Hellooooo lovely people! This is the fourth installment of F10$$!

On today’s episode we are going back to KCON LA! Do you remember us covering the year before? If not check out both parts here:

KCON 2024 Convention

KCON 2024 Show

This time we are going to KCON LA…for 2025. I know, I know crazy right? Who knew in 2025 we would attend a 2025 event. But hey! I need to make it clear because the tea is…everyone is comparing KCON 2024 to KCON 2025. And it’s a hot topic. More news…the convention center is apparently getting an upgrade? Ya’ll I am not ready. Like what else is there to add? It’s already so huge. I’m excited to see though what the plans are for the expansion.

GETTING READY

Tip: MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS IN PLACE DAYS BEFORE YOU GO!

Again, this is Downtown, Los Angeles! It’s busy, it’s hard to navigate. However, as long as you plan out your favorite tunes, and enjoy the ride there, you are set. Just know, it’s going to have a long one. So, might as well let it count and make it as memorable as possible. Try to preserve energy as much as possible too because the day is pretty long depending on what you planned.

If you are doing the convention and the show…well, you have a longer day for sure (in comparison to if you just decided to do the night). Traffic will be difficult no matter what you choose as this is DTLA. And we all know how it is already. So just be prepared and try to preserve your patience.

Also keep in mind, Downtown LA is not fully safe like anywhere else on this planet. Is is not heaven. Everyone is not your friend, and does not have good intentions for you. Be vigilant.

Now. KCON was about 5 Fridays ago*, so please cut me some slack. As our team grows, we will try to get the content out faster. However, the beauty in this is, there’s a lot more information being given to you. I mean…how many people have an article filled with fun, tmi’s, everything else for your ears and eyes? Exactly. We’re here for you!

Okay before we shout “LET’S KCON”, “let’s jump” into the Disclaimer!

Disclaimer:

The F10$$ Series is written in an informal tone meant to sound conversational. It includes a DIML (“Day in My Life”) style with opinion. If you have an event, you think we should attend, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

This review is not sponsored by KCON, Crypto. com Arena, or the Los Angeles Convention Center! Also to note, this is only from what I saw or did. Like always, I will not really focus on the controversies as well in relation to some of the talents/events. This is not a commentary on those things. I am looking at KCON as a fan and a content creator. Like mentioned earlier, this is us also coming in from last year’s KCON. So, we had that perspective as well. This doesn’t mean it’s right or wrong, just from a viewer’s perspective and opinion.

I did my best to edit it well and analyze it from the event Pov and not all of the controversies. Please understand. I will continue to edit this article (like usual). Okay, let’s get into the review and my experience at the convention!

*This was written 11 months ago so there is a lot of things that might be older information now.

Convention Center

Outside of the Convention Center*

*Did not take a picture this time, so we’re recycling!

We walked up to the place like before to an empty building. I was confused thinking we got the location wrong. Then we looked around a bit more and saw the KCONers going across the street. This time the convention was held on the other side.

When we got there, it was a lot of lines. They were moving smoothly. I got my bag checked easily and I even told them about my freebies I prepared, and they checked, and it was all good. They were really nice and inviting as well. I thought this would be the last line of the day, but spoiler alert- it wasn’t.

ZB1 MEET & GREET

When indoors, it was an interesting road. The staff that was checking the phones and redirecting people to the right meet and greet was very stale in attitude. And got irritable very quickly for no reason at all. No questions or request were asked of him, yet he still presented an unnecessary attitude.

I get it, we all have our days, but like I mentioned in a previous article, everyone and every element will make or break an experience. KCON this year had a lot of help (staff and security) that just wasn’t as inviting. It has nothing to do with the event. Actually, this year a lot of staff at many events just weren’t having hospitality like they should. And this is coming from someone who has a history of work in hospitality.

We have our days, but the consumer has done nothing to you. And this really ruins the vibe. And with contracted work like this…the event is 3 days. And with any job, the question boils down to…why did you take the job? Seriously. That can be on the uncomfy cushion segment. But truth is, yes we have to get money…but at least try to like your job.

