“I’m gonna be really gentle so you guys can fall in love with me.”
-BIBI
South Korean-based emerging R&B singer BIBI solidified herself as a musician to watch last weekend at 88Rising’s famed Head In The Clouds Festival, where she made her U.S. performance debut of her latest track, “The Weekend.” On the day of its release on October 14, the single was immediately added to 29 Spotify playlists, including the esteemed “New Music Friday” playlist. With the track now gaining ground on the U.S. radio airwaves, BIBI has her sight set on establishing herself as a rising, global artist.
“I’m gonna be really gentle so you guys can fall in love with me,” the 23-year-old artist teased before the start of her set on the 88 Stage. Supported by her FeelGhoodMusic labelmates, MFBTY (Tiger JK, Yoonmirae, and Bizzy), BIBI began with “PADO,” a triple-entendre for the Korean words for “tide” and “wave,” with mermaid-inspired visuals projected onto the LED screen. During the next song, officially titled “She Got It,” but more widely known by the song’s sub-title, “cigarette and condom,” BIBI brought out a handbag filled with condoms and threw them out to audience goers, promoting and raising awareness of safe sex.
Though this was her first time performing in America, she commanded the stage like a seasoned pro through her songs “BAD SAD AND MAD” and “KAZINO” with fans hanging onto every word. The pinnacle of BIBI’s set took place during the closing song, “The Weekend,” an all-English female empowerment anthem in collaboration between FeelGhoodMusic and 88Rising. Feeling the crowd’s energy as they sang the lyrics word-for-word, BIBI exuded true queen energy as she strutted up and down the stage, entered the crowd, and rained kisses and affection upon her adoring fans.
@moldykimchi @nakedbibi You made my year. I love you so much. ❤️#bibi #88rising #HITC #headintheclouds #kiss #on #the #lips ♬ original sound – Emily
For festival attendee Emily Yoon, 21, the performance was one that she will take to her grave. “The Weekend” live performance broke the internet after clips of BIBI kissing Yoon mid-performance went viral. Yoon, who also was sporting two red dots under her right eye to replicate BIBI’s signature look, was belting out the lyrics when she caught the singer’s attention. “When I was singing along, she looked at me and pointed her fingers at me. Then she came running down the stage to kiss me on the lips,” she shared with Kpopconcerts.com via email. Originally born in South Korea, the Santa Clara resident first became a fan after discovering “Kazino” on Youtube and adored how beautifully and effortlessly BIBI sang. From then on she began to dive deep into BIBI’s discography and quickly fell in love with her. “I honestly thought she was going to give me a hug but she gently grabbed the back of my head and went in for a kiss,” she continued. “At that moment, I felt like the happiest person in the world. If you saw my reaction you’d know that I felt like I won the world at that moment.”
BIBI’s U.S. debut performance of “The Weekend” went viral on social media, trending on Twitter with 47.9k+ tweets within hours of the performance, and fancams on TikTok amassing 13million+ views on #nakedbibi alone.
In less than 30 minutes, BIBI had the whole 30,000 Head in The Clouds audience wrapped around her finger. Breaking the mold of what K-Pop looks like with her vibrant, and unapologetic personality, it is only a matter of time before the world will be chanting her name. Check out BIBI’s U.S. debut performance of “The Weekend” below!
