82MAJOR’s Tour Is Unlike Any You’ll Experience This Summer

At 82MAJOR’s first North American tour, the six-member boy group demonstrated why they should not be overlooked as one of the most exciting acts of the year.

Photos for this story are by Madeline Gazaway

If you attend a date on 82MAJOR’s first North American tour, you’re in for a treat. This isn’t your typical K-Pop show: here, the idols are looser, more improvisational—and very funny. Yes, like all K-Pop groups, they bring creative choreography and slick music. But it’s their stage presence that sets them apart. “I think our energy fits North America really well,” HWANG SEONG BIN told me in a pre-show interview (to be published later this week). I can confirm: he’s right.

Though their catalog is still small, the group performed a full 90-minute set Monday night in Nashville, Tennessee. Unlike most K-Pop concerts—which often feature tightly scripted speeches—82MAJOR’s stage banter felt unfiltered and off-the-cuff. Beyond their required introductions, the members asked where to try fried chicken, riffed on the excitement of being in Music City, and spoke with the ease of pop stars well into their careers.

The group named the tour <82SYNDROME> because, as YOON YE CHAN explained on stage, they want to “spread their syndrome across America.” PARK SEOK JOON, taking to the crowd of screaming fans, added, “I feel like the syndrome has already started.”

For YE CHAN, playing Nashville was a surreal moment. “It’s been a dream of mine to come,” he said on stage, “because Nashville is just a hub of music.”

82MAJOR is led by CHO SEONG IL, a thoughtful, intuitive idol who—as he’s told me in multiple interviews—is more interested in supporting his members than being the center of attention. On stage, he was gracious, giving everyone space to speak and share stories. YOON YE CHAN, the most fluent English speaker, acted as a co-leader, asking members how they felt about being in Nashville and keeping the show moving as a free-spirited hype man.

“Since this is our first tour, we practiced lots and lots,” YE CHAN said, then added, “like no-sleep vibes.” KIM DO GYUN, the maknae, shared that he studied English for the show, as did many of the members. But he and YE CHAN also had the freedom to be goofy—to dance when they wanted to, offer a shimmy, or joke with fans.

The group is incredibly synchronized, but they never let precision override instinct. On “STUCK,” for example, they nailed every move—especially during a thrilling dance break—but also leaned into the song’s bawdy, aggressive energy. On another standout track, “CHOKE,” the group evokes legends like BIGBANG, who prided themselves on disrupting the system.

But beyond personality, the most dynamic part of 82MAJOR’s stage show is their athleticism. They don’t move like other K-Pop groups. They’re scrappier, more explosive—pulling off choreography that feels spontaneous. You see it most clearly in their latest comeback, “TAKEOVER,” where the aggressive, difficult moves send them lunging toward the audience like they might fly off the stage.

The boys were clearly excited to play Nashville, a city that—as we discussed in our backstage interview—has only hosted a handful of K-Pop acts. The first group to do so, as YE CHAN proudly mentioned on stage, was his brother KEEHO’s group, P1HARMONY. That show was a landmark moment for Music City—and one I was grateful to cover for this blog. Reviewing both concerts, and talking with YE CHAN about that connection in our upcoming interview, felt like a full-circle moment.

It’s important for groups like 82MAJOR to come to the South—for fans who’ve never been exposed to K-Pop to get the chance to see it live. And at $60 a ticket, you won’t find a group more promising. 82MAJOR breaks the mold of what we think K-Pop should sound and feel like. I can’t think of any group more aggressively pushing back on the status quo.

Near the end of the show, as they said their goodbyes, YE CHAN left Nashville fans with a promise. He understood the assignment. He knew how much it means for fans here to feel seen.

“We’ll be back,” YE CHAN said, “because we want y’all to have more K-Pop here.”