South Korean actor and K-pop group GOT7’s sub-vocalist and visual, Park Jinyoung, met his Filipino Pepis and Ahgases in Manila for a night of exciting performances and heartwarming, kilig moments! The “2023 PARK JINYOUNG FANCONCERT - RENDEZVOUS in Manila: Secret Meeting Between You and Me” was held at New Frontier Theater last January 26.
Before his fanconcert, Park Jinyoung held a press conference at Novotel and talked about his career in music, acting, and future plans! The K-pop idol-turned-actor has starred in several K-dramas, including ‘The Devil Judge,’ ‘Yumi’s Cells,’ ‘Christmas Carol,’ and more. When asked which roles he has portrayed challenged him the most, he shares: “Honestly speaking, I cannot just specify which role was the most challenging. Because some of them looked simple in the beginning, but they became challenging as I was building the character, so I find all roles difficult.” Jinyoung also shared how his role in ‘Witch,’ a drama he’s currently working on, is also one of the most challenging roles as he has put a lot of thought into playing the character.
He was also asked what kinds of projects or roles he wanted to do in the future, Jinyoung frankly answered, “I want to play all the roles. [...] As an actor who actually acts out the characters, they all have their charm, so I want to try all roles, and I also want to play a character that is around my age.” Jinyoung has been thriving as an actor, continuously improving as time goes by! We’re sure that his fans would support him in all of the roles he would portray next!
It has been 3 years since Jinyoung last came to Manila for GOT7’s “Keep Spinning” world tour. He’s also the latest GOT7 member to perform a solo show in Manila, following Yugyeom, BamBam, and YoungJae. “It has been too long since I have touched base with the fans in the Philippines and communicated with them [...] I really want to show my gratitude towards the fans who are always waiting, and I really wish to have a concert again together with my GOT7 members in the Philippines.” Jinyoung said. Filipino Ahgases are definitely crossing their fingers as they patiently wait for another GOT7 concert here in the Philippines!
Moving along with his plans for 2023, Jinyoung mentioned his upcoming fanconcerts, not just here in Manila, but also in Taiwan. He has also expressed how he continues to do his best in shooting his upcoming drama, as fans await to see him on the big screen again.
The fanconcert itself was a mix of explosive emotions, ranging from happiness, excitement, kilig, to bittersweet. Jinyoung expressed how he “won’t be meeting his fans for a while” as he is expected to serve his military duty soon – despite that sad news, Filo Pepis and Ahgases made the most of their time together with Jinyoung for his three-hour long fanconcert!
Opening the show, he did performances of ‘Coming Home’ from the 2017 JJ Project (consisting of him and fellow GOT7 member JayB) and the title track from his first solo album, Chapter 0: WITH, titled ‘Cotton Candy’.
After that thrilling opening performance, Jinyoung proceeded with his first segment called “Actor Park Jinyoung”. Jinyoung was given four teddy bears that when pressed, a voice recording of the idol-actor saying keywords or phrases could be heard, and a photo of him in various roles he starred in would appear on the screen. Jinyoung would then share behind stories or experiences he’s had playing those roles. It was a cute and creative way of getting to know the actor side of Park Jinyoung!
The next segment of the fanconcert was called “Jinyoung’s Gift,” where he picked four random fans from a lottery box to go up the stage and take a picture with him using a polaroid camera. At one point, he realized that he will only be spending one night with his Filo Ahgases, so he decided to pick another lucky fan to meet him up close and personal! He gave them all big hugs, put a towel on the laps of the fans in skirts that he sat down next to, and granted all the fans’ cute pose requests. What a sweetheart!
In the “Jinyoung’s Moments” portion of the event, the idol-actor shared behind-the-scenes stories of some of his favorite photos! One of the pictures flashed on the screen was a gorgeous photo of Jinyoung taken by his fellow GOT7 member Yugyeom, which he shares is particularly special to him. “I am usually the one who takes a lot of photos of my members, so I treasure it when they are the ones that take photos of me.”
Pepis were also able to show just how much they love Jinyoung through a message board they could sign before the show. From the board, Jinyoung carefully picked six messages whose senders received a hug and signed merch. One even requested a dance battle with Jinyoung, and he readily agreed! Jinyoung then returned all this love with his own handwritten message, customized specifically for the Ahgases who were celebrating their special day during the fanconcert. Can you imagine your bias personally wishing you a happy birthday? Lucky girls!
Of course, the night could not conclude without more amazing performances. Jinyoung showed off his singing skills singing the ballads ‘Letter’ and ‘Animal’ off his debut album, followed by a thrilling medley of GOT7 (and JJ Project) hits ‘Bounce,’ ‘A’,’ Just Right’, ‘Hard Carry,’ and ‘You Calling my Name’. He officially capped off the night with ‘Our Miracle,’ before returning to the stage for the encore ‘Sleep Well,’ ‘Dive,’ ‘Last Piece,’ ‘NANANA,’ ‘Home Run’ and ‘Encore.’ Lightsticks were up and everybody was singing and dancing in their seats!
Jinyoung was also surprised by Filo Ahgases with their touching fan project, which included special hand banners and a video of fans from all over the country saying sweet messages in their own language! It was a beautiful sight to see.
“I hope you guys [will] wait for me, please. I know I’m gonna miss you so much. I know I’m going somewhere [for] a few years, but I’ll be back. I love you,” Jinyoung said in one of his final ments.
Whether you return for another solo performance or with the highly-anticipated Philippine comeback of GOT7 as a complete group, Filo Ahgases are not going anywhere! ‘Til we meet again, Jinyoung!
Thanks to PULP Live World for making this event possible.