We got to the meet and greet a bit late…well a lot late. Like most gatherings, people come and go. This one was just purchased. So, being in the background you can just come in and settle down. It was a standing event so it made it easier to just go in. Not much theming unfortunately. It was an ordinary convention hall. It reminded me of the fashion show I saw in 2022, just K-pop coded. Theming as always can make it more…lively. Hit us up if you want some tips! I cannot lie, there was absolutely no ventilation in there. I think the AC (if any) could have afforded to be up a little bit more. This isn’t the first time in this place it felt too hot. Again, another event I went to, it was the same. So, it has nothing to do with them.

Anyways, it’s always fun seeing the behind-the-scenes team at work! I saw the sound and camera crew, and other tech people just shinning. I enjoyed that. So, we’re at the point in the show where they were just coming back out for the hi-wave and send-off. And if you’re not familiar with those: Hi-wave is just a “hi” and a wave. And Send-off is you sending the artist off. Nothing too special unless you get a 5 second interaction that you can replay in your head.

Other’s might argue that is completely worth the extra money it cost to do basic things. But that is for an Uncomfy Cushion. Not for here. Hi-wave use to be more worth it as it used to be Hi-Touch. What that is…well it’s you saying “hi” and clapping their hands or gently touching their hands. Since Covid, there has been restrictions, and it never really got back to that. So, it’s just been the ones mentioned earlier as perks. Personally, I wouldn’t understand it, but I did get the send-off and got to experience that. But before that we had to get through watching the hi-wave. Which was torture in itself.

I’m sure it wouldn’t have been so insufferable if I was waiting in line for myself, but instead I was watching the whole thing go down, so I was pretty much the 4th wall. One thing that really got on my nerves was how many people they let have this perk. Like the meet and greet is already going over time and you’re rushing everyone. With simple logic you can understand…less people, less time. Like…come on?

I think being greedy really ruined this year because you already have so much money for the event attendees alone and other things we aren’t here to count…I think you profited the most off of it. Don’t you want a strong returning fanbase to celebrate KCON day with? Stay true to the recipe, the charm, and the originality that KCON had. You show us it’s history all the time, we want to keep making history and in a good way.

Anyways, we waited and waited and waited. The staff did their best to keep the line moving as they were on a schedule. But some fans were really rude and would not move along the line at all. And security was telling them to move and they refused.

You can see the artist visibly being uncomfortable even through their smile as they were put in an awkward situation with people not trying to abide by rules already put in place. I understand if the idol wants to talk to you, but if you’re just literally taking up time and space to fulfill your personal agenda that’s just selfish. And of course, it’s always more than one person trying to do the same thing. And it creates a mess. The lady on the mic kept interrupting the looped song to tell everyone:

“Please keep the line moving” “Keep moving. Don’t stop”

“No stopping”

“Please do not stop the line”. “Keep going.”

OVER AND OVER AND OVER. I felt like I was going insane (even more than that loop we kept hearing). I understand it was her job, and I felt bad since she had a job to do. At this point, I was trying to drown her out, take in the beauty of the idols when I can, and learn the dance. Like if I’m going to keep hearing the song, I might as well learn the choreo.

ZEROBASEONE were sweethearts. They took their time to acknowledge all of the fans meeting them. And even reappeared too before leaving entirely. They are amazing and we were looking forward to seeing them again later in the day!

Inside of the Convention Center

Inside this side of this convention center, it looked really cool. Of course, seeing something relocated can give it a sense of novelty. And novelty can feel exciting. There was a lot more space, I think.

KCON in general this year was bigger than the previous. Does bigger mean better? Well…we’ll see. After we got out of that stampede of people, we got redirected to the next area. We went to the information desk to get the VIP gift that was promised. The line was not bad at all, and the staff was nice! Ready to answer any questions. After that we got moving to the next part.

I looked and saw people sending other’s outside…and other people talking about the festival bracelets. This was very confusing. So, I spotted a security guard next to me who was answering other’s questions, so I tried to go up to him politely. Instead, he looked at me, ignored me, and walked away. Yeah. Which was surprising and tbh…very disappointing, but we decided to just follow the crowd.

It would have been nice to have a directory thing that guided people to get their bracelets. Because half of the security didn’t want to or didn’t have a clue on what was going on. And the other people I saw were videographers and others working for the event in a tech setting. I didn’t even try to ask them as they were laying out their plan to capture the scene for the videos later to promote this event. So ultimately, we were in a crowd…a pretty organized one, but a crowd, nonetheless.

