UPDATE: Since the NDA has been lifted, I was able to share my experience about physically interacting with the Seventeen members which I included below. If you’ve been following me on social media you would have known that I recently went to LA for two things, the Seventeen (SVT) concert and USC homecoming! There are a lot of cool things to discuss and I will share in the near future about this trip but let’s start with the first reason, Seventeen! If you are not familiar I am a huge Carat (seventeen fan) and I often share content about them on my social media so it was no surprise I would be seeing them live on this tour and it just happened to be twice, in two different sections, with two different experiences. I share my brutally honest thoughts about that and more in my blog post below including what went well and what didn’t, including their special carat stamp challenge where they partnered with various restaurants and had carats like myself explore different parts of LA to experience special Seventeen collaborations and moments. Before you read below, make sure you follow me on social media (Tiktok, Instagram, and Facebook) so you don’t miss out on future posts about Seventeen, LA, and my series where I go into more detail about each carat stamp I earned.
About
I can’t write this blog post without talking about who Seventeen is. I already talked more about them in detail when I first saw them live in Toronto during their Be The Sun tour which you can read more of to learn more. In short, Seventeen is a huge K-pop group (they recently won Artist of the Year at MAMA awards) that was formed by Pledis (now under HYBE which is the same label as BTS, TXT, Illit, etc.) and debuted in 2015. Their name represents the 13 members that the group consists of plus the 3 teams which include hip-hop (S. Coups (leader of this unit and all of SVT), Wonwoo, Mingyu, and Vernon), vocal (Woozi (leader of this unit), Joshua, Jeonghan, DK, and Seungkwan) and performance (Hoshi (leader of this unit), Jun, The 8, and Dino). The remaining 1 unit is interchangeable for the combined team that they form at the end or for their fans (which equals 17). For this tour, unfortunately, not like in Toronto, only 11 of the members were able to perform as Jun had prior acting commitments in China & Jeonghan has already started his mandatory military service. But this tour is huge because Seventeen debuted in 2015 but prior to that they were all young boys who used to practice in a green room which was live streamed so people saw seventeen grow up and after all those years and uncertainty, they persevered while strengthening their connection to one other to establish themselves as one of the greatest groups in K-pop. The World Tour started in Seoul, South Korea, and will be headed to other parts of Asia soon including Japan they did have a brief tour in the US including being in cities such as San Antonio, Chicago, and New York but their US tour concluded in the hometown of Joshua, who was born and raised in Los Angeles. We had the option to attend either San Antonio or LA but since it was USC homecoming the week after and Joshua’s homecoming, we decided to go to LA. It was the best decision and I will talk more about that in a bit.
Venue and Tickets
This was my first time at this venue and Seventeen’s first stadium performance in the United States. Ironically, this building is named after a very popular bank in Canada and is right beside the Collesium where I had my Trojan family graduation celebration. The BMO Stadium is a massive outdoor stadium (so it was actually really cold – even Mingyu said he had a runny nose) and is located at 3939 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA. There is some paid parking available for $80 or you would have to walk and park somewhere else. We had to get there by 3 p.m. just to make sure our car was parked safely and we were able to pick up our carat jacket and photocard. Although the venue was massive, I will say that they need to do a better job of handling crowds and lines. On night one we got lucky because there was a CLEAR app entrance which just required us to scan a QR code and download the app to go into an exclusive line which resulted in us being one of the first few people in the venue. The second night we had floor seats and although we got there hours before the show, we still had to wait in a massive line to get in because there was no CLEAR app entrance this time, and seemed like the people who got soundcheck had to wait in a line first before our line can be close to the entrance. Nonetheless, if you went early you can enjoy taking pictures with the Seventeen backdrop, SVT sign, get freebies from fellow carats and visit the carat zone for a photocard. For night one we sat in the section 100s and honestly loved the view, especially since LA was the only city to get the carts experience where Seventeen gets to see fans more closely during the concert, and as you can see in my video, it was a great view (and I wish I had my poster then). Night two on the floor (section c 4) was a different experience and my sister really had a good time but I personally enjoyed the section 100s a bit more. Although we were on the floor, it was a bit further away from the stage and near the AV setup. I have enjoyed concerts in floor seats (e.g., LL Cool J, Kid Cudi, etc.) but the venue was not as big as BMO Stadium. Nonetheless, I still had a good time and the atmosphere on the floor is much more vibrant as you can see in this video during the never-ending Aju nice!
Merch and Food
Speaking of the venue, there were some food options I had as a vegetarian. On night one, I had Wolfie’s hot chicken which is 100% plant-based and the box comes with three pieces of plant-based chicken tenders coated in a spicy hot sauce with some fries. It wasn’t bad for $17 but good to try just once. On night two I tried the cheese pizza from Il Campo Pizza which also wasn’t bad and was also $17. I will say both were filling but I think I enjoyed the pizza a bit more. There was also a King’s Hawaiin grill but there were no vegetarian options. During night two since it was so cold, I ended up buying a churro as well for $10 which is super expensive but when it was cold, much needed to satisfy the chills and hunger. They also had a special Seventeen cocktail or mocktail available outside which wasn’t bad but wasn’t worth it since the mocktail was $16 and the cocktail was $22.
