Gallery: YG Family 15th Anniversary Concert

This weekend's series of four hour-long YG Family 15th anniversary concert in Seoul pulled out all the audio/visual/crazy fashion stops. And then some.

For those lucky enough to attend, it felt like a Halloween and New Year's Eve club party rolled into one, with Fourth of July fireworks exploding in the background. 

More than 40,000 people witnessed the YG Family 15th Anniversary series of concerts, turning Jamsil's Olympic Park into a mini-festival (LED screen-studded photo walls, corporate sponsored souvenir booths, half a dozen TV crews stalking foreign fans) that lasted well past midnight on Sunday.

One show was held on Saturday, two on Sunday.

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It was a particularly meaningful concert for Big Bang as it marked the first time in six months (a lifetime in idol years) since Daesung's accident that all five members took the stage together in Korea. 

"I've spent a lot of time being very grateful for what I've been given, and for the people who have been giving me endless support," said Daesung during the concert. 

G-Dragon also apologized to his fans for "causing everyone to worry," after being caught up in a marijuana scandal earlier this year. 

Highlights of the concert included the seven acts -- Big Bang, 2NE1, Gummy, Se7en, Psy, Tablo and Jinusean -- mixing it up by performing genre-crossing renditions of each others' songs. 

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Gummy gave a husky jazz performance of G-Dragon's "Heartbreaker," and Seungri of Big Bang channeled Se7en from the latter's "roller-heeling" debut days. 

Psy worked the crowd up to an floor-pounding frenzy with a gaspingly funny performance of his hit "Champion," and attached the back of his pants to a wildly swerving circular stage brought in especially for his performance. 

One of the most stunning performances of the evening was given by Epik High's rapper/songwriter Tablo, the latest artist to sign with YG Entertainment.

Although he occasionally looked out of place during the idol-studded encore stages (think Eminem performing alongside Maroon 5), he delivered fantastically haunting performances of "Bad" and "Airbag," accompanied by his new labelmates Park Bom and Gummy. 

The production staff outdid themselves with four moving staircases, built-in shelf stages for two separate live bands performing and six LED screens blending the HD live stream with wintry, whimsical special effects. 

Worth traveling for 

In addition to one of the largest domestic fanbases, quite a few international fans flew in for the show.  

Sarah Amer, 22, an exchange student from California, said she had a blast at her first K-Pop concert.

"I loved how everyone had different glowsticks for their favorite artist," she said, referring to the brightly-colored "fan sticks" sold as souvenirs outside the concert. 

"It was incredibly fun," said Hurul Ain, 25, and Saidah Saeedon, 26, who traveled from Singapore to see the show after buying tickets on Gmarket Singapore.

They plan on traveling around Seoul for 11 days and dropping by to see the new YG building in Mapo before heading home. 

"Compared to American music, K-Pop seems to be more pure and energetic," said Cheryl Bowes, 26, an English teacher who attended the concert with her students.

"I love the production, and how it's not about being sexy and more about having fun." 

More on CNNGo: How far would you travel to see Girls' Generation? 

Frances Cha is the Korea Editor of CNNGo. 

 

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