Review Hope On The Stage In Jakarta: World-Class Music Concert Production

JAKARTA - Jung Ho Seok, playing dancer and rapper of BTS, better known as J-Hope, has completed the longing of tens of thousands of ARMYs in Indonesia through two performances at the Indonesia Arena, Central Jakarta on May 3 and 4 last weekend.

J-Hope is the second member of BTS to appear as a soloist in Indonesia, after Suga with a similar promoter, iMe Entertainment Group Asia which appeared in 2023.

VOI had the opportunity to cover J-Hope's performance in a concert titled 'Hope On The Stage in Jakarta' the first day at the Indonesia Arena on Saturday, May 3.

Heavy rain in the afternoon colored the presence of ARMYs to the Senayan area. Luckily, there were no significant problems after the rain subsided. The audience began to enter the venue, and the show started at 19.00 WIB.

Appearing for more than two hours, J-Hope performed a total of 27 songs, including three songs that became encore. Throughout his appearance, most of the audience brought the official ARMY Bomb (BTS's official flightstick), seemed so enthusiastic, with endless energy.

Starting with What If..., Pandora's Box, Arson, STOP, and MORE as the opening repertoire, J-Hope continues its performances with other songs such as locks/unlocks, Sweet Dreams, MONA LISA, to Daydream which makes ARMY continue to sing together.

Not to forget, several BTS songs were also performed, such as MIC Drop, Silver trick, Dis-ease, to Outro Ego.

The great energy of the audience was also very clearly reflected on stage. Despite appearing as a soloist with background dancers in several songs J-Hope performed to control the big stage. This shows how the 31-year-old man is an indisputable world idol, who is able to control big performances with tens of thousands of fans in front of him.

As a member of BTS, J-Hope has indeed become a world-class performer. But I came without expectations, and considered it similar to other K-pop idols performances, which are more interesting to see the communication between the artist and fans than the performance on stage itself.

Hope On The Stage provides a different understanding. With the band playing live, J-Hope's performance on stage has exceeded the standards that become a label for many K-pop artists who appear more often with playback accompaniment.

Although not a connoisseur of J-Hope and BTS songs, I can feel the pleasure during the show which may differ from ARMY on all aspects of production displayed on stage.

First, the quality of the sound that comes out is clear and clear. Indonesia Arena which is actually an arena for basketball matches is the right choice for viewers who want quality music performances as well as satisfying. Not only is the ears satisfied, I'm sure many ARMYs are satisfied because they can see J-Hope clearly and from a relatively close distance.

In the United States, many bases from the NBA basketball team have become concert venues for great singers or musicians. I think the 'Hope On The Stage' concert at the Indonesia Arena is already at that stage, and can be a reference for holding other concerts.

The dynamic stage of Hope On The Stage in Jakarta (Ivan Two Men/VOI)

Second, what made me so happy with this concert was the dynamic stage that was shown throughout the show. With the concept of thrust stage, the main part of the stage where J-Hope is in action consists of 20 stage rectangular lifts (4 rowstimes5 columns) which can be set at an altitude.

At the beginning of J-Hope's appearance, all parts of the stage were at the same height. Then for the next time, the stage conditions will continue to be adjusted. There is a time when only the front row or finally the altitude is raised, but there is also a time when the stage lift forms a ladder or wave with different heights.

With the dynamic stage conditions, I am always looking forward to new forms that will be displayed on every song. And not infrequently, the condition of the stage changes in the middle of the song. When performing the 'Daydream', one of the stage lifts was even turned into a bed.

Third, what amazed me even more was the readiness of the entire team involved in this concert. "Hope On The Stage" is indeed a series of concert tours which of course have been conceptualized and carefully prepared but see how the involvement of the local promoters and vendors involved in this show makes me proud, that this world-class concert can be displayed in Indonesia.

A big appreciation for what J-Hope is showing on stage. Singing and dancing with background dancers with changing stage conditions, of course it's not an easy job at all.

My view is also often focused on front of house (FOH) with dozens of monitors. The technicians seemed so focused on changing the stage display, LED, and emitting stage effects with maintained time accuracy.