Most well known as a member of the boyband NCT, Doyoung has in recent years cemented his position as a talented soloist with his vocal strength, poignant album concepts and undeniable stage presence. Equipped with his expressive voice, a live band and the sheer power of sincerity, the vocalist delivered an unforgettable night at The Star Theatre on 19 July, Saturday.
As Doyoung had previously skipped Singapore as a stop on his first solo tour, “Dear Youth”, fans were buzzing with anticipation throughout the night, cherishing every moment from beautiful stages to candid anecdotes and even VCR clips of the singer.
[ DOOR ] : FIND YOUR WAY
Aptly dressed in a dramatic coat of feathers which he later removed to a more impressive projection of wings on his back, Doyoung kicked the night off with ‘Wake From the Dark’, the powerful intro track from his newly launched second album “Soar”. This immediately followed with a VCR to introduce the concept of the concert with each door representing the different eras of Doyoung’s journey, finding his way to becoming the singer he is today.
Every stage after that was its own cinematic moment – ‘Dallas Love Field’ had Doyoung exiting a plane facade at the namesake airport, ‘Little Wave’ mirrored all the ocean imagery that fans are familiar with from his album art and ‘Lost In California’ was bathed in a sunset glow and glitter confetti.
From ‘Little Light’ onwards – which was a clear crowd favourite – Doyoung even included both hangul and romanized lyrics on the theatre screens for fans to sing-along to and make the entire night more immersive.
A MEDLEY OF MEMORIES
Demonstrating that he’s more than just strong vocal for ballads, one of the key highlights of the night took place mid-show where Doyoung and his band transitioned into a suave intermission of jazz renditions and fan favourites. This segment’s VCR had Doyoung dancing on a bar top!
Doyoung crooned through ‘Yestoday’ (originally by NCT U), ‘Serenade’ (from his first album), ‘Like a Star’ (from the Yumi Cells OST) and ‘Love Song’ (originally by NCT 127).
Finally, to cap off this already amazing section, Doyoung sang the hit-song ‘Perfume’ (originally by NCT DJJ) along to neverending screams and cheers from his enamoured audience.
FROM SINGAPORE, FOR SINGAPORE
As a testament to how Doyoung goes above and beyond for his fans, he mentioned that he had thoughtfully weaved in a local song to his setlist for every stop of this tour. For Singapore, the singer surprised with his own rendition of Regina Song’s ‘The Cutest Pair’ not once, but twice, so fans could “pick the better version” to upload to their socials.
This made the crowd erupt in laughter, already delighted from Doyoung’s peppering of Singlish phrases that he picked up during soundcheck earlier that evening. The phrase of the night was clearly “I love you deep deep” which even made an appearance in the form of a handwritten note during his ‘First Step’ stage.
[ DOORS ] : DO(YOUNG) + US
To fans, this concert was more than just a showcase of songs – it was a journey crafted with care. The concert title itself,
[ Doors ], carries a meaning of saying ‘Do’ from Doyoung and ‘Us’ referring to Czennies combined – symbolising a shared passage through these doors and memories that have been presented through the thoughtfully curated setlist.
“I wanted to express the journey of emotions that happen when you open the door to a memory” shared Doyoung, and this statement rang true right up till his final performance ‘Rest’. The warm, and encouraging track reflected the singer’s hope that this concert would become a restful, meaningful memory for Czennies.
And maybe, in the coming year when the time comes for Doyoung to embark on a new journey of his own to enlist for mandatory military service, and we may not see him as often on stage, this night can remain as a precious memory kept behind our own doors.
A big thank you to FriedRice Entertainment for the invite!
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