K-pop boy group ENHYPEN, who has taken the world by storm with their youthful charm and energetic performances, recently touched base with Filipino fans through a “fun meet” like no other.
Text and photos by Ma. Angelica Demegillo
Filipino ENGENEs, as ENHYPEN’s fans call themselves, received an early Christmas gift, as well-loved K-Pop group ENHYPEN greeted and performed for them live through a “Fun Meet” held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last Saturday. The event was held in celebration of BYS Cosmetics Philippines’ 10th anniversary, in partnership with Wilbros Live.
Not one but several world-class Filipino artists became the featured performers’ front acts. First off, the rising five-member boy group VXON delivered an exciting number. Girl group G22 performed next and charmed the crowd with their girl crush vibes. Total performer Darren Espanto then took over the stage, showing off his cool dance moves while effortlessly belting out the high notes.
One, two, CONNECT!
After the local artists’ performances, it was finally time to welcome BYS Cosmetics Philippines’ newest brand ambassadors. Filipino fans greeted ENHYPEN members Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo and Ni-Ki with lusty cheers as soon as they emerged on stage.
During the question-and-answer portion, the first-time visitors to the Philippines shared their thoughts about coming to Manila, their favorite music genres, their New Year’s resolutions, as well as their career highs and achievements so far.
“It’s my first time visiting here in the Philippines and I’m so happy to meet our Filipino ENGENEs,” Sunoo, who captured fans with his pretty features, specially those smiling eyes, said via a translator. “I hope to come back here often.”
Jake, who was raised in Australia, explained in fluent English the meaning behind ENHYPEN. He said that the en dash and hyphen represent the connection between the seven members as they work together towards their goals, including connecting with people all over the world through their music.
Heeseung, whom fans hail as the group’s total performer for his versatility, shared his love for music and said that his favorite genre is K-pop. But the doe-eyed idol added that he also listens to various genres.
What about Jay? If he would be stuck on a deserted island and only had the chance to bring wit him two things, he’d bring his favorite food, which is corn, and his favorite person, who happens to be Jungwo.
Even with just two years of performing to their name, ENHYPEN has already managed to showcase their range of talents as performers, earning for them several platinum awards and huge downloads. Definitely much younger than the phenomenal BTS, ENHYPEN, this early, is being hailed as one of the “biggest K-pop acts of their generation.” When asked if he expected all these, Jungwon, the leader of the group, said: “Yes, I have expected these kinds of achievements. But I didn’t expect to receive this amount of love. Moving forward, we hope to receive more love and support from you.”
The group’s youngest and only Japanese member Ni-Ki expressed his joy in finally having the chance to meet with more fans around the world. “Luckily, the pandemic is almost over and we’re given the opportunity to have a world tour and meet our fans,” he shared.
Speaking of the pandemic, several fans, who were interviewed before the main show started, shared how ENHYPEN has helped them survive all the lockdowns, saying that the K-Pop group’s music accompanied them during tough times. Fans also said that members’ hard work and perseverance also inspired and motivated them to keep going.
If given a chance to give advice to his younger self, Sunghoon, a former figure skater, shared with fans, “Live your life to the fullest. Because of figure skating, I was able to get into ENHYPEN. Do your best always.”
Getting to know them more
As the evening wore on, Filipino ENGENEs became more passionate in cheering for their idols. Fans got to know more about each member through a variety of segments and games, which the group happily participated in. Members interacted with fans through the such segments as ‘ENHY-PENS,’ where they revealed a number of their favorite things, such as hobbies, dessert, as well as mottos in life; ‘ENHY-PICK,’ where they played a game of ‘would you rather’ and picked their preferences between two options; ‘EN-HIGH-PEN,’ where they reminisced and looked back at the most significant achievements in their careers by watching short clips; and ‘ENHY-PINOY,’ where they learned a number of Filipino phrases taught by lucky fans.
Members also sang a bit of their hit song “Polaroid Love,” together with ecstatic Filipino ENGENEs.
The ‘ENHY-PINOY’ segment was easily the evening’s highlight because, for many Filipinos, nothing beats the feeling of hearing their idols speak in their native tongue. As expected, ENGENEs’ hearts melted when ENHYPEN members spoke in Filipino.
Jay earned “awws” from Engenes as he said the phrase, “Kumain ka nang maayos at matulog nang mahimbing (Eat well and sleep peacefully.)”
Fans also cheered for Heeseung as he powered through saying, “Masaya akong kasama ang ENGENEs ngayon! (I’m very happy to be with ENGENEs tonight!),” even though it was a bit difficult for him to enunciate the foreign words.
Jake earned the loudest cheers as he said the phrase “Maraming salamat, Pilipinas! (Thank you, Philippines!)” followed those universal Filipino words “Mahal kita.” Fans, in turn, roared even more as they sent their love back.
A few moments later, Filipino ENGENEs surprised ENHYPEN with a fan video project to show their love and appreciation for their idols. Fans raised a hand banner that bore the message: “Our hearts beat together between the gaps of the universe.” Later, the crowd also sang “Happy birthday” to Sunghoon and Ni-Ki, who would be celebrating their birthdays on December 8 and 9, respectively. Fans also showed a banner that read: “Sunghoon and Ni-Ki shine brighter than the stars in the night sky in December.”
“Our hearts are racing”
After the fan project, Enhypen turned up the heat, bringing the house down with their mesmerizing performance of “ParadoXXX Invasion”.
Their fluid, yet well-controlled moves captured the crowd who cheered lustily while singing along to the Korean lyrics as if they knew what they meant.
If hitting the notes while dancing was already hard, ENHYPEN upped the ante by showing off their sleek moves on stage.
Feeding off the crowd’s energy and unabashed enthusiasm, ENHYPEN extended their gratitude and looked forward to meeting their Filipino ENGENEs again. “You guys are awesome! Mahal kita!” Jake said, before waving goodbye.
ENHYPEN is set to return to the Philippines in February next year for the Manila leg of their Manifesto tour. They will hold a two-day concert at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on February 4 and 5.
