Throwback during Dean’s visit in Manila. I may not have the best view during the fanmeet, but hearing and seeing him live and hearing the rebels singing along with him already felt surreal to me. Here’s a short compilation clip of PH Rebels singing along with Dean.
Yes I know, I know that this blog post is already half unacceptable to check out since it arrived too late, but still I am posting this because the experience was just too memorable not to be shared.
August 6, 2016 marked the first ever visit of the great Korean soloist Dean in the Philippines for his very first overseas album promotion tour entitled 130 mood: TRBL Philippine Promo Tour which was made possible by MCA Music, aka Universal Music Philippines. This historical (for me, at least) event was held at the SM Skydome, SM North Edsa.
One of the promotional standees for Dean’s album promo tour in the Philippines which was spread all over the mall near the venue.
I would like to tell you guys that this event is not like those other fansigning events of other Kpop acts we usually see on the internet. Getting inside the venue was no easy ride.
So, for the attendees to be able to get in and see Dean’s greatness, they had to (a) buy a 130 mood: TRBL album from the provider (shoutout to Astroplus!); or (b) buy anything worth Php500.00 or above inside SM North Edsa (the mall which operates SM Skydome). The receipts obtained from doing either of these transactions grants them a ticket to the event. The sad part is only the first 1200 attendees who did the said transactions and presented their receipts could be admitted inside the venue.
If you think that doing either one of the transactions was just piece of cake, think again. I remember arriving very early at the venue (at like seven in the morning) in thoughts of securing a slot, and when I arrived, the line for availing an album (which opened at ten in the morning) had already surrounded almost the whole perimeter of SM North Edsa. I honestly did not expect that a lot of people would come since I did not know that Dean was already that popular in the Philippines. But since I really wanted to see Dean perform live, I calmly accepted the fact that there is a slim chance to be admitted inside the venue and went at the end of the line.
I almost died waiting in the line. I did not know where I got that much patience for me to be able to wait for four hours without knowing whether I can still go in or not.
So, this was the never-ending line of people I was talking about.
After a little while, a news came up that the albums provided by Astroplus were already sold out. That means that the four hours which I spent waiting in the line all went down the drainage for nothing. I was so angry at the organizer because they did not even inform us that the number of albums were that limited. Again, I had no choice but to accept it.
Minutes after knowing the bad news, I just found myself running inside the mall finding anything to buy so that I could still have a chance to go in, even if it’s very very little (this means I tried option B lol). I was taken aback that time, I didn’t know what to buy. All the friends I met there were girls and they all went in an Etude House stall, which I cannot afford doing. While taking fast footsteps finding something to buy, I saw this Krispy Kreme shop. I rushed to the counter and told the cashier to give me anything that’s worth Php500.00. The cashier was a little surprised about the amount I said so she was hesitant in giving me what I wanted. In the end, I went outside the mall to go to the ticket line with a couple of boxes filled with Krispy Kreme doughnuts on my hands.
Gladly, these two boxes of doughnuts were able to grant me a ticket to the event!!! I was so happy because after five or six hours of waiting in the line and running here and there, I finally got my stamped ticket right before my eyes!
Some of the friends I met while waiting for the event to start. Got a different level of separation anxiety after the event. :(
After securing our passes to the event, we took a break from all the tiring work and had a shot of refreshments. While waiting for the event to start, we stayed near the backdoor of the Skydome and made ourselves comfortable. Minutes passed and a group of bodyguards went out of the backdoor. All the attendees just around the corner were screaming and I was like “why are they doing that?” All of a sudden, Dean came out from the backdoor where the bodyguards came out!! I was surprised as fuck. I didn’t know what to do. I was like only a meter and a half away from Dean that time. His face was so clear. I did not even think that I would see him that near upon going to the promo tour. All I wanted was to see him perform. I felt so blessed.
Dean was really happy seeing all the fans waiting for him outside the venue. All throughout the barely one minute sudden appearance he made, all he did was wave at fans, greet them, and make series of small bows. You can tell that he was surprised at the massive amount of people who went to see him.
Even though I was still shaking out of excitement, I was lucky enough to take a couple of photos of him when he went out of that precious door.
I had trouble getting myself together after the unexpected encounter. All I was thinking when I was taking the photos was “God, I am so near. I am seeing Dean almost face to face now.”
Night came and the gates were finally opened for the attendees! My heart was thumping hard as I am finally seeing Dean perform live in a few minutes.
Some of the fancams of Dean’s performances (Videos by jleani26 on Youtube)
As expected, Dean was really good at stage. I did not even feel like crying while watching him perform. I just happily sang along with him until I ripped my throat out. Everyone was blissfully singing and screaming, which made me really happy (and at the same time it gave me goosebumps) because I know Dean felt very happy hearing our voices cheer for him. I felt like I was the happiest person that time.
Seeing Dean perform live was one of my dreams. 130 mood: TRBL Philippine Promo Tour made that dream possible. My newly found friends and I underwent a really tough time to be able to see him perform his songs, but all the numerous hours wasted while waiting in the line for nothing and all the dashing around were all worth it. I thought that day would end up being a wild goose chase but damn, I was able to see Dean. I’ll forever treasure that day.
Dear Dean, all the Filipino Rebels wish that the next time you come back here in the Philippines, it would be for a big concert. We hope to see you again soon!
