In the hours leading up to Music Bank in Madrid, heavy rain took over the Spanish capital, yet somehow, the universe knew it had to stop when it came time for BOYNEXTDOOR to grace the stage. "It did start raining during the rehearsal, but then when we were on the actual stage, it [miraculously] stopped," member Sungho tells Teen Vogue a few weeks after the show from the safe and dry bubble of HYBE's Seoul offices.
"We were worried during the rehearsal," he continues, “but we were very happy that the rain stopped [just in time so] we could really enjoy the entire performance. We had a lot of fun. It was a good experience for us.”
Taking place on October 12 and later broadcasted via KBS2, the event, part of the Music Bank World Tour, marked the first time Sungho, Riwoo, Jaehyun, Taesan, Leehan, and Woonhak set foot on Spanish soil and just their second-ever performance in Europe, having previously performed at 2023's Korea on Stage in London. Despite the relatively new turf, plenty of BOYNEXTDOOR lightsticks, featuring a turquoise-roofed house encased in a crystal orb, glowed brightly in the crowd. "There were so many ONEDOORs," leader Jaehyun recalls smilingly. "We were energized by their passion; it was like a two-way road."
Earlier this year, when the sextet released their sophomore six-track EP, HOW?, they were barely getting ready for their first concert on their own, which Jaehyun described as a "heart-fluttering" experience. Scarcely six months later, the sextet was effortlessly commanding the crowd over six thousand miles from home, making even non-fans sing along. ("From now on, I've become a fan of yours," the leader told the crowd with a bright smile just after finishing their set.)
Performing live, Taesan says, is second nature for the group. "You can really enjoy and feel the passion of the audience and the crowd," he adds.
"It's a delight for us to be able to meet ONEDOOR from all across different cities," Leehan says, with his immediately soothing inflection, piggybacking off his bandmate's comment. "When we go to a new country and a new city, it just feels new and refreshing for us even if we are performing the same song," he adds." I honestly think we get to enjoy it more and more as we tour and travel to other countries."
Their pit stop in Madrid was but a short and sweet offering of what the group is capable of pulling off. They graced the stage for around 10 minutes, performing live renditions of their tracks "Nice Guy," “One and Only,” "Dangerous," “Earth, Wind & Fire,” and “Serenade,” stopping to talk to the crowd and play some ad-libbed games in between.
The setlist was a perfect bite-sized appetizer for the group, with two songs from their most recent EP, 19.99, released this past September, and callbacks to their 2023 debut sandwiched in between. Though it's one of their earlier offerings, “One and Only" is still their favorite song to perform live, Riwoo admits. "I think it's a song that really shows who we are, and we know how to enjoy it on stage," he says. "Because we've done so many times, we feel very relaxed when performing 'One and Only.' I think we know how to shine with the song, so we enjoy the performance."
Not only does "One and Only" hold a special place for the members when it comes to performance, but it's also the members' favorite when it comes to style. Sungho's favorite 'fit to date was a stage outfit he wore to perform the song, which featured a big fur hat as the key element. "We had those accessories on that really showed our individual colors. And they were quite playful, so I liked them," he explains.
"I also really like 'One and Only' [but] it was in the music video," Jaehyun piggybacks. "I was wearing the wheelie shoes. I think that outfit really showcases what this song is about so that's why I really like that outfit. When I am in that outfit, I feel like I can really do well on the stage. So yeah, it's my personal favorite."
Taesan also remembers his own grey suit from the "One and Only" music video as his favorite, he says, mimicking the action of wearing the piece with his body.
Leehan and Riwoo, on the other hand, prefer not to select a specific piece but a vibe, name-checking leather pieces and suits, respectively, as their favorite go-to styles. Meanwhile, maknae Woonhak taps into their recent era with 19.99 to select his favorite: rings. “I really love rings. I remember when we were promoting 'Dangerous' on Inkigayo, I was wearing a shirt and jeans, and my jeans were decorated with stars. And I had a lot of rings on my fingers. I also had sunglasses on. That's my favorite outfit.”
While "One and Only" has been an all-around go-to since its release, the group is also looking forward to spotlighting a B-side which doesn't get much attention in the future. For Leehan, that'd be "Crying," off the same debut EP, WHY?. "It's one of my favorite songs," he gushes, unable to hide a grin forming at the corners of his mouth. “I think it's got the best performance, and it's just the best song. I really love that song, and I hope our fans look forward to seeing it live.”
A big part of BOYNEXTDOOR's performances is characterized by the use of striking visuals and cheerful aesthetics, and Music Bank in Madrid would be no exception. The sextet took to the stage clad in various shades of distressed denim paired with graphic tees, leather jackets, and knitted sweaters as screens behind them displayed graphics exploding with colors to match the members' every move.
