR by slowing it down with their emotive song, “Serenade”.

Next up was the biggest shock of the night when ENHYPEN’s eldest member took to the mic for the next special stage. Heeseung gave a life-changing performance of The Weeknd’s “Can’t Feel My Face” that left everyone in the crowd speechless from his intensity and magnetism.

Ticket holders closest to the stage were in for a real treat as he left the extended stage and made his way even closer to the barriers.

MAMAMOO+

The legends that are Solar and Moonbyul of third-generation girl group MAMAMOO took to the stage next. Performing on this night as MAMAMOO+, they gave fans no break as they launched into another legendary set. 

First up, Solar sang her solo song, “Blues”, followed by Moonbyul performing her solo track, “Is This Love?”. They finished their set on a high, executing a mindblowing medley from MAMAMOO’s discography featuring: “Dingga”, “HIP”, and “Décalcomanie”. Long-term K-pop fans felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia, as the girls honoured their rich 10-year history with this tremendous stage.

It then came time for the last special stage of the night, celebrating iconic K-pop. P1Harmony started it off with a raucous crowd-pleaser, as they aced Stray Kids’ current top hit, “Chk Chk Boom”. NMIXX followed suit covering another boy group favourite with NCT 127’s “Kick It”.

To close this section, BOYNEXTDOOR came back to the extended stage to perform the old-school favourite that is WINNER’s “REALLY REALLY”. This final special stage was a hit with all fans, bringing together an incredible celebration of multiple K-pop generations.

aespa

As the night drew to a close, it was time for the penultimate act to take to the stage: SM Entertainment’s four-member girl group, aespa. Karina, Giselle, Winter, and NingNing stunned all with their flawless visuals and fiercely captivating performance. 

The girls were on top form, starting their set with their fierce 2023 hit, “Spicy”. Then, they made audience dream’s come true performing their current popular track, “Supernova”, before returning to an original hit of theirs, “Next Level”. The girls rounded off their time on stage with a powerful execution of their first album namesake track, “Armageddon”.

ENHYPEN

Last, but certainly not least, it was time for top-billing act ENHYPEN to grace the audience with their presence. The six-member boy group from BE:LIFT Lab, another subsidiary of HYBE, were long-awaited by the entire audience, who were completely captivated by their supreme synchronicity and mesmerising presence. 

They opened with their 2023 dark fantasy favourite, “Bite Me”, followed by their sensual 2021 hit, “FEVER”.

Members Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Ni-ki then took time to interact with their precious ENGENEs, taking turns to captivate the audience with their love: “Te amo”. After this, the boys launched into multiple tracks from their most recent album, ROMANCE: UNTOLD.

Title track and crowd favourite, “XO (Only If You Say Yes)”, was first, before they performed a loving and joyous rendition of “Paranormal”. They ended with a bang on their fiery popular track, “Bought The Heat Back”.

Finally, Park Bo-gum returned to the stage to close up this incredible night. Welcoming all the artists back to the stage, Bo-gum thanked the crowd for making the event truly memorable, as an excessive firework display was unleashed into the air.

Although aspects of the event organisation could have been finessed further, it was an overwhelmingly successful feat by Korean Power to pull everything together so last minute. European fans were intensely grateful for what was achieved and that the event was even able to go ahead. 

Music Bank in Madrid will always be a night held dearly to all who were there to witness it come true.

Edited by Chelsea Cheetham.