Which leads us here…

Outside of the Convention Center (again)

Photo credit: King’s Crown

At least it’s a different part, right?

When we had to go out again…I was confused and high key really irritated. Really. I was thinking “why would we have to stay in this long line if we just got bag checked?” But lowkey, I was wondering why they didn’t check our tickets. I think this is something that would have been great to have done the first time with the bag check since they already had it labeled.

The second issue was there wasn’t a separation of lines. Specifically just for the waiting. There was one line for ADA (as they should) and one for everyone else. Even though there were different ticket options. You would think the outside lines would reflect this. But it didn’t. And how did we know this? Well, we didn’t. It took going all the way through the line. The security said: “For everyone asking about Premium…I don’t f*cking know so stop asking”. Legit what he said. The only thing he did right was organize the ball that was in form of a ball into a line. We were like the real-life version of the snake game just twisting and turning.

And we sat there irritated and confused and pissed off. To decorate this problem more…there was nowhere to cool off. So, people were just hot and dehydrated. Luckily, I didn’t see anyone pass out. But the sun was just beaming on us. And everyone who brought a fan and picket saved themselves.

Tip: I suggest if you do bring a fan, let it be automatic. That helped so much in line. It preserves your energy too from fanning yourself. However, bring both just in case. Handheld fans and pickets are also stylish, so I suggest them.

This line was ridiculous. Seriously. It was exhausting for sure, and it felt like the line had no end. I even heard people expressing their frustrations with some of them turning this into content and an opportunity to upload something critical on the event in form of a relatable post. Which is more bad press, which you don’t really want. Again, I went to another event and people were asking if anyone went to KCON and were complaining about these exact elements. I really hope if KCON returns, it will fix this problem. Because it wasn’t one previously.

As we inch closer to around the building, we can hear music from the crypto which was probably tech rehearsals or something, it was cool. We got a bit of shade from the trees.

At the halfway point we see a sign. With all the questions running through our head, we have been eyeing this sign the whole time. This sign was sitting in eye view, finally, and it just tells you to have your ticket info out and ready on your phones. Helpful. And so, the wait continues (at least not for too long this time around). There was a security guard there at least that was playful. He really brought the energy we were needing right then. He was also considerate.

Photo credit: King’s Crown

As we hit the corner, we waited there for about a few minutes and then there was another line forming. I was confused, but he was trying to keep as many people in the shade as possible. While we were over there, we were able to see the Busking stage. An act was already up there, but unfortunately, I could not tell you who from that distance. It looked like a good time, and I really love the aesthetic it had.

The security with a clicker to count the unlimited number of KCONers finally let us in. And the line just continues and so does the waiting. I hope this felt as long as it did irl. I hope it was a great reflection of it for you.

Inside of the Convention Center (Waiting in line pt.2 🙂)

Well, waiting indoors wasn’t that bad as it was air conditioned and the lines moved pretty swiftly when everyone was paying attention to the flow of the crowd. It wasn’t too bad at all-especially, compared to last year with the non-ventilated parking structure being the ticket and bag check line. Which is why I understand the separation of the two I guess because it was less stressin’ one place. But I just wish it was in the same vicinity you know? That way we didn’t have to worry about missing stuff because we aren’t allowed in. And why aren’t we allowed in? No bracelet. I was terrified (being dramatic…kind of) that I wouldn’t get to see the first person on my list for the day.

The booths were separated, but we all still had to stay in the same line. Looking at the designated booths made me upset as no one was really going to the ones we were going to, and we still had to wait there.

I think they would get crowds moving faster if they just had the lines the way they needed to. Everyone goes to you designated line. If you don’t know where to go, there will be someone happy to help. To be fair, I think it might have taken more time in the planning process, but that’s what makes or breaks an experience so there is no excuse in my opinion.

There was some dry security which always raises the anxiety, but I know it was a long day for some of them. Though it takes no extra effort to be nice. So, everyone be nice to one another. The security guy next to us in the line was very nice. He was telling everyone to be happy and have a great time.

After we got to the front, it wasn’t bad at all. They asked us about our tickets and brought us to the ticket line we needed to be in. Then they scanned our tickets. The people helping out was so sweet. I enjoyed being there. Especially the one who was giving out the Olive Young present. With our tickets the present was apart of the package. I really liked this idea because at least there was a keepsake apart of the day! As we left out of there, we got to finally go inside the Festival Grounds.

