Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Jackson Wang Brings MAGICMAN II’s Theatrical Spectacle to Vancouver
If you didn’t know Jackson Wang before Sunday night, you definitely left the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre knowing exactly who he is.
Jackson Wang is a Hong Kong-born artist who first gained international recognition as a member of K-pop group GOT7 before launching his solo career in 2017. Since then, he’s built a reputation that extends far beyond music, headlining global tours, performing at Coachella, and founding his own fashion label, Team Wang. He’s also been unusually candid about the pressures of the entertainment industry, and his 2025 album MAGICMAN 2 marked a return after a year-long hiatus, offering a more introspective and emotionally raw body of work than its predecessor.
I’ll admit I wasn’t deeply familiar with Jackson Wang‘s discography going into this show. But I’d heard the hype that his concerts were more theatrical productions than standard arena performances, and I was curious to see what all the fuss was about.
Walking into the venue last night, you could feel the energy form the fans. This was a sold-out crowd, and the devotion of Wang‘s fanbase was evident before the lights even dimmed. No opener meant all eyes were fixed on that stage from the moment doors opened. Though lightsticks weren’t permitted, fans improvised with small finger lights, creating that signature sea of glowing lights you’d expect at a K-pop show.
When the venue went dark, the screams were immediate ; the fans behind me already losing their voices. A cinematic intro played across the massive screens. The MAGICMAN II tour is structured almost like a film, divided into narrative arcs with video interludes bridging each section. Then Wang appeared, suspended mid-air on wires, a single spotlight cutting through the darkness. “High Alone” kicked off the night with him literally running in place above his dancers before descending to join them.
From there, the production only intensified. “Access” brought flames shooting from the stage, deep red lighting washing over the arena, and dancers in black with matching dark eye makeup mirroring Wang‘s MAGICMAN alter ego. The choreography was sharp, the atmosphere thick with smoke and lasers. It looked like a visual album brought to life in front of us.
The emotional turns came quickly. “Hate to Love” slowed things down as fog rolled across the stage, and by the end of the song, dancers were physically restraining Wang, pulling at his clothing until he reemerged in a mesh tank top under red light. I lived the drama of it all as Wang leaned into the theatricality of vulnerability here.
Then came the fan service. Wang invited audience members onstage (first one, then a group of four) seating them at centre stage while he and his dancers performed around them. The choreography was sensual, almost Magic Mike-esque, complete with body rolls and hip thrusts. The participants looked both shocked and thrilled, and the crowd absolutely lost it. A girl behind told her friends “I would do anything to be on that stage with him.”
Another video interlude shifted the mood again. Onscreen, Wang appeared in crisis, drinking heavily, breaking down emotionally, his dark alter ego looming. When he returned to the stage in a loose, straitjacket-inspired white outfit, it was clear we’d entered the most introspective portion of the night. “Blue” and “Everything” hit hard, with dancers floating around him in slow, fluid movements. For “Dopamine,” he asked the audience to raise their phone (and finger) flashlights. It was genuinely beautiful.
The hip-hop segment that followed brought the high energy back up. Wang and his dancers returned in baggy sweats and baseball caps, launching into “BUCK,” “Let Loose,” “TITANIC,” and “GBAD.” “Get your fucking ass up, Vancouver. You guys worked hard, you deserve to fucking have fun!” he told us before the bass dropped. The crowd obliged right away.
A nearly ten-minute video monologue preceded the final act, featuring behind-the-scenes footage and Wang reflecting on his year away from music, reconnecting with himself, with his parents, with what actually matters. When he returned to perform “Sophie Ricky,” a ballad dedicated to his parents, childhood photos flickered across the screens in a tender and earnest moment.
The encore was less a traditional finale than a full-blown afterparty. Green lasers flooded the venue, and Wang, living up to his party man reputation, went down in the pit and pulled fans onstage. For nearly thirty minutes, the arena became a dance floor. His parting message was simple: be yourself, and cherish the people around you.
