Words and photos by Danica Lacson

Even before the lights went off to signal the start of SEVENTEEN WORLD TOUR “ODE TO YOU” IN MANILA, the energy was already high — energy that never waned, instead, continued to soar, in the almost three-hour-long concert that marked SEVENTEEN’s fourth visit in the country and third solo concert.

There was no hint of tiredness from Carats who waited more than a year to welcome their favorite boys back to the Philippine concert stage and who kept their fingers crossed and hands in prayer for days with the hope that the concert pushes through in the midst of the 2019-nCov outbreak.

Your energy tonight was really amazing that I also felt happy. I hope tonight will be a good memory and will give you energy. Let’s see each other soon.

The8

Precautionary measures were in place on February 8 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena with PULP Live World urging every attendee to wear face mask and undergo security check where body temperature and travel history were checked. PULP Live World’s Happee Sy-Go was also in close coordination with the staff and crew of the boy group, making sure everything is good on their end and that no member of the entourage has been to China in the recent weeks.

And all these efforts surely paid off as a fun, aju nice show unfolded that evening, lighting up the arena with rose quartz and serenity and writing a beautiful ode that will be remembered for a lifetime.

With fans singing along, cheers booming, and lightsticks lighted and up, SEVENTEEN once again dominated the Philippine concert stage where they kicked off the highly-awaited show with charismatic stages of the remix versions of “Getting Closer”, “Rock”, and “Clap”. The members, sans leader S.Coups who is on hiatus due to health reason, reciprocated the passion of their Carats with a zestful greeting of “Hello, kami ang SEVENTEEN” and self-introductions.

The boys then wasted no time as they went on to mesmerize their fans with performances of their hits “Thanks” and “Don’t Wanna Cry”. But it was too early to get speechless as they have more treats up their sleeves that evening including unit stages of the hip-hop team, performance team, and vocal team.

The members of SEVENTEEN once again reminded us of their immense talents and capabilities as they confidently showcased what they got as units. Hip-hop team sizzled with “Trauma” and “Chilli”, while the performance team brought out the beauty in “Lilili Yabbay” before heating up the arena with “Shhh”. Silence filled the venue as everyone marvels at the vocal team’s soothing and emotional stages of “Hug” and “Don’t Listen In Secret”. But the boy group did not end there as they gave us all the feels with a performance of “Space” by Wonwoo, Vernon, Mingyu, DK, and S.Coups whose voice resonated during the performance — an emotional treat that made Carats go “aww”.

After making our hearts burst with emotions in “Space”, SEVENTEEN went on to warm our hearts with a sweet serenade of “Smile Flower”, a song they dedicated to their Carats who then returned the love by singing the song back to their favorite boys.

Nostalgia then hit hard in SVT Museum, a segment that brought us back in time with a relay of performances of SEVENTEEN’s greatest hits such as the boy group’s debut song “Adore U”, the song that gave the boys their first music show win “Pretty U”, the track that won them a Best Dance Performance by a Male Group “Oh My”, and a full group version of BSS’s debut song “Just Do It”. The boy group also performed “Good To Me”, the Korean version of their Japanese single “Happy Ending”, and one of their latest track “Fear”.

Aside from treating Carats with their utmost energy and hard work through their performances, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, The8, Mingyu, DK, Seungkwan, Vernon, and Dino also shared heartwarming words to their fans during their final ment. The members expressed their appreciation to Carats who came to the concert and gave their best energy tonight.

“We had so much fun today. I know it has been a long time since the last time we came. You probably missed us a lot. We are happy to be back and see your faces. We really appreciate all the love. We hope to be back. Mahal ko kayo,” said Joshua. Hoshi also relayed his thanks to the fans for welcoming SEVENTEEN with such big love, leaving with a promise to have more fun in their next visit. He then left a sweet message saying, “Even though we are far from each other, our hearts are still together.”

Mingyu echoed Hoshi’s promise and wished for the fans to stay healthy, not get sick, and be happy. DK relayed his gratitude in Filipino with “Manila, salamat po.” He added, “Seeing you guys enjoy the concert made us happy too. Please remember tonight’s concert.” Dino, who earlier called Manila Carats as “real Carats”, said they will repay the love of their fans with better performances.

Seungkwan also shared that Manila has always been part of their journey, having visited the country since their first Asia tour in 2016 which was followed by Diamond Edge and Ideal Cut in 2017 and 2018, respectively. “Every time we are here, we are always touched by you. Tonight was the most touching moment of all,” Seungkwan said.

SEVENTEEN WORLD TOUR “ODE TO YOU” IN MANILA closed with encore stages of “9-Teen”, “HIT”, and the never-ending and always fun “Aju Nice”.

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SEVENTEEN WORLD TOUR “ODE TOU YOU” IN MANILA was presented by Pledis Entertainment, Live Nation, and PULP Live World. Special thanks to PULP Live World for the invitation to the event.