BewhY

On November 1, independent artist BewhY kickstarted his The Blind Star US Tour at the Belsaco Theater in Los Angeles. Read our concert review written by guest writer Yasamine (of Pixeletry).

Concert Review: BewhY in Los Angeles

Y’all, I got to see BewhY spit freestyle in the flesh! I have been blessed! Let’s be quite clear. BewhY is the most impressive lyricist in Korean Hiphop today. Yeah, I said it. Fight me.

This isn’t just an observation. It’s fact. The man is a walking ball of talent and frankly, when it comes to lyrical prowess, he blew my faves clear out of the competition. I gotta give him an insane amount of props. Last year, he showed up out of nowhere, This quiet guy with a cheesy Caesar hair cut and winning smile. This dude shows up on Show Me The Money 5, dominates over some of the biggest heavy hitters from Korea’s underground hiphop scene, wins the show and still stands tall as an independent artist.

He’s talented but humble. He’s intelligent but in no way has any issue with poking fun at himself or the industry that we all love and hate. He released The Blind Star as well as The Blind Star 0.5 and everyone lost their collective minds. This was an intelligent set of tracks strategically placed to trigger your inner turnt gland and make you itch with the need to bang that head.

So, it comes to no surprise that BewhY decided to be as ambitious as possible, and announced The Blind Star US Tour. This would be his first official solo tour outside of South Korea. After his successful appearance at the Show Me The Money 5 Concert in LA and a brief stage appearance at the Ktown Night Market earlier this year in Ktown LA, it was only a matter of time before BewhY would conquer The States.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’ve seen some of the best rappers in Korea, hit US stages, but none as fresh and new as BewhY. It made me a bit nervous, but as I stepped into the Belasco Theatre in Down Los Angeles last Wednesday night, I felt my fears float away to the sounds of a packed crowd being amped up, anticipating one hell of a show.

And boy did BewhY deliver! The lights turned low and the music started. He stepped on stage and the spotlight hit him. His hair now in a clean fade greased slick with a side part. He stood in black leather pieced concept cut jeans, black shirt and a tweed blazer. He looked like that one liberal arts teacher you had a crush on for an entire semester; all thick and fit. He lifted the mic and introduced us to his talent.

I expected him to start with “Day Day” but he reached into the treasure chest that is The Blind Star and rolled through tracks such as “Temptation,” “Curtain Call,” and “Red Carpet.” He spat “9ucci Bank” like pure fire from his soul, the entire audience riding that beat hard. He performed “Bichael Yackson” which is one of the most random tracks to ever get stuck in my head.

We spent a full hour immersed in his rhymes before he stepped off stage and I thought “wait! It can’t be over!” Oh, it wasn’t! I’ve never been to a concert with an intermission before! Instead of an opening act, we were blessed with an intermission act. Justin Park, LA’s own local favorite R&B crooner stepped on stage and performed a cover of Kendrick’s new classic, “Loyalty.” He performed his new tracks Namaste and Date LA before bowing to the audience and thanking everyone for the opportunity to stand on stage. It was all very humble.

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Once Justin stepped off stage, he announced BewhY would return and we waited. The lights went dark again, and that spotlight caught up with him. This time, in a tee shirt and jeans, he stepped up to the front of the stage and drove the entire audience into a mass of screaming partiers as he performed “The Time Goes On.” Then we got introduced to our own feels as he performed “My Star.” He followed it up with a collection of songs from SMTM. I damn near jumped out of my shoes when he performed “Who You” as the entire audience screamed the lyrics back at him.

The show seemed to end, and everyone screamed for an encore. We waited, impatiently. BewhY stepped out on stage and I died. He was head to toe GUCCI clad and we all knew what was up. He rolled through another round of “9ucci Bank” as he threw rolled up tour shirts and hats, courtesy of Korelimited, into the audience. And finally, BewhY blessed us with “Day Day.”

I walked out of the concert on noodle legs, stopped to buy a shirt, and headed out the door. This man, as ambitious as he is, delivered on every level. We were blessed with breaks between songs with rapid fire freestyling and his conversing with the audience about everything from his excitement to finally be performing in the US on his own tour, to talking about almost giving up when his faith pushed him to continue. BewhY stood on stage alone and absolutely killed this show. If you get a chance to catch BewhY live, don’t even hesitate. You must experience for yourself!