Walking out into the night, I understood the devotion. Jackson Wang shared a raw version of himself with us during this show. And that kind of honesty, wrapped in this much spectacle, is rare.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
Upcoming MAGICMAN II tour dates:
04/08 Rosemont, IL – Allstate Arena
04/10 Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
04/12 Toronto, ON – Coca-Cola Coliseum
More information via Ticketmaster.
JACKSON WANG IN VANCOUVER
All Photo Credit: Caroline Charruyer
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: aespa Close North American Tour With a Futuristic Spectacle in Vancouver
My K-pop education continued on October 11 as aespa brought their SYNK : COMPLæXITY Tour to Rogers Arena in Vancouver. After seeing TWICE in January and IVE in August, this was my third concert foray into K-pop. I was excited to see how aespa would compare, and the answer was a little different from my first two experiences. Where TWICE brought the fun and IVE delivered its own polished pop spectacle, aespa leaned into futuristic visuals, heavy electronic production and choreography that rarely let up.
With no opening act, the stage belonged entirely to Karina, Winter, Giselle and Ningning. Vancouver marked the final stop of the North American leg before the group heads to Europe in January, making this the last chance for fans on this side of the Atlantic to see the production for a while.
There had been some concern about Giselle’s participation after she left the stage five songs into the group’s October 9 show at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. Thankfully, she was back in Vancouver. Both she and Winter mentioned having a cold, but you wouldn’t have known it from their performances. Neither appeared to let it get in the way, and both delivered strong performances throughout the night.
The show opened with “LEMONADE,” immediately filling Rogers Arena with heavy bass, electronic beats and futuristic visuals. The production was massive, but the sound mix occasionally worked against the group. At points, the bass threatened to overpower the vocals, which was frustrating when four singers this capable were onstage.
“Switchblade” and “Whiplash” kept the momentum going before aespa reached back to its 2020 debut single, “Black Mamba.” The choreography remained sharp, and the group’s ability to move between demanding routines and vocal passages without losing its composure was impressive. “WDA (Whole Different Animal)” brought a harder hip-hop edge, with Giselle’s rap standing out against the heavy production.
The concert was divided into five acts, with cinematic video segments building on the group’s fictional universe. The story occasionally felt like a lot to keep up with, particularly for someone who hasn’t followed every chapter of aespa‘s mythology. Still, the visuals gave the show a clear identity. The production had a narrative thread running through it.
The second act offered a welcome change of pace. Karina introduced “Count on Me” on a piano, leading into a softer arrangement that let the members’ voices take centre stage. “Camouflage” and “Angel #48” continued the dreamier stretch. These moments were a reminder that aespa doesn’t need a wall of bass and flashing screens to hold an audience’s attention.
The solo and duet stages were among my favourite parts of the night. Giselle and Ningning brought a relaxed feel to “Lollipop,” while Karina and Winter took a more energetic approach with “Serenade.” Each pairing had its own character, making the performances feel distinct rather than like variations on the same routine.
The four solo performances gave the members even more room to show what they could do. Ningning’s “I Love You But I Gotta Let You Go” built from restrained verses into soaring high notes, while Karina’s “16 Bit” relied on a more understated, moody delivery. Giselle showed a softer side on “BYEB4HELLO,” moving beyond her usual rap role, and Winter’s “Saddle Up” put her choreography and stage confidence front and centre.
These performances made a strong case for the individual personalities within aespa. The group’s sleek, coordinated image is part of its appeal, but seeing the members step outside that format made the concert more interesting.
The heavier material returned with “Armageddon” and “Bite,” followed by a run of choreography-driven performances including “Next Level,” “SHAKIN’” and “Supernova.” The dancers added scale to the show, and the synchronized routines looked particularly effective against the digital scenery. By this point, the production had made its point: aespa knows how to turn its music into a full arena experience.
The pre-encore dance challenge was a fun change of pace, with cameras scanning the crowd and giving fans a chance to show off their moves on the big screens. The segment ended with an (shy) audience singalong to “Roll” before aespa returned for “Yeppi Yeppi” and “’Til We Die.”
