Hello82, a Los Angeles-based K-pop entertainment company, is debuting 82World, a two-day festival scheduled for October 17 and 18 at L.A. State Historic Park. The event marks the company’s entry into the festival market, an area where many K-pop festivals have faced cancellations due to logistical challenges in recent years.
The festival features performances and programming from multiple artists, with boy group ATEEZ serving as Sunday’s headliner and P1Harmony headlining Saturday. Sunday’s schedule is dedicated entirely to ATEEZ, including DJ sets, dance workshops, trivia contests, and breakout sessions with group members. Saturday features a diverse lineup including Ampers&one, Be:First, Cosmosy, Girlset, Xikers, and 8Turn, representing both K-pop and J-pop acts.
Hello82 co-founder Sang H. Cho, who previously worked at CJ ENM and contributed to the development of KCON, emphasized that 82World was designed with a grassroots, community-focused approach drawing from early K-pop expansion efforts in the United States. The company opted for an outdoor festival format and recruited staff members with experience from major industry events to assist with execution.
The company generated substantial early interest when it opened ticket sales last year during Black Friday without announcing specific artists or dates, selling through the initial allocation within two hours. Cho attributed the company’s expansion into live events to its evolution from a music distribution service into a fan-forward organization that now handles artist promotions and events.
Hello82 characterized the inaugural festival as primarily a service to its fanbase rather than a profit-focused venture, noting that individual business segments work together to support overall operations. The company faces ongoing challenges with artist visa processing that has impacted other K-pop tours and festivals, though Cho indicated that most confirmed performers have previous U.S. experience. Hello82 plans to establish 82World as an annual event, with plans to bring the festival to Europe in 2027.
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