愛 Korea: Dream Concert 2011

Dream Concert is an annual 4 1/2 hour concert (so, its more like a music festival). It contains the most popular acts in Korea for that year, so its a big deal. Also, the more popular you are, the later the performance is. So, the last act of the night is always the biggest name. Of course, this years its DBSK. ^^ Our seats were really good-- a little right, but a great view of the stage none the less.

I cannot stress enough how important fans are to the entertainment industry. Fans make or break groups. At Dream Concert, fans group together, wave balloons, put out banners, do fan chants, and try to outdo other fan groups. Although, there is a certain amount of respect among fan clubs. So, Dream Concert is a statement from the fans. When DBSK were in Japan or when they were on hiatus due to the lawsuit, they didn't perform at Dream Concert. But, their fan club still turned out in significant numbers every time to sing DBSK songs for hours before the concert started. It was a show of solidarity to the kpop industry that the fans still supported DBSK even though they weren't there and their future was uncertain.
The worst thing an artist can experience at Dream Concert is called a "Dead Sea" or "Silent Sea." It's a sign of protest/dislike/boycott of a certain group. All the fans turn off their lights, so it darkens the arena. Often times they don't cheer for that group or they heckle mercilessly. It is extremely powerful. Fans have so much control in the industry and they know it-- its scary at times.