As someone still getting to know K-pop, I appreciated the range. The spectacle was impressive, but the quieter songs and individual stages stopped the night from becoming one long sensory overload. The sound mix could have been better, and some of the storyline went over my head, but those were minor complaints in a show packed with strong performances.
TWICE got me curious about K-pop, and IVE gave me another reason to keep exploring it. aespa made a convincing case for sticking around. Their Vancouver show was loud, visually striking and full of personality, with four performers who could hold Rogers Arena’s attention even when the production threatened to steal it. That’s a solid way to close out a North American tour.
Upcoming Aespa – SYNK : COMPLæXITY’ World Tour Dates:
01/14 – Manchester, United Kingdom @ AO Arena
01/16 – London, United Kingdom @ The O2
01/19 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Ziggo Dome
01/22 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Avicii Arena
01/24 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Royal Arena
01/26 – Berlin, Germany @ Uber Arena
01/29 – Milan, Italy @ Unipol Dome
01/31 – Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi
02/02 – Paris, France @ Accor Arena
More information here.
Concerts Reviews
LØLØ Brings her ‘God Forbid a Girl Goes on Tour’ to the Pearl in Vancouver
LØLØ brought her second headlining tour – aptly named “God Forbid a Girl Goes on Tour” – to Vancouver this week, a first for the Canada-born artist. We’ve been a fan since we first heard “Death Wish” back in 2021, which seems like it was yesterday, and we aren’t going to overthink that right now. That being said, we’ve been waiting a long time for this night, and what a show!
We’ve been frequenting The Pearl more and more lately, and like so many others this show was sold out and packed wall-to-wall. There was a small mob for the first opener of the night, Dawson Gamble, and the floor was packed by the time Con the Artist took the stage. When LØLØ appeared, it was all plaid miniskirts and devil horns from the stage to the merch booth.
When the lights went down, LØLØ’s voice boomed over the speakers, narrating excerpts from a journal. LØLØ is not a choreographed, over-polished pop princess. Like so many artists that grew their audience from nothing, she does her best to connect with individuals in the audience. She takes her time, holds their hands, and during one memorable song, brings them on stage to dance.
“I think that people don’t want perfection,” she told Rolling Stone earlier this year. “They just want to see a live show and a special moment.”
LØLØ was very upfront about her adventures online, finding her voice, and time spent during COVID, and from the vibe you have to assume the audience had been there with her the entire time. From “The Floor is Lava” to “Faceplant,” all the hits were covered and sung along to. Speaking of which…
Must Hear Songs by LØLØ (In Our Humble Opinion):
• “death wish” (Single, 2021)
• “Hot Girls in Hell” (falling for robots, 2023)
• “u turn me on (but you give me depression)” (falling for robots, 2023)
• “Let It Go” (A Whole New Sound (Disney), 2024)
Fun fact: LØLØ was featured on a 2024 Disney punk album alongside Simple Plan, Magnolia Park, and Yellow Card, to name a few iconic bands. Check out her version of “Let It Go” from “Frozen.” It’s unexpected and a lot of fun.
LØLØ ‘s first moment of viral fame was her cover of “Hey There Delilah,” updated and sung from Delilah’s perspective. Pulling Con the Artist back on stage for a duet gave the crowd a wonderful, heartfelt moment that was honestly quite touching. Not everyone’s favorite song, but a lovely moment for everyone in the audience.
LØLØ, with several incredible songs in her library and with a stack of “Warped Tour” appearances already in the books, seems poised to breakthrough to the next level. She’s electric on stage, and animated, and we can only dream of the day she is given more space to play. Until then, another highlight concert of 2026, and something to think about until her next visit!
LØLØ Setlist:
• the devil wears converse
• pretty little wreck
• god forbid a girl spits out her feelings!
• THE FLOOR IS LAVA!
• debbie downer
• me with no shirt on
• the punisher
• 2 of us
• u turn me on (but u give me depression)
• faceplant
• Hey There Delilah
• death wish
• delusional darling
• junkie
• DON’T!
• dumbest girl in the world
• wish i was a robot
• hot girls in hell
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery. Thanks for attending the show with us and for checking out our review!
LØLØ
All Photo Credit: Jason Martin