Doh Kyungsoo, known as D.O., one of the main vocalists of the South Korean boy band EXO, has finally returned to Manila for a two-day show as part of his 2024 Doh Kyungsoo Asia Fan Concert Tour “Bloom.”
It can be recalled that Doh Kyungsoo wasn’t able to come to Manila during “EXO PLANET #5 — EXplOration” in Manila on 2019 due to his military enlistment, therefore having his last visit to the country in 2018 for “EXO PLANET #4 — The EℓyXiOn.” All six years of waiting were kept out of sight as PH EXO-Ls and Dandanies prepared for the much anticipated two-day show.
At the commencement of Wilbros Live’s announcement of the tour, Bloom in Manila was supposed to be a one-day show, but due to Manila’s enthusiasm, a second day was added due to fast-selling tickets that got sold out the same first day of the public selling.
Bloom in Manila kicked off last 31st of August of 2024 at the Araneta Coliseum, and started with an opening vcr that led to Doh Kyungsoo’s performance taking his fans to “Mars.” The event was hosted by the Filipino actress, singer, host/emcee, and K-pop fan herself, Denise Laurel. Having its stage set-up looking like a coloring book vibe inspired by Doh Kyungsoo’s music video “Mars,” fans were enchanted by his live performances and wit during the different segments.
There were two segments during the show which consisted of “Kyungsoo in Bloom,” where he gets to choose what flower he wants to explore and deep dive into a specific moment, as each flower has different questions and challenges that test Kyungsoo’s memory in remembering his early projects. Fans also got a treat with his live acapella samples based on his answers. Fun fact, that the flower visuals flashed on the screen were drawn by himself, which then again showed a different kind of artist that he is.
Inside the “Kyungsoo in Bloom” segment was also a part where Kyungsoo got the chance to read fan messages stuck on the message wall that contained love messages, requests, greetings, and the like. The second segment was the “to DO list” that checks off Doh Kyungsoo’s things that he wanted to perform a bit in Manila. Some songs took fans to a trip down memory lane performing songs from the past albums. The main highlight of it all was when he sang “Hawak Kamay,” which most PH EXO-Ls will remember as the OPM song that EXO performed way back in 2013 for their Dream K-pop Fantasy concert.
After the fun and interacting segments, Doh Kyungsoo continued on independently as the host exited already to give way to continue alone with his interactive ments and performances. The performances were a mix from all his different albums and singles consisting of “Simple Joys,” “That’s Okay,” “I Do,” “My Dear,” “Ordinary Days,” “Good Night,” “About Time,” “Somebody,” and “Popcorn” as his encore performance with a special participation of Manila’s loud fan chants and cheers.
As the show is about to come to an end, Kyungsoo asks his fans to strike a pose for a group photo with the hand banner fan project by his Filipino fans, but to his surprise, a fan video project was also prepared and flashed on the screen after. Doh Kyungsoo was really captivated by the energy and continued loud cheers brought to him by fans, as he said he never imagined that the Philippines is that passionate, therefore concluding the show with a promise to come back to Manila as soon as he could with a song that suits Manila’s energy, a more hyped song to jive with.
After the show, VIP ticket holders got an exclusive send-off session to say goodbye to the artist for the last time and even let him read fan banners. The day two event was held on September 1, 2024.
2024 Doh Kyungsoo Asia Fan Concert Tour Manila leg was made possible by Wilbros Live.