FESTIVAL GROUNDS

The festival grounds were massive! To be fair I don’t know how everything used to look past 2024 (so if you do, let us know!). But compared to the one people call the “Best KCON” I think this one was pretty big. Not only in scale, but in brands. There was a lot of everything. This reminds me of what KCON should be. Food, Beauty, Drama, and Music. And it was all in the same spot. I have some ideas for the next one to really elevate the experience even more. Hit us up!

Going back to the overall look, it was really nice.

The line was ridiculously long this time for a lot of stuff especially the food an d beauty areas, but they did go fast as we got closer to the front. And when people were paying attention to the pace of the lines.

Repeated Tip: Be camera ready!

You never know when you might make an appearance! The best thing to wear is confidence! It’s important, no matter where you go.

Plus, most event holders want their footage of the event. Whether it is for the recap, promotion, or future projects. That being said, they a lot while we were there. I always enjoy watching them as it’s cool to see the behind the scenes before it’s posted. I’ll tell you a funny story about it in the next part so stay tuned for when that article drops.

There was a lot of stuff there.

So Soo Bin at the KCON X stage!

We also saw so many cool talents! I saw the last bit of Inza’s X stage. I know this specific stage and the artists doing them had a bit of controversy, but we are only going to get into the act’s todays.

I didn’t like how the lineup and the description of the stage didn’t match up. For example, the act I went to watch was So soo bin. And if you’re not familiar with him, he has been around for a long time. He has a long list of music, shows, and places he has been. And for it to be a “rookie stage” I just didn’t see this fitting. Just because it’s not mainstream doesn’t mean it didn’t have history. And just because it is new for you doesn’t mean it’s “new” in general, just for you. Rookie isn’t a bad thing and shouldn’t be viewed as such. But the term doesn’t fit here.

Getting to know him more was nice though. I thoroughly enjoyed the performance. And I rewatch it all the time. I also learned some songs to add to my playlist. I was just introduced to this through this stage. Safe to say, they have been on heavy repeat (and I do not regret it :)).

I have been wanting to see So soo bin live since I discovered his music for the first time. More specifically, when I saw his performance 8 years ago for SOFAR (SONGS FROM A ROOM SEOUL) with the song titled “Honestly”. It was an intimate setting that I wanted to experience one day. I think this performance was pretty intimate as well. Not as cozy, but with the singing and music, I was able to feel at ease. I do hope they will do more like this. HINT, HINT let me plan it KCON! Or at least credit me when you do adapt this.

So soo bin has this performance style where he really feeds off of the audience’s energy. And even gives the audience energy. At first everyone felt a bit shy, but as time went on everyone had energy. Towards the end of the performance, he was grooving with us. He includes the audience the whole time. And we were really having a good time. And his vocals are very impressive as well. If you were to search up a live performance, you will be taken aback and you will fall in love. Very melodic and his vocals kind of flow like a dance.

I know he didn’t really like the cutesy stuff as he said it was “embarrassing” (which…mood lol), but I think that he naturally has a cute side to him. It shows in the reserved, shy side and when he’s smiling on stage as well.

There was a few things I also really didn’t like about the stage as well. I found it a bit too scripted. The MC did the best he could even when the teleprompter wasn’t showing the questions he needed. I think the segment went too fast too as everything is on a schedule unfortunately. And when it was picture time and the lighting was off, that wasn’t too cool either. However, I think tech things happen. I’ve performed before; you know tech things happen. It didn’t ruin the performance, but I think it was too much.

Going back to the point of time, I think it did the job. You got the performances, you also got to learn a bit about the artist, and you get to interact with them. And lucky fans get to bring something home. I think though, it’s a lot for a short amount of time. Not enough time for them to talk if they wanted to, just on to the next song. I don’t know if that was required or not, but as a viewer I wanted more time to process it all. However, in the moment…my feet were hurting, but I wanted to stand there and show my support, so I did. They didn’t have seats unfortunately. That sucked. And I want them to change this for the back of whatever space they use next year.

So soo bin left his guitar at the end. I thought he was going to come back lol. But no, he just rushed off staged. I’m sure later he got it back, but that was pretty funny.

