Seventeen pauses ‘Follow’ concert in Bulacan amid fan’s fainting spell

Seventeen during the first day of their “Follow” concert in Bulacan on Jan. 13. Image: X/@pledis_17

The members of Seventeen were clearly worried when they noticed a fan getting dizzy in the standing section on the first day of their “Follow” concert last Saturday, Jan. 13, held at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bulacan.

The unexpected encounter took place during the boy group’s “ment,” a term used to describe the speaking portion of a K-pop concert, where a shocked Hoshi asked for a short pause to inquire about a fan in the crowded section how they were doing. “Why? Why? You over there, are you okay?” he said in Korean. This prompted him and his fellow bandmates to come to their aid.

Joshua, who served as the group’s temporary leader at the time, reiterated that water needed to be given to those in need. “Security, can you please go to that person over there? They need some water,” he requested in English.

Videos from X (formerly Twitter) also showed a perplexed Wonwoo and DK coming closer to the fan to give them bottles of water. Meanwhile, Mingyu shook his head with an unsmiling expression, while picking up a small basket filled with bottles of water.

seventeen the best group ever 😭 they offered the water allocated for them when we told them we needed water 😭 pic.twitter.com/t2kfCncH38

— shanie🍥 ggyu! (@minwonshu) January 13, 2024

D1 – sobrang siksikan and super inet. this was when hoshi was asking if we have water and we said no. he was so worried and then gyu’s disappointed face. MIND YOU THEY WERE GIVING THEIR WATERS TO US even tho they were the ones who performed pic.twitter.com/am05q6ZlzT

— ZELLY ς(⑉･̆-･̆⑉)🍊🧡 is TIRED !! (@zellyBOObear) January 15, 2024

Other members were noticeably shocked throughout the whole encounter, with them walking to different sides of the stadium to hand out water and asking if they were doing okay.

Hao gave us water 🥹🥹 I love him so much :((( #SEVENTEEN #SVT_TOUR_FOLLOW #FOLLOW #FOLLOW_TO_BULACAN #THE8 #MINGHAO pic.twitter.com/wAAh6vL7vQ

— Headliner 💫 (@fushiyuji_) January 13, 2024

SEVENTEEN GIVING WATER TO STANDING CARATS, SINCE IT’S HOT AND CROWDED.. WE REALLY STAN THE BEST BOYS.🥹 pic.twitter.com/eSEthZJbNB

— ae. (@svthamster) January 13, 2024

Hoshi asked fans if they had water since they were loud throughout the concert, in what seemed to be an attempt to lighten the situation. When fans replied with a resounding “no,” he jokingly prayed for rain to come.

Fans then responded with loud “nos” and “wag (don’t)” which prompted a laughing Wonwoo to make Hoshi stop.

hoshi asked us first if we have water since we were so loud, we said no. then something happened on vip that they had to give carats water

then hoshi was looking at the sky and asking for it to rain but we’re all saying/signing no 😭 and wonu had to tell him that 😆 pic.twitter.com/wxnTQ6QQSa

— 우지냥이 (@lunehoon) January 13, 2024

Guidelines on water, long lines

Before the concert, it was posted on the promoter’s social media pages that aluminum bottles, hard plastic containers, bottles, coolers, frozen water and hard cardboard beer carriers were prohibited in the venue.

Concertgoers were allowed to bring reusable water bags, but drinks should be “poured on crushable cups” instead of the typical water bottles.

Water bottles are typically not allowed in some concert venues as these are sometimes used to be thrown at the performers or other concertgoers.

Day 1 of Seventeen’s “Follow” concert in Bulacan. Images from Hannah Mallorca / INQUIRER.net

Alexandra Te told INQUIRER.net that even those with verified tickets like her and her aunt were not allowed to re-enter the stadium once they left. Because of this, she was so dehydrated from the long lines amid sweltering weather, almost to the point of fainting.

“Midway ng concert wala na talagang hangin, I can feel the heat ng mga tao sa paligid ko, na feel ko nanaman yung pagkahilo ko that anytime sooner again babagsak na ulit ako,” she said. (There was no more space to breathe midway through the concert. I could feel the heat of the people around me that anytime, sooner or later, I would faint.)

Other fans likewise pointed to the alleged “lack of coordination” when it came to bringing water bottles and flasks to the venue, and how “drained” they were because of the heat.

“We didn’t have any water prepared [in case of emergencies] which was very unfortunate kasi what if something happens, then we’ll have a hard time getting water?” said one Christina Lopez via text. “Those who bought were lined up around six or more hours in the sun and then were cramped into the space with barely any water given. This is why a lot felt dizzy and fainted.”

[17’S]
캐럿과 함께 빛나는 순간,
모든 사랑을 건네는 오늘💓💓

항상 캐럿 옆에 서 있을게요💎#SEVENTEEN #세븐틴#SVT_TOUR_FOLLOW#FOLLOW_TO_BULACAN pic.twitter.com/jfy8ipGcp6

— 세븐틴(SEVENTEEN) (@pledis_17) January 13, 2024

Others also noted that many of their fellow fans made sure they were able to enjoy the concert without a hitch and to check if they were hydrated enough to enjoy the night.

INQUIRER.net has reached out to Livenation Philippines and Philippine Sports Stadium for a comment, but both parties have yet to respond as of this writing.

Thousands of fans attended Seventeen’s two-day concert in Bulacan, making them the first K-pop act to hold a concert in the venue. However, S.coups and Jeonghan were absent from the Philippine leg of the group’s two-day show due to health concerns.

The group also was the first to stage a show at the Philippine Arena in December 2022.