If you have been a fan of BOYNEXTDOOR, or any other K-pop group, then you have surely seen the piles of luggage the stars often travel with. BOYNEXTDOOR's 10-minute setlist did not include outfit changes in between songs, but the group still packed options and matching 'fits for when they later returned to the stage to cover WINNER's 2017 hit track “Really Really.”
Before the event came to an end, the six members graced the stage for one last time, donning sleek white jackets — some cropped, some tweed, some adorned with silver brooches — and tailored, black crepe pants, showing off a never-before-seen style that was a lot more high fashion and refined than boy-next-door type.
"The members got together to talk about which song we should perform cover and which song would really suit us," Sungho says of the cover choice. "We've done many different covers, but we thought that this was the song that could really show our colors."
The members also had a hand in selecting the outfits they wore for both the song and the rest of the stages. "I think what's most important for us is that the look really goes with the set list that we are playing," Jaehyun explains. "So, for example, in Madrid, we made sure that we picked the outfits that kind of showed the vibes of the songs that we were going to perform." Naturally, that ended up being youthful and jovial for their own songs and grown and chic for WINNER's cover.
However, picking the right clothes is not as straightforward as it seems onstage, but more so trial and error. "We try on a lot of different outfits until we find the one that's the right one," Jaehyun said, his face making a slight grimace to really showcase the scale.
BOYNEXTDOOR's style as a group is pretty cohesive, Jaehyun says, with the six members often in either matching or coordinating outfits, usually on the casual side to match their sonic sensibilities. However, the members are up for a challenge. "Because most of our songs are very much easy-listening songs, we usually have a very casual, relaxed kind of outfit, but we want to try on something that's more formal, like suits and things like that," Leehan says. "I especially like fedora hats, so I want to try fedora hats or maybe do some performance with them," Riwoo adds. (They don't have to look far for inspiration either, as HYBE Labels seniors SEVENTEEN already did so for their song "Crush.”)
Seeing that fashion is such a big part of K-pop, and releases often come with multiple album jackets, performances, and music videos, it's only natural to wonder if they enjoy the process of finding the right clothes or if they find it tiring. "Both," Jaehyun immediately shouts, in English, before I can even finish posing the question, his face, once again, morphing into a grin. "I think it's both because we do enjoy trying on really nice clothes," he adds later, composing himself, "but then it also is physically tiring to put on clothes and take them off and repeat that process over and over again."
In the same way they have learned to live with the process of trying on clothes constantly, the members have also come up with a handful of mechanisms to keep each other entertained while they are backstage. Because while the crowds might only be seeing them onstage for 10-ish minutes, they are usually ready and at the venue for hours.
"[In Madrid], we ate together, and then we shot a lot of dance challenges together [and with other idols] backstage," Riwoo shares. "Because it rained, we had one of the members, which is Jaehyun, who just walked straight into the rain and just enjoyed the rain. So we do all kinds of stuff backstage." (The video in question, where Jaehyun showers himself with a bottle of water, can be found on Weverse for your viewing pleasure.)
All in all, it takes BOYNEXTDOOR around three hours for all members to get glam-ready for these types of events — meaning hair and makeup are all done, and they are out of the door to try and keep it intact until showtime. "It's usually really early in the morning when we get our glam done," Riwoo shares. "So a lot of us just listen to music, just chill, take a nap, or do whatever we need to relax ourselves."
Napping, especially, is crucial, seeing as they often do 12+ hour journeys just to perform and head back home to South Korea. Also essential is cleansing. "What we do first when we get to the hotel is remove our makeup," Woonhak says. "So I make sure that I bring my cleansing items with me. And because the voltages for the different countries are different, we always carry around adapters as well."
The room erupts in laughter as the youngest gives its unarguably practical answer. "Also, when we get on really long hour flights, we make sure that we download the movies and the videos that we want to watch beforehand so we can watch it when we're flying," he one-ups himself.
Seeing as the group is currently preparing for their KNOCK ON Vol.1 tour, their watch list, Woonhak shares, consists mainly of performance videos by seniors as they try to soak up inspiration and keep their nerves at bay.
"We are smooth sailing on prepping for our tour that's coming up," Jaehyun, in leader mode, says. "I think this tour is an opportunity for us to look back at what we've done since debut and what our own originality as a group is. It's an opportunity for us to look back on our journey and also for the fans to look at our entire journey in one concert."
Starting off in South Korea on December 14 and spanning five months with stops across Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Indonesia, these will be BOYNEXTDOOR's biggest shows to date, so fans can expect different stages, outfit changes, and the whole shebang. "I think the focus of our concert tour this time around is to show our originality and showcase who we really are as a group," Sungho adds, "So we're going to show our identity, and you'll be able to see what we do, who we are, what kind of music we make and everything." After the members share a few unblinking, worried gazes, careful not to share too much and spoil the fun, Taesan takes it upon himself to lighten the mood. "It's going to be really cool," he teases with a wink. “Stay tuned.”
Editor's note: This story has been updated.
