G-Dragon returned to Australia last week almost two years after BIGBANG‘s world tour first brought him to Sydney, and this time, he came on his own. He proved his influence and popularity even as a solo artist with a packed-out arena filled with V.I.P light-sticks and fans ready to party with BIGBANG’s leader.

Despite Sydney being the 16th stop of a jam-packed tour schedule which has so far seen G-Dragon perform in South Korea, Macau, Singapore, Thailand, the U.S. and Canada, he made sure to give his all for Australian V.I.P. The concert began with a throwback to 2009 with classics like ‘Heartbeat’ and ‘A Boy’ and I was surprised to see him harmonise with his own voice in the back-up recording, showing off powerful adlibs alongside smooth choreography.

The concept of the show became clear quite quickly: it aims to depict the internal struggle in balancing on-stage and offstage personas, and the emotional and mental frustrations with which come hand-in-hand. It is definitely a heavy concept and not one which can be pulled off easily. Production-wise, I felt that the effort that went into each and every artistic decision played a large part in adding a sense of surrealism to the concert. This included the likes of projecting real-time concert footage coloured blue and over-sized while simultaneously projecting what appeared to be scenes from an old music video. The juxtaposition of old and new added to the realisation of just how long Kwon Jiyong has lived as G-Dragon, and how much of an impact he has had on individuals all around the world.

Smoke, harnesses and floating choreography gave aspects of the concert a dream-like feeling while other songs were reinvented with jazz or rock inspirations thanks to the live band playing alongside G-Dragon. Fans sang and danced along to hits including ‘Michigo’, ‘One of a Kind’ and ‘Who You’.

Video interviews with G-Dragon’s friends and family discussed the differences between the on-stage G-Dragon and the off-stage Kwon Jiyong. We were presented with a personal video by the man himself, speaking blatantly – and with a sense of genuine concern – about the persona and what it means to him. He gives an interesting analogy of sparky, fancy clothes. He comments that he always tries to dress in a certain way as ‘G-Dragon’, though there are times when the clothes feel very heavy on his shoulders; nevertheless, he is afraid to take them off. It’s a simple but powerful analogy reflecting the short life-span of the celebrity career. He has made a name and an image for himself, and he has gained the love and admiration of thousands. Yet, acknowledging that popularity can disappear without a moment’s notice, he is afraid to take a step back and live his life as the real Kwon Jiyong. He is worried about the vulnerability that will follow the removal of such a powerful safety blanket. Despite these fears and concerns he expresses his desire to live as Kwon Jiyong from now on, wishing that he can be someone who still shines… even “without all these shiny things on.”

I will repeat myself in saying that this concert has a very heavy and difficult to execute concept, and I will be honest in saying that after the video message ended and G-Dragon returned to the stage, I felt that a lot of the concept was lost. Or was it? There are two ways I interpreted the concert post-video message. The video message ends with G-Dragon saying he wishes to henceforth be Kwon Jiyong – (not necessarily in name, but in personality) – and the final sentence uttered before the screen goes blank is “Who am I?” The reason I initially felt the concept was lost after this video was because when G-Dragon returned to the stage, I was expecting a change of some sort; something to signify that he is taking control of his fears and choosing to be himself. I was consequently disappointed to find the remainder of the concert the same as the start – it was G-Dragon wearing G-Dragon’s clothes, performing as G-Dragon. I was slightly let-down as I (perhaps wrongly) expected to real Kwon Jiyong. In retrospect, I wonder if it was a deliberate decision. Could it be that after the final “who am I” rhetorical question, G-Dragon decided that he wasn’t ready to take off his shiny embellishments and reveal his true self? Alternatively, could he have found a healthy balance between G-Dragon and Kwon Jiyong, and is it merely a matter of observers not being able to recognise the difference?

The is one last aspect of this concert I’d like to discuss. At the end of the concert – though soon to be followed by an encore – G-Dragon said his goodbyes to the fans. This in itself is common practice, though what made it interesting was the fact that the farewell speech, right from the blue-sky-and-clouds projected background to the giant door creeping open, was a nod to the final scene of ‘The Truman Show’. “Good afternoon, good evening, and good night.” Those who have watched the hit film will know that the movie revolved around a man whose entire life unknowingly took place in a giant dome created by a TV broadcast station for the entire world to watch his every move; reality TV in the most literal sense. What might this film have to do with the message G-Dragon was trying to express through this concert? I recall one of Truman’s final lines in the films, “I never had a camera in my head.” Perhaps what G-Dragon is suggesting is that his life as ‘G-Dragon’ has had his every move captured by paparazzi and every word criticised by strangers who only know him for what they have seen through a screen. He has finally gathered up the courage to take off his shiny attire and live as Kwon Jiyong, and he is bidding farewell to those who have until then observed G-Dragon’s life from afar. He is stepping out of the dome and into reality. An easy decision? Absolutely not. A good one? I think so.

