On April 14, South Korean band ONEWE rocked the stage for their 2025 ONEWE WORLD TOUR ‘O! NEW E!volution IV’ in New York. The tour, which spans across 20 cities in North America, follows the release of their latest album WE : Dream Catcher. This marked their U.S. debut and the first time meeting American fans, called WEVEs.
In February, the U.S.-based touring company Leo Presents announced that it had signed a contract with ONEWE, hinting at an upcoming spring tour. The news delighted many fans who had waited years to see them. To build up excitement, fans tweeted the hashtag #ONEWETOUR with cities they’d like the band to tour in.
Queens Theater, situated at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, was packed for this sold-out show. Fans have waited since early morning to secure a front view and quickly filled the venue as soon as doors opened. When the clock inched closer to 7PM, lightsticks brightly glowed in the dark as members YongHoon, HaRin, KangHyun, DongMyeong, and GIUK appeared on stage.
The show was off to an explosive start as ONEWE opened up with “Rain To Be,” one of the band’s biggest hit singles. With the song’s addictive melodies, the crowd harmonized and vibed to DongMyeong, GIUK, HaRin, and KangHyun’s instrumental solos. The band kept the energy up with the EDM party track “End of Spring,” followed by chants of “완벽해 We are (We are perfect),” leading up to “OFF ROAD.” HaRin went full swing on the drums as he had already broken his drumsticks within the opening sequence.
After introducing himself, DongMyeong shared that his childhood dream was to visit New York so touring here was a dream come true for him. Prior to the concert, the members spent their day off sightseeing at Central Park, remarking on its vast size, similar to an amusement park. They visited Times Square and expressed gratitude at the billboard ad (organized by giuksuniverse).
In light of their New York show, YongHoon changed the lyrics in “Meteor Shower” to “뉴욕 예쁘다 (New York is pretty).” They also dedicated the cover song “Englishman in New York” to New York WEVEs. The next two performances were covers — a rock rendition of The Chainsmokers’ “Closer” followed by Maroon 5’s “Lucky Strike,” during which YongHoon walked down the aisle to get up close and personal with fans.
Throughout the set, the audience was fully enthralled by the band’s talents. YongHoon encouraged everyone to take their seats, although many remained standing. Taking a quick break from the mic, YongHoon gave the crowd a chance to sing the first chorus of their song “Regulus.” The performance ended with a heartwarming fanchant, “ONEWE 언제나 사랑해 (I’ll always love you ONEWE).”
The setlist had a few slight changes for each stop on the tour, and in New York, the band prepared another exclusive performance that added to the surprises. The song “좋겠어 (I Wish)” was written by DongMyeong at age 16, in which he expressed his wish to visit New York. Now that his dream was fulfilled, the band specially performed the track for New York WEVEs. DongMyeong also asked the audience what their wish was, and when a fan responded with “actor,” the band played a snippet of their song “ACTOR” from their SECRET SANTA single.
Another fan expressed their desire to become a K-Pop idol, prompting the band to invite them onto the stage. As YongHoon handed over the mic, the fan sang the English track “Gravity,” which drew a lot of cheers and barking from the crowd.
For the final ment, the members shared their last sentiments. DongMyeong joked that he wanted to live in New York, but the high cost of living was a major deterrent. After thanking the fans for selling out the show, the band continued with “Veronica” and “A piece of You” as the crowd headbanged to GIUK’s raps and KangHyun’s guitar solos.
After the band exited the stage, WEVEs started chanting “ONEWE!” HaRin was the first to return, as he goaded the crowd to chant “encore” with a rhythmic drum beat. Soon after, the remaining members returned to their positions wearing their tour merch. The room was filled with lighthearted energy during the songs “Crazy good” and “Pleasant.” Fun moments include GIUK showing off some cute dance moves with his bass and YongHoon giving KangHyun a headlock during his guitar solo. They concluded the set with “Eraser” as YongHoon and DongMyeong threw their hats to two lucky fans in the crowd.
The show was a testament that dreams do come true. With their electrifying stage presence, ONEWE really knows how to draw in a crowd. Their tour is halfway done, so we encourage you to see them at a stop near you!