Mnet 'Nationwide Spark Tour' has successfully taken its first step as an unprecedented super-local cooperation festival.
The Mnet Idol Festa Operation 'Nationwide Spark Tour', which premiered on the 12th (Tuesday) (directed by Jo Hye-mi), opened with a meeting between TOMORROW X TOGETHER and Gwangju Metropolitan City. The fresh concept of K-POP idols directly visiting local areas amid their busy world tour, combined with providing local specialties and performances in a one plus one (1+1) format to the residents, generated great expectations even before the broadcast, and the first episode captivated viewers with diverse attractions.
In the first broadcast, members of TXT, Subin, Yeonjun, Beomgyu, Taehyun, and Huening Kai, challenged a '4-step deduction mission' without knowing their destination. After a variety of missions including photo hints, dance challenges, area code guessing, and deducing specialties, the final destination of Gwangju Metropolitan City was revealed, marking the official start of the spark tour. Gwangju native J-Hope of BTS, during a phone connection with Subin, noted, "Gwangju citizens are very warm," sharing a honey tip on using the Jeolla dialect that covers everything with the word 'geosik' to bring laughter. Guide DinDin also actively supported the members with an on-site sales lecture.
Upon arriving in Gwangju, TXT began selling the local representative specialty and performance ticket, 'zucchini', for just 990 won. Even amidst the situation of promoting the performance and selling tickets in just one day, the members transformed into 'one-day zucchini ambassadors' and struggled hard. In the welcome mission where pop-up role granting was assigned, Taehyun succeeded in sales in just 3 minutes and 33 seconds, claiming first place, after which the members took on their roles in sticking labels, packaging, promoting, and payment to embark on earnest sales.
At the first pop-up location, Gwangju Youth Square, TXT transformed into 'young vegetable shopkeepers' and demonstrated teamwork even in an unfamiliar situation as they initiated their first zucchini sales. The first pop-up sales amount was 50 units, but after going through trial and error, they saw their sales double in the second pop-up.
The members utilized the Jeolla dialect that J-Hope taught to communicate warmly with fans and citizens. The site welcomed a variety of citizens, from fathers supporting their daughters who are MOA (TXT fandom) to energetic students who flew in from Cebu. The surprise promotion time at Gwangju Jangdeok Middle School also provided unforgettable memories for the students.
The finale concert held at the Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall outdoor stage was the highlight of this festival. The audience entered holding zucchinis, which served as both concert tickets and cheering sticks, and TXT could not hide their emotions in front of an unexpectedly large crowd. As hit song performances like 'Deja Vu', 'Miracle', and 'I'll Be Waiting Tomorrow' continued, the atmosphere reached its peak. During the performance, when an emotionally overwhelmed student shed tears, Taehyun sweetly said, "I came to see you, so why are you crying?" eliciting collective heart-fluttering moments.
The unique scenes, such as zucchinis becoming cheering sticks and 'zucchini time', reminiscent of baseball stadium scoreboards, added fun to the performance. The excitement of fans encountering their favorites in person was magnified. Fans shared heartfelt remarks like, "The best birthday gift of my life" and "It's impressive to see them caring for various regions." On that day, a total of 3,111 zucchinis were sold, including on-site sales, achieving results far beyond expectations, and the revenue will be donated for local development, adding profound significance.
'Nationwide Spark Tour' has captivated viewers from the first broadcast by presenting a fresh intersection of top K-POP idol groups active on the world stage and local cooperation. Particularly, given the regional characteristics that make it difficult to experience K-POP artists' performances up close, this holds even greater significance. As the first runner, TXT heated up Gwangju with their human charm different from their stage presence, completing a true festival scene where both fans and citizens became the protagonists.
Meanwhile, next week is anticipated as NCT DREAM is set to sell apples in Andong. Mnet 'Nationwide Spark Tour' airs every Tuesday night at 10 p.m.
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