IU serenades Philippine 'Uaenas' in record-breaking concert

MANILA, Philippines — Five years since her last concert in the country, Korean superstar IU treated fans with her powerful vocals during her record-breaking concert in the Philippine Arena — but as proud Filipino songbirds, IU was also treated to a whopping 37,000 voices singing along with her.

Presented by Pulp Live World with PLDT HOME, the concert was kicked off by IU with her hypnotic hits like "Holssi," "Jam Jam," "Ah Puh," and "BBIBBI," lighting up the arena as fans' lightsticks sync to the beat of these songs.

She fondly recalled that it had been five years since she last visited the country for her "Love Poem" world tour and that there were far more fans that came to see her now. She remarked at how loud the crowd was and that she and the crew can barely hear themselves when she performed.

After giving the arena a score of 200% for being the loudest crowd she had ever been to, IU then treated her fans to energetic performances of “Celebrity," “eight," “Blueming”, and “I Stan U.”

IU delighted PH Uaenas with a few new Filipino words she learned: “Ang galing," “Ang ganda," and even full sentences like “Itago ninyo nang mabuti” as she pertained to the personalized gift her mother prepared for the crowd — something IU’s mom always did for her concerts.

Thank you, eomeonim! ????????

All ticket holders are greeted by a personal gift from IU's mom! ????

The gift pack consists of a photocard holder, keychains, and a photocard. #HEREH_WORLD_TOUR_IN_MANILA | via @OhNadie pic.twitter.com/Bot3J4wRyC

— Philstar.com (@PhilstarNews) June 1, 2024

After IU serenaded her fans with ballads “Havana,” and “Meaning of You,” the arena was enthralled when IU presented her gift for PH Uaenas: a romantic rendition of Sun Kissed Lola’s “Pasilyo,” followed by her hit song “Through the Night.”

Each time IU came back after a set, she would always make it a point to tell the crowd how overwhelmingly loud they are during her performances, even complimenting how well the crowd sang along.

“It’s my first time ever to hear this many screams, unang beses ko maramdaman ito (It’s my first time to feel this way),” IU said in Korean, “'Di lang sa pag-sigaw magaling, pati sa pag-kanta (Not only are you guys good at cheering, but at singing as well).”

IU then followed up with her newer songs like “Shopper” and “Love Wins All” from her latest album: "The Winning;" to which fans were absolutely ecstatic to see a secret alternate ending to the latter’s music video.

And because Filipinos are known for being good singers: What better way to begin the encore then with “Good Day," one of IU’s most iconic songs for her three high notes.

IU sang the last few lines of the song with the crowd and told the fans that she was blown away because she said, she didn’t expect it was possible to pull that off and that it was the first time she heard a whole crowd sing “Good Day.”

Toward the end, IU said that she had so much fun with the crowd that she promised she won’t wait another five years to come back, even remarking that she wanted to come back next month.

As with any IU concert, she took requests from the crowd for her last set, showcasing her prowess for live performances. She ended the night with the acoustic version of “Palette.”

The Philippine leg of IU’s "HEREH Tour" proved to be a record-breaker for being the most attended show by a female artist in the Philippine Arena with 37,000 seats sold, Korean news outlet Newsis reported.

The crowd not only boasted its quantity, but its quality as well: With two fan events being successfully noticed by the artist and continuously being lauded by IU by the sheer amount of cheers she kept receiving.

IU even recognized how good PH Uaenas must be at multitasking for everything they’ve prepared.

During the encore set, IU commented that the Filipino crowd was able to capture how she always imagined the vibe of “strawberry moon” to be: like they were all just in a campfire singing along.

The concert was set to end with the last song being the rock version of “Well” but because “a lot of people wanted to hear Palette,” IU gave the fans one last gift by giving them an additional song. — Video by Nadie Esteban, video editing by Martin Ramos