Highlights of Be You 2: The World Will Care Manila concert

The recently concluded Be You 2: The World Will Care Manila concert at the Araneta Coliseum last December 9, 2022 was truly a remarkable celebration of diversity. Whatever race, age, gender, or even fandom, everyone was welcome and had the time of their lives at the party.

Made possible by ​​Neuwave Events & Productions, Be You 2: The World Will Care was specifically a tribute to the elderly, bringing the spotlight to our seniors. The show started with clips of lolo and lola sharing their stories of hardships, and their longing to be cared for, respected, and loved.

The lineup was also one for the books, a dream come true to a lot of the 2nd to 3rd generation Kpop fans who waited for a long time to see their idols come to the Philippines. From BoA, TVXQ, EXO’s Xiumin and Chen, and local acts including Lady Pipay, G22, Ian Veneracion, and Pilita Corrales, the Be You 2 Manila stage was a testament that the waiting and anticipation were worth it.

A+ FAN SERVICE: PILITA CORRALES AND IAN VENERACION

Opening the Be You 2 stage is none other than Filipino pop singer and actress Pilita Corrales, who performed the classic songs “A Million Thanks to You” and “Besame Mucho”. She wowed the young crowd with her energy, and connected with the audience right away with her humor. The Asia’s Queen of Songs said she felt like a Kpop star with all the cheers, and even teased the coliseum by saying she had a glimpse of the Kpop stars backstage and wanted to kiss one of them!

Next up was Filipino actor Ian Veneracion, who surprised the audience with his singing. He performed “Handog” and “Don’t Know What To Say (Don’t Know What To Do)”, and wasted no time while singing by going straight to the audience to accommodate selfies and hugs! He even carried a fan onstage to prove his A++ fan service!

THE RISE OF FILIPINO ARTISTS: G22 & Lady Pipay

P-POP RISE! G22 made sure to up the tempo of the Be You 2 stage by performing their own songs “BANG” and “Takin’ Over”. Their stage presence commanded attention, you can hear the crowd of mostly Kpop fans enjoy and scream “Slay!”. The four-member Filipino girl group left a mark by hyping the audience with their power vocals and choreography.

When Lady Pipay took over the stage, she added a different flavor to the lineup by showcasing not only her singing and dancing skills, but also giving us an aerial dance performance of “True Colors”. As if this wasn’t enough to showcase Lady Pipay’s talent, straight from her acrobatics, she made sure to keep the hype up with a performance of “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” and “Let’s Groove”.

WELCOME BACK TO MANILA, EXO XIUMIN AND CHEN!

Right on cue, lights of the Eribongs (EXO’s official lightstick) filled Araneta Coliseum as EXO Xiumin stepped onstage. Fans who’ve been waiting for so long were given a treat that night as EXO’s hyung (eldest member) performed four tracks from his first mini album Brand New, including “Brand New”, “Serenity”, “Love Letter”, and “Feedback”.

After performing “Love Letter”, Xiumin asked the audience if everyone received his heart because this song is his love letter for all the EXO-Ls. Before his last song, he promised to be back, hopefully with the other EXO members.

“You kept your promise to wear violet.” – EXO Chen

EXO Chen went onstage and noticed how EXO-Ls kept their promise and were wearing violet. He serenaded his fans with songs from his mini albums, including “Last Scene”, “I Don’t Even Mind”, and “Shall We?”. He said that he remembers Filipino fans having the loudest cheers, and would love to sing together for his last song.

The crowd went wild when the song was “Everytime”, a popular Korean drama soundtrack from Descendants of the Sun. Chen is truly the OST King, and it was truly a moment for everyone in Be You 2: Manila!

FINALLY: TVXQ & BoA LIVE IN MANILA!

It was a long time coming, but finally, the iconic TVXQ has set foot in Manila to meet and perform for their PH Cassiopeia. Included in TVXQ Yunho and Changmin’s set-list were their songs “Maximum”, “Keep Your Head Down”, “Dream” and “Mirotic”.

By this time, you’ll think that Araneta will be out of energy after watching several performers, but boy was I wrong! The crowd went WILD, dancing and singing along with TVXQ, and finally doing the fan chants for their much awaited idols.

“It was our first time to perform in Manila, and we are so happy. We regret that we only got to visit now. But we are also honored to share this stage with our senior and junior artists, and even Filipino artists.”

Last and definitely not the least, the final artist to perform was none other than the Queen of Kpop herself: BoA! After decades of waiting, BoA made sure she gave her PH Jumpings a night to remember with beautiful performances of her songs “Better”, “Only One”, “Starry Night”, and her newest single “Forgive Me”. Her stage presence and visuals were truly unbelievable, safe to say the Queen was glowing!

During her ment, BoA was surprised when a part of the crowd started chanting yeppeuda or “pretty” in Korean language that she replied in jest, “Am I pretty? How come you speak Korean? Or you just know the word ‘yeppeuda’?”

The fan interaction continued in between her performances, then BoA left the audience with these memorable words fitting for that night:

“It doesn’t matter if you are an EXO-L, a Cassiopeia, or a Jumping BoA… You guys are all beautiful. Thanks for coming out tonight. Promise I’ll be back!”

As the much-awaited concert came to its end, all the guest Kpop artists went back onstage to do a final curtain call. The SM Entertainment artists took turns with the mic to say their thank yous and goodbyes to their Filipino fans, Girls’ Generation’s “Forever 1” instrumentals as background music. The crowd then started singing, dancing and even jumping, and then chanted “SM TOWN! SM TOWN” in unison! No doubt everyone in the audience went home pumped, and wanting for more! Hopefully a BE YOU 3 in 2023? 😉