My Concert Experience at DAY6 3rd World Tour “Forever Young” in Jakarta

For the first time in 14 years as a K-Pop fan, I went to a concert (yay!). It was DAY6 3rd World Tour “Forever Young” in Jakarta additional show (Day 2) took place on Sunday, October 20th, 2024, at Beach City International Stadium (BCIS) in Jakarta. I went with my bestie, Tiara, and my work bestie, Pika, who were both being DAY6ismed by me (Young K should be proud of me!)

I am so glad that we made it despite a series of ticket dramas; we even almost gave up. And shout out to my other besties who fought dragons with us for the ticketing war: Ron, Hadi, and Robbi. Your time and effort are highly appreciated (nangis dikit). I also want to thank my old friend, Yesi, who gave me a recommendation for the trip to the concert even before we got the ticket. Sadly, Yesi didn’t make it to the concert because she had failed to secure the ticket.

Actually, it’s kind of funny that we failed hard in the ticketing war despite receiving so much help, but the problem was solved on a random Wednesday afternoon. I was randomly scrolled X and found that the promoter opened the limited “additional seat.” The most wanted cheapest section we aimed at first was not available for this offer, so we booked the other section that — of course — cost us more money.

D-Day

The concert started at 6.30 p.m., but I had been out of the house since the morning. It was because the trip group I was in decided that we needed to head out at 9.00 a.m. to avoid traffic due to the presidential inauguration on the same day. Also, some of us need to arrive early since we have business to do, from ticket exchange to freebie sharing.

The trip Yesi recommended turned out to be the most convenient trip ever because the meeting point wasn’t too far from my place. It cost Rp165.000 (two-way) including the meals for breakfast, with an optional lunch and dinner package (with an additional fee, of course). The trip was super organized, their staff are friendly, and they also gave away some cute freebies! I personally think that this trip is the biggest help because BCIS is so far and not really public transportation friendly.

We Were Lucky!

We arrived at BCIS around 10 in the morning. And because we purchased the ticket through the promoter’s website, we won’t know our seat number until we exchange our online ticket for wristbands. At the time, we confirmed that it doesn’t matter when you bought the ticket; the seat number is based on when you exchange it.

Pika exchanges her ticket first, Tiara and I (from one purchase) on the other lane. When Pika got the wristband, I overheard the staff saying, “Row-nya E ya, Kak.” That was kind of lightening me up because, according to the rumor, tickets purchased from this promoter website had the second priority (after their membership) to get the best seat. We bought “additional seat,” so we kind of expect to get the back row like X, Y, Z, or AA (yes, it’s up to AA, btw). When we got our wristband, we were super excited because not only did we really get the first 5 rows, we also got the center-left position. Seat number is up to around 100 per row; we got 58–60! WE WERE SO LUCKY!

The time we entered the concert hall, I was amazed because I never did imagine that we would get that row and seats. The stage was closer from what I imagined based on what people shared on the internet. And when I sat down, I realized that we were on Wonpil’s side! BABE, I AM HERE!

Show Time!

I felt anxious before the concert began, partly because I was inexperienced with the crowd. Bunkasai UNAND and the graduation ceremony were the largest crowds I could stand (about 1,000 people indoors). My stomach sank just thinking about being one among those 15,000 people there. My hands were trembling as I held the hand banner and tried to take pictures of the stage. It got better as the light turned off and the show began. I was able to put on earplugs before that because my ears are sensitive. Veteran My Days on X said that because DAY6 plays live instruments, their concert would have louder music than the other.

The stage lit up a little; a short narration appeared before the jumbotron; it was the opening words. Followed by that, one by one DAY6 members entering the stage with dramatic music (I don’t really remember the order). The lights went off again, and the next thing we heard was the iconic “dung dung tak tak” from the opening song “Best Part.” That moment felt unreal to me, as if I were living in my best dream. At that moment, I learned the overwhelming feeling that even the best fancam could never capture. I couldn’t help but cry for like a whole minute before managing to sing along with the crowds.

The music was insane; even with my earplugs on, it was still loud and clear. I now understand why people are suffering “budeg” after attending concerts in Bali and Surabaya without earplugs. I never imagined myself attending a concert, but the idea of DAY6 performing live was what inspired me the most. People weren’t kidding when they said, “You should listen to DAY6 live,” because while it’s not exactly the same as the album version (adlibs here and there!), it sounds so much better you could cry. Many of the songs in the live version may be more appealing to you.

I am very grateful that they still chose “Best Part” over “Welcome to the Show” as their opening song on this tour. I might listen to “Best Part” hundreds of times, but hearing it on the concert is the whole new experience. No wonder a lot of My Days write “Every moment’s gonna be my best part” on their bio because that line is unbelievably powerful, especially after you heard them singing it live.

During this Indonesia tour, we learned that DAY6 experienced some sound system issues. Fortunately, on the second day in Jakarta, things appeared to be going well. Members are all in a good mood and giving their most outstanding performance on stage. They were dressed in navy and, of course, looked really attractive on the jumbotrons. I won’t say it as if I saw them close enough, though.

