‘Knock Knock,’ TWICE Is in NYC
100,000 K-pop fans support TWICE at their “4th World Tour ‘III’”
TWICE waves to their fans toward the end of their “MOONLIGHT” performance.
March 12, 2022
With seven sold-out shows in their North American tour “4th World Tour ‘III,’” the sensational Korean pop girl group TWICE made their way across the globe from South Korea to the United States. The nine women performed two nights, Feb. 26 and 27, at the UBS Arena in Belmont Park, New York.
TWICE arrived in the U.S. for the second time, after initially coming to the U.S. for their 2019 “TWICELIGHTS” tour. This time around, they performed with all nine group members. During the 2019 tour, one member, Mina, was absent because of a mental health hiatus.
Since it is so rare that K-pop groups come to foreign countries, concertgoers from all around the Northeast area made their way to New York City to attend the shows. TWICE’s “4th World Tour ‘III’” in NYC also attracted quite a few K-pop fans from Fordham. My friend Bri Singh, Gabelli School of Business at Lincoln Center ’25, and I attended the concert together. Bri had been a fan of TWICE’s music for a while, and she was super excited to see them perform live.
The girls rose up from under the stage as the deafening screams from their fans could be heard over the loud, booming music.
TWICE kicked off their performance with their recent track, “The Feels,” their first released song entirely sung in English rather than Korean. The girls rose up from under the stage as the deafening screams from their fans, who are referred to as ONCE, could be heard over the loud, booming music.
A sea of glowing pink and orange lights filled the arena illuminated by the CandyBongZ, the name of TWICE’s official light stick. South Korean artists usually produce 응원봉 for their fans, which translates to “cheering stick,” and fans bring these sticks to live concerts. ONCE belted their lungs out to the lively upbeat pop song, shaking their light sticks high up in the air.
Following “The Feels,” an even louder uproar of cheers filled the space as “Feel Special” began to play, and the girls assembled into their choreographed formation. After performing two B-side songs from their 2020 album “Eyes Wide Open,” the girls took time on stage to say their greetings. Everyone prepared an introduction in English, and the crowd cheered in support of each member.
TWICE member Nayeon riled up the crowd by telling them to scream “New York!” after she said, “TWICE in …,” and an unmatchable roar erupted from the fans as they screamed “New York!”
In addition to their main singles, TWICE prepared performances for all 16 songs from their latest album, “Formula of Love: O+T=<3,” which was released this past fall. Fans could be heard loudly singing along and happily yelling out to the chorus of each song, especially to the admirable track “ESPRESSO.” Fans sang along to Momo’s part, “E-S-P-R-E-S-S-O, that’s who I am,” to the point that Momo’s voice could not be heard.
The girls performed their three-member unit songs, “PUSH & PULL,” “HELLO,” and “1, 3, 2.” ONCE were especially excited to see the stage for “HELLO,” as many fans were wearing sparkly pink cowboy hats in honor of the song’s stage outfits.
After a few ballads, TWICE concluded their concert with an encore. A large spinning wheel was placed on stage, and 18 of their most popular songs were written on the wheel. Whichever song the wheel landed on, they would perform it. TWICE concluded their first NYC performance with “TT,” “FIREWORK,” “YES or YES,” “Like Ooh-Ahh” and “Signal.”
After three years, K-pop fans in NYC gave TWICE a loud and enthusiastic welcome to the U.S. The two NYC performances conclude TWICE’s North American leg of the tour, and the group headed back to South Korea the following Monday after meeting 100,000 fans at their seven shows.
