Manila is the first Asian stop of j-hope of BTS’ “Hope on the Stage” concert tour. Based on experience, I anticipated that it would be a challenge to obtain tickets. And I was so right.
j-hope during the sound check before the show on day 1 (photos by Kiara Pastoral)
I was fortunate to receive an offer from my friend Kathy to buy her friend’s ticket. Her friend, a j-hope fan, upgraded to VIP. Days before the concert, the organizers posted a schedule with a map and requirements for ticket verification. Separate lines were made for verification and strapping for sound check. On the day of the concert, April 12, Saturday, in 35-degree°Centigrade heat, ARMY (the collective name for BTS fans) queued as early as 8 o’clock in the morning outside the Mall of Asia Arena. My ARMY friends and I swore, this will be our last BTS concert in Manila.
Credit: Video by Kiara Pastoral
ARMY groups collaborated and came up with #theHopeProject, sending out information about the concert and campaigning to discourage fans from going to the airport. Instead, they sought donations to produce banners and signs all over the area to welcome j-hope. They also organized the distribution of free food—i.e., taho, hopia and pandesal—for ARMY around the arena on the concert dates.
The concert banner (photo from Cavite ARMY fan base)
I was able to figure out my way around the area by asking fellow Filipino ARMY. For some strange reason, ARMY know how to identify each other in public. A big bonus too if you are both Filipino and ARMY—strangers recognizing ARMY in the wild become instant friends. The atmosphere was festive, like a big reunion. I saw nieces, aunts, classmates, grandmas with their apos, and even a former professor. I was glad my new ARMY friend Kayla de Jesus made it on the concert date. A big thanks to the Arena for being inclusive.
Yes, MoA was inclusive! The author’s friend Kayla de Jesus comes to party.
Before the start of the concert, I engaged in small talk with seatmates at the Lower Box, and we all consented to standing and dancing anytime when we felt like it. We compared our mutual concert experiences in other countries, especially during BTS Suga’s “D-Day” concert in 2023. We were all called out for being too loud, for standing up from our seats when we felt like dancing. We agreed MoA arena was our safe space—we were free to stand, dance, sing or curse without censorship. We were, after all, home. And we did.
PH ARMY tell it like it is. (Photo from uarmyhope Instagram)
I had valid reasons why I declared I wouldn’t watch BTS in Manila. Still, despite the systemic corruption, overpriced tickets, inefficiency, and chaos, mas masaya pa din talaga sa Pilipinas. And that collective happiness bounced back to the artist. He was surprised at how the audience exceeded his expectations. J-hope was amazing. He was a ball of energy and talent. He knew ARMY would go wild with his hip thrusts, and by now he knows what all the barking meant. We were loud and wild. And we knew all the songs—we are, after all, a nation born with a karaoke mic in one hand.
j-hope shows Manila why he is BTS’ dance leader. (Photo from uarmyhope Instagram)
Of course we know all the lyrics, Hobi. Just dance, we got you.
Credit: Video by Tiffany Urrutia
Credit: Video by Tiffany Urrutia
For two nights, Filipino ARMY experienced a big party with BTS through one member. “Hope on the Stage” was glorious. J-hope owned the stage, he owned us. ARMY were in love. Nearing the end of the concert, the entire arena chanted, “Walang uuwi!” He got his validation.
True to his name, Hope was the last to emerge from Pandora’s box, proving that no matter how messed up things are, Filipinos will make it work through the chaos. Is it resignation, not resilience? Whatever it is, despite the odds, we do know how to hope and be happy.