I will talk more about the pop-up merch below but there was merch available right at the venue. However, it was disappointing to know that people had to wait really early in the morning just to get some of the merch. Thankfully during night one, we were able to get some merch including the blanket, the LA exclusive t-shirt, and zip-up hoodies. I told my sister we should’ve gotten everything we wanted then because we really didn’t have the chance on night two by the time they let us in the venue. The T-shirts were 50 and the hoodies were $110 and I know that is expensive but I love how they fit and feel. The best merch was probably the blanket. However, something I wish they did with the merch was similar to what they did for the LA exclusive SVT carat anorak jacket where you can purchase it online and pick it up at the venue. I got it and was worried about the fit but it was super comfortable and extremely easy to pick up. They really should have done that for more merch if not all to make things more efficient.
The Concert
The first night the concert started around 9 p.m. and ended around 12 p.m. because the start had already been pushed back an hour because Los Angeles Football Club was in the playoffs and then it was delayed even longer because the lines outside were too long and people couldn’t get in. I think some people missed the first three songs because they were still outside. I heard the second night was better and it did start around 7:30 p.m. and ended around 10:40 p.m. For over three hours not once was I exhausted or tired because SVT really did deliver great performances and energy throughout. Keep in mind, on both days I was up before 6 a.m. and completing quests (will get into that in a bit) across the city before lining up at the venue. They performed over 20 songs with breaks in between as well as their iconic Aju Nice encore while also casually singing parts from other popular songs of theirs as requested by fans.
Yes, it was cold, and that was annoying but not once did I feel like I wanted to be somewhere else because Seventeen reminded me of how they demonstrate when it comes to all factors of K-pop from the thrilling dance visual demonstrations to the stable live vocals to the comedic outbreaks to the engaging dance breaks and of course, their highly interactive fan interactions. Although it was the same setlist both nights, I still felt excitement and anticipation as the first beat of the next song started. My personal favourite moments was the “Hot” intro for “Ash”, the “Super” fireworks, and the confetti explosion during “Cheers to Youth”. You might have a favourite K-pop group or artist, but for me when it comes to K-pop I do think Seventeen have worked tirelessly to prove that they excel in all categories related to K-pop. I do think the only other 10/10 concert I have been to was BTS when I saw them for night one of PTD LA (they are also my other favourite K-pop group)!
Seventeen The City Los Angeles
Now earlier in the blog post, I mentioned that LA was the best choice for me to attend the LA concert and it was because LA had numerous activities and events that carats could participate in that other cities did not have. Each city had a special fan event that carats could enter for a chance to win (was not selected, unfortunately), but with LA, they had special quests carats could complete when visiting svtthecityla.com. The quests include limited-time experiences such as the lighting of Santa Monia Pier Ferris wheel (because Joshua used to commute two hours to enjoy it), watching the special billboard ads in DTLA, go the pop-up store, or purchasing an exclusive item in collaboration with Seventeen at participating food establishments to receive a limited edition Seventeen in the City: Los Angeles souvenir (e.g., sticker, postcard, etc.). I did the most I could and I will say not everything was great, actually, some things were terrible but I talk more about that in the different sub-sections below.
Experiences
For experiences, what was mentioned on the site was pretty much billboards and the Santa Monica Pier Ferris wheel lighting which was only on Friday night and was occurring every so often. As mentioned before, Joshua is an LA native and he had fond memories of commuting two hours from downtown LA to Santa Monica whenever he had the time growing up. Fun fact, Joshua actually gave a speech at city hall and was presented with an award earlier that day. The ferris wheel animation was about six minutes and repeated frequently but what was also nice was that nearby restaurants on the boardwalk were playing Seventeen songs on full blast which made it even more enjoyable for Joshua and carats. The other experience activities included seeing a special billboard ad in downtown Los Angeles near the Crypto Arena (where the LA Lakers play) which was in rotation often but was only on display from November 4th to 10th. However, I believe some carats actually paid for billboard ads for both Joshua (homecoming) and The 8 (birthday) and I saw it at the venue as well as near the Walk of Fame as I was leaving the BT21 Line Friends Hollywood store!
Restaurants
As a big foodie, I was really excited to know that Seventeen collaborated with different restaurants and food establishments for exclusive meals and treats. Unfortunately, as a vegetarian, I was limited with what I could try but from what I did have, I was extremely satisfied. Here are my thoughts:
The place I visited twice and was most excited to try was Somisomi, an ice cream shop that specializes in unique flowers and Bungeo Ppang (pastries in the shape of fish). They had an exclusive SVT flavor (honeydew) and you can choose the Bungeo Ppang to have a filling (red bean, matcha, custard, or Nutella) topped with Seventeen sprinkles and your choice of strawberry or macaroon. The honeydew flavor was extremely refreshing and not too sweet. In terms of the pastry, I tried it with matcha custard, regular custard, and Nutella, and out of the three, Nutella was the best. I was able to try these three different fillings because they still had this collaboration at their Little Tokyo location when I visited. The staff were great at both locations working very hard and had plenty of the Seventeen postcards and stickers available at the Little Tokyo location. Ice cream and SVT is not something new since they had a special popup ice cream truck at Venice Beach earlier this year that I was able to enjoy!