I had already added the tour playlist on Spotify once it had been revealed at their first concert stop. I’m not sure if it’s because my brain wasn’t braining, but I just realized at the concert that they truly chose songs based on the vibe. It’s unfortunate that they didn’t include tracks from Entrophy and Remember Us, which are my favorites. On this tour, they played so many Sunrise and Moonrise songs that I (once again) realized how intense they were, such as “I Wait” and “Pouring.” There are also many songs that sound better live, such as “Better Better” and “Freely.”

The Members

I’d like to thank Sungjin for being on that stage in the center, fighting his demon, and singing again. His charm and charisma have grown even stronger this year, after a nearly 4-year hiatus from the band. I’m really proud of him for single-handedly doing the guitar part after the ex-member left. I know it wasn’t easy taking on the job alone, as they used to have two guitarists.

Importantly, he probably has no idea how he cured the severe Daddy issues in this fatherless country by simply being himself and giving off the “bapak-bapak” vibes. The way he looked confused when people called him “PAPAH” spoke a lot about his cluelessness. The audience would go wild just watching him adjust his sleeves. I think it’s unfair for a man to have an even bigger glow-up after turning 30.

Young K is just the man he always be — unbelievably charming, energetic, and so goofy while performing. He is giving the man you could only adore from afar because he set super clear boundaries around himself. He was the one who shouted, “Jump!” every time the song reached the climax, and the crowd would go crazy. He looked so damn happy performing, and I am super happy for him.

If I could, I would thank him for enduring all the hardship as the band’s backbone while they were on hiatus. I cried (a little!) once again after the fan project because he cried and still managed to deliver nice words to comfort us. Idk, the concert “ments” never really felt too personal when you see them on fancams (at least for me), but being right there, they speak through your heart.

And then there’s my man, Wonpil. This man had been performing with bangs for the previous three shows, but on this final performance, his forehead was exposed. His stylist clearly understands his target market, as wonpilmania (including myself) would go crazy about that. He was known as the adorable, gentle, and “babygirl” of the group, but his forehead appearance would completely alter his image. Same with Young K; Wonpil seemed overjoyed to be back on stage with the boys. Not to mention, bro has genuine “buaya darat” behavior; he was quite flirty, made frequent eye contact with My Days with his angeleyes, and winked a lot as well. Please have mercy on us; we are just girls!

In fancams, I occasionally notice Wonpil’s voice being unstable in some parts while singing live. At the concert, I was just smacked by his vocals since he sang well from the beginning to the end. His control is excellent; it wasn’t what I anticipated. It’s just that Sungjin and Young K are such great vocalists that even Wonpil seems to struggle at times. I’m not sure; I was so in love with his live voice that I believed fancams didn’t do him justice, lol.

Dowoon is constantly being himself. This guy is the true representation of “lucu” in both “kiyowo” and “funny.” Even after 10 years of debuting, he still appeared hesitant when speaking. This man is really funny; his expression sometimes looks like he’s holding onto a punchline to laugh about. Just looking at him will have you saying, “He is so cool!” “How can a 30-year-old man be this cute?” and “Bro! You are funny!”

He didn’t participate in the singing, but the members always gave him the opportunity to speak or introduce the following song. Every member works hard to play live, but I personally believe Dowoon works more. Playing drums isn’t easy, especially considering how strong their songs are. And seeing him that day made me glad Entropy songs weren’t on the list (because the rocks are rocking there and everything is intense).

Are We Happy? Totally!

Throughout the show, I was in awe of the performance, the hype, and everything else despite struggling because my GERD was flaring up. I snuck out an onigiri, but I was too overwhelmed to eat it. The fact that I was in an indoor stadium with 15,000 people gave me anxiety; I’ve never really been a fan of crowds after all. But if someone asks me if I was happy? The answer is definitely YES!

I enjoyed the concert in the best way possible: not recording too much on my phone so I could sing along and be fully present in the moment. It was so engraved in my head that I can even write this very comprehensive essay about the experience alone lol. I think it was one of the most memorable parts of my late 20s because I don’t think I’ve ever tried so many things outside my comfort zone when I already know exactly where that comfort zone is.

In conclusion, DAY6 3rd World Tour “Forever Young” in Jakarta brought me joy and happiness after quite a while. Life has been a little shitty, and even after that concert, it somehow got even shittier, but I am genuinely, truthfully happy that I got to experience it.

And… surprise! This might sound cwajy, but by the time I published this, the concert had already happened almost two years ago, but this draft has been sitting there since then. DAY6 even had another concert last year, and something even more memorable (in a traumatic way) happened there that probably caused DAY6 to never hold a concert in Indonesia again.

Despite that, I still gladly share this very joyful experience because it’s dear to me, and I would be happy if someone reads this and can also feel that happiness.