‘Act III: MOTTE’ is a very personal concert filled to the brim with symbolism. The more I reflect upon it, the more I find myself beginning to view G-Dragon in a different light. While there were certainly aspects of the concert I wasn’t ecstatic about – for example, I’m still confused about the bloodied shirt in the encore – I do believe that a very good portion of what happened were strategic moves aimed towards an artistic purpose. I look forward to what is to come in G-Dragon’s future and I am confident that no matter what happens or what clothes he wears, he will shine.

Photo supplied. Courtesy of YG Entertainment and IME.

Source: Hello Asia

It was a first for Brisbane – the king of K-pop in an arena concert in OUR city?! Brisbane fans are accustomed to travelling to Sydney or Melbourne to ir idols, and for the second time this year (following GOT7’s visit in April) they’re coming to US? But it happened, on a chilly Tuesday night in August, and today Brisbane’s K-pop community is basking in the bittersweet post-concert blues, many doubtless still clutching VIP lightsticks and wearing their gold and silver streamers salvaged from the Entertainment Centre floor.

At 7:30pm, the Entertainment Centre – Brisbane’s biggest venue with a capacity of 13,500 – felt oddly intimate. A weeknight show, the second of three in our Great Southern Land, and steep ticket prices meant the space was far from packed to the rafters. The top rows of stalls had been covered, the seated punters invited closer to the stage. Lucky fans by the dozen found themselves winners of last minute tickets in the 24 hours before showtime, myself included – my section 20A-3 Row Z seats in the sky somehow transformed into a VIP lanyard and I found myself standing with the diehard fans who had paid upwards of $500 for the privilege of proximity. Though it seemed disappointing at first to room less than full, it proved a blessing in disguise as time wore on and the nature of the concert was revealed.

At 8pm, half an hour after the scheduled start time, the lights went down and the anticipation went through the roof. The staging screens showed a heart monitor going into cardiac arrest, and when the screaming hit a fever pitch, Kwon Jiyong appeared in the centre of the elevated platform – one man, a huge stage, dazzling pyrotechnics, a mullet (how Australian) and his very first solo hit, “Heartbreaker”.

The setlist followed the chronology of G-Dragon’s career – from his 2009 solo debut through the One of a Kind era and ending with his most recent offerings from his self-titled mini-album Kwon Jiyong. It was a setlist that did not disappoint fans, although the title track from his 2013 record Coup d’Etat was noticeably absent. The live 4-piece band bring a new life to his music beyond that of the recordings, with searing guitar solos, Caribbean beats and synth horn stabs adding new textures and showmanship.

A lazy, effortless performance style is GD’s signature, and this show was no different – he sang and rapped only the most important lines of his songs, allowing the recorded guide track to take the rest, and danced with an easy and practiced flow. Often he was the only person onstage, and he used it to great effect – at times expanding his presence to command the space, and at other times letting it engulf him.

Halfway through the show things started to change, and a more vulnerable, human element pushed through the bombast. After a video sequence interviewing the idol’s friends and family (including fellow Bigbang members, celebrities and his own mum and dad) about the duality of his career persona versus the man, the son, the friend, G-Dragon returned to the stage as Kwon Jiyong. This is when the smaller crowd made the biggest difference – as Kwon Jiyong stood inviting us into his world, sharing his troubles and baring his soul, individual calls of “we love you” and “you aren’t alone” rang clear across the arena. It was easy to tell he heard every one of them.

There was one big issue with the show: the audio mix. G-Dragon is a tenor, meaning his voice is in the higher range for male singers, but it was often barely audible over the all-consuming bass. Bass player Omar “ODub” Dominick is an incredibly skilled player, and it’s not at all his fault that his instrument was most forward in the mix, certain bass frequencies actually rattled the whole venue, and I kept waiting for the sound crew in the bio box to fix it – but they never did. I have a theory the foldback mix wasn’t much better – GD abandoned his in-ear monitors during his fourth song and let them hang free for the rest of the show.