BREAK TIME!

We did get a break again this year, but we did things a bit different! It was sitting on the floor by the X stage to quickly gather some thoughts. Then straight to lunch (because we didn’t have time to do anything else).

LUNCH TIMEEEEEEEEEEEE

Tip: make sure to eat and hydrate a little throughout the day.

We went to the L.A. LIVE area

To check out what we ate at Yard House, go to the F10$$ minis episode! A bite sized review just for you! We’re still working on the title and stuff, but yeah…check it out!

After filling our bellies, we immediately went to the arena to attend the show. Did you think the drama ended there? Well, if you did…it didn’t. But…that’s for another episode. Let’s get straight into weighing out the positives and negatives at the convention part of KCON 2025.

Positives:

PRO: Lots to do! In different categories. Whether it was K-Food, K-Drama, K-music, or K-Beauty. There were many well-known and fun to discover brands. I think you can have a great time visiting them all when you get the time.

PRO: Fun range in the lineup.

PRO: Lots of things going on at once. Usually this wouls be too much, but you can’t get bored and want to leave. There’s so many things to change up the pace. As a content creator, this is literally a form of a haven. You can see so much at once. Do so much at once.

PRO: For people who like to get involved, a lot of the programs were their for you. There was an audition space, there was a random play dance, a busking stage, some of the stages where the fans get more interactions. It was a thing for everyone. There was many photo op places.

I hate to be that person, but KCON had some of cons (no pun intended). Let’s get into them:

This is focusing on inside the main part of the main Festival Grounds! Not the other places as we did not visit them unfortunately this time around.

Con: No workshops this year with the influencers. At least that was promoted like last time. Instead, the “next big thing” was the ambassador thing they did. However, some of them don’t even show interest in this in their content so it doesn’t come across as authentic. If their content doesn’t align or reflect on the things your brand does…should they be sent? Well, I guess that’s not really my issue. But I think if you want to promote your event, you should use people the fans know and follow.

Con: Not enough KCON coded photo-op places. It was more branded and not enough that was screaming just KCON. Let’s KCON. Colors that scream just KCON. I wanted to see mascots; I wanted to see more of them. Not saying “2025 KCON” all the time either. Of course, of 2025 stuff so you can look back on it, but more KCON things. Things that are designed beautifully and still hold weight. Again, a photographer and print station would earn more revenue and clout and will help overall memories be saved. And memories are promotion for you. Again, hit us up! I got the ideas you need.

CON: Advertising: I don’t think the advertising did anything really. Of course, I don’t see the stats or anything, but from my timeline, I didn’t see enough. The news when watching didn’t cover it well either. Sure, it was fun and lighthearted, but it didn’t show the beauty of it. It didn’t show the new stages and new experiences it will offer. If you want someone to go, show the things that make it unique. I know also that the deadlines might not have been getting met as the lineups kept changing. Which sucked, which is why there needed to be more advertising in KCON’s favor. Again, I am not the planner so it’s not my business, but I wanted to see more, and it just wasn’t there.

*

As you can see the positives are outweighing the cons… however, where there was cons… they were solid. I do hope that this can change next year. If you feel we are missing something or you want to add yours, please drop them in the comments. We would love to hear them.

Various Booths

There were so many booths this year! It being sponsored by Olive Young made it even better. K-beauty took the lead this year. Right when you enter the KCON convention space, you are greeted with Olive Young University! It was really fascinating.

I was planning to hit up all of the booths, but unfortunately, the timing was too little. If they fixed their system, people would be able to at least get 3/4 of their money’s worth. And will get great feedback and in turn, free promo, but instead they didn’t fix this problem yet. Hopefully in the future they will, but only time will tell. I only was able to attend one of the acts I wanted to see and nothing in between. But we will talk about them later. It was certainly worth the wait!

MNET COUNTDOWN STAGE

A.K.A THE SHOW!

I know we usually do this in p[art 2, but I need you to remember this for that part.

