K-Pop
J-Hope’s Lollapalooza Performance Proved He Can Stand All On His Own

ARMY dubbed Lollapalooza "Hobipalooza" in his honor.

by Michele Mendez
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BTS’ J-Hope has officially made history with his Lollapalooza performance. According to a press release, the star was the first South Korean artist to headline a major U.S. music festival. ARMY was there to witness it all, and these photos prove why the event was nicknamed Hobipalooza.

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Lollapalooza took place in Chicago, Illinois, from July 28 to July 31. J-Hope performed on the last day as a headliner along with other artists like Green Day, The Kid Laroi, and Charli XCX.

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J-Hope’s addition to the lineup was huge for several reasons. J-Hope was the first Korean artist to ever headline the main stage in Lollapalooza’s 30-year history. He was also the first Korean artist to headline a major U.S. festival overall.

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While J-Hope has taken the stage solo several times on BTS’ many world tours, it was often only for a song. This made fans excited to see him perform a full solo concert for the first time at Lollapalooza.

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J-Hope absolutely owned the stage. His electrifying energy and stage presence could be felt even by fans like me who watched his performance from home.

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J-Hope’s performance began with the opening dialogue from his Jack In The Box album, his first full-length that dropped on July 15. The set opener featured a message about Pandora’s Box, which was the inspiration behind his stage name.

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He then made his grand entrance by performing his guitar-heavy track “MORE.” J-Hope had a full band on stage with him, making his performance feel even more alive.

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J-Hope continued with a number of other new tracks like “Pandora’s Box,” “= (Equal Sign),” “STOP,” “Safety Zone,” “What If...,” “Arson,” and “Future.” Fans could be heard singing every lyric despite Jack In The Box only being released just a few weeks ago.

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J-Hope also took fans to Hope World by performing a few songs from his debut mixtape: “Base Line,” “HANGSANG,” “P.OP. (Piece of Peace) P1. 1,” “Blue Side,” “Daydream,” and “Hope World.”

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Though BTS wasn’t on stage with J-Hope, their presence could be felt. He performed classic BTS songs like “Cypher Pt. 1,” “Dynamite (Tropical Remix),” “Outro: Ego,” and “Trivia: Just Dance.”

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J-Hope surprised the crowd by bringing out Becky G to perform their “Chicken Noodle Soup” remix live together for the first time. He honored the original creators of the song (DJ Webstar and Young B.) by shouting them out.

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According to a press release, about 105,000 people attended the final day of Lollapalooza. ARMY made their presence known by turning the crowd into a sea of lights with their BTS lightsticks.

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J-Hope got vulnerable with fans. “This is a very meaningful moment for me...I’ve grown so much throughout the whole journey with the album, and seeing the audience at Lollapalooza today gave me a firm belief for myself,” he said. No, you’re the one crying!

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He continued his message by saying, “I am grateful to everyone who came to watch my performance. I’m embarrassed to say this, but I’m also proud of myself for enduring the challenges up until this moment.”

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J-Hope’s Lollapalooza performance was definitely one for the books. Fans are so proud of how far he’s come in his career!

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