The master of drawing a response from a crowd, Kwon Jiyong gave out plenty of finger hearts throughout the show, and caused minor hysteria during his song “Missing You”, when he pointed at fans all over the arena – “I’m missing you, you, you, you…” He spoke English eloquently and almost exclusively every time he addressed the audience, and he let that vulnerability into his words, as though speaking to old friends. “Hello Brisbane. This is Motte Part 3 and I’m Kwon Jiyong. Welcome to the show.” “It’s my first full show in Brisbane ever. Is it enough?” His finale, the stripped-back “Unwritten, 2014” saw him disappear into the pit in front of the stage, just feet from the fans, a warm smile on his face and an apparent reluctance to let the night end obvious as he stopped to chat with guitarist Justin Lyons on his way off the stage.

With his military service looming, it may be quite some time before Kwon Jiyong can return to Brisbane, but I hope that when he does he finds a bigger crowd to share his passion and more light sticks than phone screens in the air. After all, he gave us his word – “I’m not sure when I can come back, but I will, I will. I promise you.”

Image Supplied. Courtesy of YG Entertainment and IME.

Source: Hello Asia

G-Dragon finally arrived in Melbourne for the third leg of his Australian tour. On a cold spitting winter’s night, the leader of BIGBANG gathered fans at Hisense Arena for his Act III: Motte World Tour on the 12th August.

Despite being a big venue, the arena was basically filled up with passionate VIP’s singing along to the music even before the show started. Lights dimmed, cheering soared through the roof and G-Dragon finally took the stage with his solo debut track ‘Heartbreaker’

A series of his classic songs such as ‘One of a Kind’, ‘That XX’ and ‘Crooked’ were sung in order of when they released. It was like walking through time and seeing his musical development over the years. The stage transformation was breathtaking and the use of lighting, fire and fireworks brought fan’s screams to their peak! The contrast of GD’s all red look against a sea of yellow VIPs clutching onto their lightsticks riding to the rhythm of each song was truly amazing.

There was a very GD feel to the concert. Quirky, weird, high energy, very rap and hip hop focused. Despite choreographed, the dancing had a very laid back feel to it. And even being a solo act without his fellow BIGBANG members, he was able to fill up the stage and never letting you feel a glimpse of emptiness.

But all things seemed to change when we hit the halfway mark to the concert. A series of video footage was played, starting with video interviews with his family and friends about who is G-Dragon, who is Kwon Jiyong, and if there is a difference between the two. It finished off with a video of himself talking to the camera, confessing that him himself doesn’t really know the difference either. The footage cut out and “Who Am I?” were the only words left on screen.

The singer came back on stage stripped of his red clothes. I personally saw that as a way of him letting down his stage persona and opening up to the audience to see a more personal side of Kwon Jiyong. Not dressed ‘shiny’ (as he would describe it) but at the same time, bits of red were part of his white outfit as well as keeping on a red cap. Almost like Kwon Jiyong telling us G-Dragon will forever be a part of him, but not consuming all of him. Since his previous three outfit changes were all red from head to toe.

Returning with ‘Super Star’ after the videos played was very impactful as he stood on a high platform singing “I need somebody. I ain’t got nobody” almost as if it’s like a cry for help and showing his vulnerability as he deals with who he is really is when the lights go off and the cheers stop.

This was also the first time it felt like the stage was empty. G-Dragon, or should I say Kwon Jiyong standing there by himself having the big stage engulf him. In almost all white, he stood there alone with just a mic stand. He confessed that there were times he felt lonely and never expected himself to make it this far. He said “Jiyong is a shy boy, I thought you won’t get me, but you get me”. To give him support and let him know he wasn’t alone, the fans chanted “Kwon Jiyong” repeatedly putting a smile on GD’s face as well as gifting his fans a cute round of applause.

To my surprise, G-Dragon spoke in pretty fluent English all night adding a personal touch to the concert. The singer provided lots of fan service sending out finger hearts, winks and even jumped off stage during his performance of ‘Untitled, 2014’.

My only downside to the concert was the overly loud audio making it quite deafening at times. As a lot of his songs were remixed, at times it felt like G-Dragon’s voice was masked by the background music.

All in all, Act III: Motte very intimate and unique concert concept; but it matches well with the concept of his latest album, Kwon Jiyong. Especially with his last outfit change. A blood stained looking shirt was strapped to him, which links back to the blood stained looking USB album he just released mimicking the blood on a new born from a mother’s womb. It felt like a very personal meeting seeing the struggle of this man juggling between his on and off stage presence. It’s quite a heavy and dark theme as compared to a lot of bright and energetic kpop concepts and music. It makes you remember behind the bright lights, the fancy clothes; that he too, is just a regular human living a superstar life. It was quite an experience and I shall look forward to where G-Dragon will be taking us from here on.

Photos by Anthony Smith.

Source: Hello Asia