I also tried the Sunright Tea studio the same night I arrived because it was the last day. Unfortunately, by the time I arrived they ran out of the Seventeen cupsleeve but they still told me how I can make the special seventeen drink (their strawberry yakult drink with lychee) and it tasted really good. It’s a boba shop I would definitely try again and loved that their slogan was shaking 17 times and had nice decorations at the location I visited. It tastes how you would expect with a bit of a sour but sweet taste from strawberry yakult but the lychee makes it much more refreshing. I also tried the Luban No.7 (matcha latte with mango puree) which was a special drink in collaboration with Honor of Kings and got it with oat milk which tasted amazing. The matcha wasn’t too strong and worked well with the fresh mango taste. I love that one flavour didn’t overpower the other.
The last place I tried was the BCD Tofu House. I was happy that they had vegetarian options and although they also ran out of the SVT cupsleeve I was still curious to try because of the vegetarian options. I know they were busy but I do think they could have improved their customer service but still wasn’t terrible. I tried the vegetarian hot stone bibimbap combo that should come with a water-based broth along with numerous side dishes including Kimchi. I also tried the tofu japchae which I really liked and would recommend if you are trying this place. It was definitely good to try at least once but I don’t think I will be going back personally. I also liked that in all the spots I went to they were playing Seventeen music videos and/or their music.
Pop-up
The popup was probably the worst pop-up I have been to and I go to a lot! I will explain why below, but it did have two components, one was the “opportunity” to buy exclusive merchandise and the other was to visit different sets to take pictures and also enjoy an exclusive photobooth with an exclusive frame. I talk more about both components below.
Merchandise
I have never been to a pop-up so poorly managed before than this. Apparently the pop-up was open from Thursday to Monday and I did meet someone who was able to secure items that went on Thursday but the line on Saturday and Monday were ridiculous. I arrived to the line at 8 a.m. (store opens at 10 a.m.) and I was probably the 300th person in-line since some people were sleeping overnight and instead of being transparent with the stock of items being more limited and not actually restocking everyday they allowed people to buy so many items all at once leaving almost nothing for others who get to visit later. For example, apparently one person bought 60 albums just for photocards and other people were buying the merch items in different sizes to jus resell later on. On the Saturday, I left at 12:30 p.m. (after four and half hours) because there was no point of waiting in the heat and have no certainty of whats left and if we could even get in because one of the staff was saying people who waited since 6 a.m. haven’t even gone inside at that point. It’s disappointing and misleading to encourage camping overnight for items you are most likely not going to get because it is unsafe and frankly I do think this is Pledis’ fault since even Be The Sun Toronto had items selling out near within the first hour or two of the merch store being open. It was frustrating to see the management of this pop-up not having a care of the carats waiting while at the concerts the artist, Seventeen, were asking fans to rest and recover when they weren’t performing because they were worried about their health. On Monday, I got there before 8 a.m. and although the lines were much shorter since most people already flew out by then it was still terrible. One carat flew from Melbourne and waited from 2 a.m. only to be able to get a t-shirt because the jerseys and jackets were already sold out since they only had two jackets available on the Monday and the limited edition airbrush t-shirt were only available to few people and you had to spend over $100 to even get that done which is ridiculous. If Pledis really cared about the carats and wanted to deliver a safe and efficient experience then they should have done something similar to Big Hit and host the pop-up via Fever. By the time I was able to enter the store around 11 a.m., the only items available were photo albums. You can see more in the video I will post but also in the picture above.
Experiences
After you are done shopping you need to wait in a separate line to enter the building again to enjoy the experiences. Thankfully it wasn’t a long line like the merch and you can enjoy taking photos with different SVT backdrops, sign a wall for Seventeen, and take pictures in SVT sets such as a special beach set and a bright neon room. The highlight from the experience was probably enjoying the photobooth since you can choose one member to take pictures with while also getting an exclusive “Spill the Feels” frame for the photo strip. I remember on the first day one of the staff members was saying people were skipping this to just go for straight for the merch and frankly it makes sense especially if there was such limited stock and really not enough for each day.
Overall
All in all, I did say overall I had a great time in Los Angeles because of Seventeen. I can’t believe I got to see them three times now, twice in one weekend, and at least once on the floor level! I know with them going to the military this might be the last time until a while where I get to see the members live again but I am thankful for the special moments I had and to experience this with my sister who also gets so much joy from Seventeen. I highly recommend you check out Seventeen out if you can (they are performing in various Asian countries right now including Japan)! I do love that they partnered with various LA restaurants and establishments for Joshua’s homecoming and hope they can do that for more cities in the future. I recommend Pledis take my advice and start to prioritize Carat satisfaction and wellbeing by utilizing more resevered/pickup options for merchandise and ticketed experiences similar to what BTS does with Fever. Let me know your thoughts if you went or planning on seeing Seventeen in the future! If you are a carat or looking for more K-pop or Los Angeles content, make sure to follow me on Tiktok, Instagram, and Facebook!
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