About a month ago I noticed some changes around Boseong, the tennis courts by the gym were getting redone, the wall surrounding the sports complex was painted an ugly shade of blue, and roads around town were being repaved. At the same time, banners started popping up, but I didn’t know what they said. More banners appeared, this one a collage of singers, one of them being Psy with the date 4.20 beneath. I asked around and was told that Psy along with other famous singers in Korea were performing a free concert in Boseong as part of the 58th sports day celebration.
Boseong, the town where I live is famous in Korea for its green tea fields. Other than that it’s a small country town of about 9,000 people. A week ago a small two-theater cinema was completed, a year ago a gym with a swimming pool was built, maybe next year they’ll build a supermarket. Just kidding, they have those. Psy, on the other hand, is not only a well known global performer but is the most famous and popular singer in Korea. Foreigners may know him only from Gangnam style and think he was a one-hit wonder, but here he’s been popular since the early 2000s. I don’t think there is anyone like him in the U.S. Almost all Koreans, regardless of age like him, from Elementary school students to grandma’s and grandpas and everybody in between. Him coming to Boseong would be like Beyonce going to a small upstate NY town, except none of the older people would know who she was. For me, It was an opportunity not to be missed.
Saturday at 10:00 am the tickets for the show were being given out, they were free but you had to go in person to pick them up. No online reservations. I had heard that there were 3,000 tickets and 400 of his fan club was going, so Yunji and I decided to get in line at 8:30 am. She wanted to get there earlier and her mom suggested going the night before, but when we got there, there were only about 30 people ahead of us. By 10, the line had stretched to the back of the parking lot, about a couple hundred people. A friend of mine planned on coming at 12:00, but once in line I told him to try to make it by 11:00. He didn’t and got into Boseong at 14:00. I was worried he wasn’t going to get a ticket, I dropped him off while I looked for a spot and told him to just look for the line. When I found him, he couldn’t find the line. There was none. We walked to where I had been earlier, got a ticket within seconds without a problem. No way did I expect it was going to be that easy, I was mentally prepared for two hours standing in line.
We planned to go to the concert when it started at 18:30. Last minute another friend decided to come. He didn’t get to Boseong until 17:45 and we all thought there was no way he was going to get a ticket. When we got there, the ticket area had been converted to a snack area, no more tickets. However, since I live in Boseong, I actually could get in without a ticket so I gave him my ID card. Even though we look nothing alike, Koreans can’t tell white people apart anyway. We walked into the concert and not a single person was checking tickets, they were wrist bands and nobody was even bothering to look at people’s wrists. All the worry was for nothing! I don’t know why they even had tickets in the first place, maybe they didn’t come close to giving away all the tickets so they decided not to bother, or that’s Korea for you. No explanations can be given for why they do or don’t do things sometimes.
Overall it was really cool seeing Psy in Korea, in the town I live. While I don’t know any of his songs other than Gangnam style and New Face, he did sing the former. He sang for a little more than an hour, which is okay considering that if you went to one of his shows he’d sing for 3 or 4 hours, but you’d be paying $160 for a ticket. What I found strange about the whole venue was that none of the singers were supported by live music, but in a world where K-Pop is king, maybe it’s to be expected.
Funny story, glad you enjoyed him!!
Interesting as usual, Joe. Thank you!