We actually walked past the Crypto . comarena right before we got in. And we saw before the lineup time a security guard was giving the girl her bracelet…which umm…was that allowed? Either way, she wasn’t giving them to everyone, and we didn’t want to bother her or get her in trouble so we went about our day and decided to line up when it was time to. Passive thinking I know. And btw…if you do anything in LA. Be selfish. No one follows the rules and somehow, some way no one enforces it for them and they continue to be selfish. Be mindful and don’t be those people who lineup mad early. Like spoiler alert…the KCONers who were in line the day before for Day 2 KCON! Yes the day before. I don’t understand it and honestly…I’ll save my thoughts for an Uncomfy Cushion.

We decided to be mindful of the jobs of others and just be respectful and not go an hour early to get our bracelets. And we followed instructions. Keep this in mind too, the security guard did say that no one was going in or lining up yet because it wasn’t time to. So yeah. From the tone of this…you decide what happens next! We will reveal what happened in the next post. For now let’s get to the beauty of the article. How worth it was at least 1/2 of the KCON experience.

Remember KCON used to sell this experience (the convention) to everyone at first. Then somehow it got phased out. If someone who organizes KCON would like to give us reasons, we would love to talk. Schedule an interview with us!

Okay. *sigh* Let’s get into the F10$$ scale! If you are unfamiliar with F10$$, you can find out more about it here!

F10$$

BO$$: I definitely would say this is the same as last year’s thoughts. I was able to plan perfectly this time around. I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

The thing is…the organization of the event made it almost impossible to get everything done and be ready for the “main” show. And for that I say that this time this factor was a fail. There were so many things I wanted to do that overlapped with other things. Sure, you can say “just get there earlier” And do what? Half of the events I wanted was scheduled at a time that wouldn’t work. People lined up days-a week before (yes, a week, the news also reported this). And on top of this every thing is in the same place, but the paid meet & greet. And you think I would lineup and wait in a long line and not be able to see the paid meet and greet. Now if you clock me and say I still didn’t see the whole thing…you would be right, but that’s not the point. The beauty in being a boss is I can pick when I want to be late to something I paid for. The beauty of money!!!

FAN: As a fan, I was able to see who I wanted to see. I wasn’t able to discover more artists as I didn’t get the chance to. That’s something that makes events like this special as you get to see so many different people and learn about more people.

And with the different curated stages, there’s something special to learn about the acts that attend them. And unfortunately, it just wasn’t enough time. I hope next year they will organize it a bit better for everything to have enough time to be visited. I think that it can really elevate the experience. It was so much with too little time. I must say with a lot to do (stage wise) it was better because if something isn’t your style, you can go watch something else. There truly is something for everyone there. For us who like to see a lot and visit everything we just didn’t have enough time. Like mentioned earlier, I did not have enough time to check out the other stages set and things going on.

$$$: There are two options. You can go yourself and experience KCON with a more hands on approach or you can watch it online. One thing I always appreciated about KCON is they allow this option. This is how I started off too. And if there’s KCON going on in another country I tune in through their official YouTube channel. I will say I like both and would recommend both. I think if you have the money, it’s worth making the trip at least once.

WORTH THE F10$$?

My final thoughts on this. Even though the vibe of this article might have gave off a certain answer of if I think it was worth it, we’re only 1/2 way through the event. It’s a full day event. We were there all day literally. I think the organization was a bit off. And it just didn’t have the vibes of KCON 2024 convention. However, hot take-I think it’s worth trying again. Wait, wait! Let me cook.

I wouldn’t discredit the whole thing based on a few things that went wrong. Like this event has years, on years, on years of history. And so many amazing groups were embraced even more because of it. I do feel bad for other’s who had their first KCON and everyone is running around with more experience to compare it to. It doesn’t look good for this year’s. And I hope KCON can stay away from controversy and just continue what makes them special. I think there’s a lot of work to do, but that’s something workable. Call it biased, but I just remember my first KCON and how special it was. For K-pop and for any music and entertainment lover. I just think it has this special factor. And I know they can do it again. We’re waiting on you KCON! 🙂

And of course, the VLOGS:

OUR HOST POV:

The vlogs have not come out yet, but if you want to see last year’s vlogs in comparison, check out King’s Crown’s channel! He has plenty of KCON 2024 content to check out!

Credit: King’s Crown on YouTube

So how was it? What do you look forward to most at the convention when you go? In the next episode we will explore the Crypto. com Arena while going to the MNET KCON Stage! We are looking forward to showing you the rest of KCON 2025.

Written by: A.P.