The summer music festival "Waterbomb Seoul 2026" was held from July 24 to 26 at the outdoor Global Stage at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi. According to the organizers, about 60,000 people visited during the event, and foreign attendees made up 35% of the total.
Waterbomb Seoul has been held at KINTEX for three consecutive years since 2024.
This year's event combined music performances and water-play content with digital participation programs and brand experience zones. Audiences could watch live performances while taking part in team battles and missions.
Jeon Somi and Diplo's collaboration track unveiled on stage for the first time
On the first day, Jeon Somi appeared as a guest during Diplo's set and unveiled "Ba Da Bing," a new track with Kaysan and Diplo, for the first time. The organizers said they are positioning the Waterbomb stage as a place where artists present summer releases and new performances.
A Waterbomb official said, "Just as overseas festivals serve as stages that mark turning points for new releases and artists' activities, Waterbomb is also becoming a stage where K-pop and hip-hop artists present summer tracks."
Park Jin-Young, Taemin, aespa's Karina, Riize, KISS OF LIFE, Sunmi, VV, Park Jae-bum, Zico, Dayoung and other domestic artists, as well as overseas DJs including Diplo, Kayzo, and Maddix, also took the stage.
For the final fireworks segment, Waterbomb's virtual artist JENA appeared. The organizers said they broadened the scope of digital content by combining a live performance stage with a virtual artist presentation.
Green vs. Yellow team battle run via the official app
The newly introduced official battle app ran a real-time team competition between the Green team and the Yellow team. Audiences could participate in challenges and missions within the app to earn points and exchange them on-site for limited-edition merchandise.
According to the organizers' tally, the app ranked as high as No. 31 in the Entertainment category on Apple's App Store. Over the three days, mission voting exceeded 17,000 votes, and participants accumulated a total of 13.47 million points.
Following the Seoul event, Waterbomb plans to continue its domestic schedule in Busan and Sokcho. Overseas, it plans to hold events in cities including Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and Bangkok, Thailand.