Kiwi birthday surprise for K-pop megastar G-Dragon

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Superfan Yuki Zhang is still pinching herself after news her idol South Korean megastar G-Dragon is coming to town.

The 24-year-old retail assistant has just returned from Seoul, where she watched the hugely popular K-pop sensation kick off a massive four-continent world tour, spanning 29 cities and at least 36 shows.

“G-Dragon is perhaps the biggest and hottest name in K-pop today, and I still find it hard to believe he is coming in Auckland,” said Zhang.

She is splashing out another $525 to secure VIP ticket for the star’s Auckland show on top of spending $2000 watching him perform at the Sangam World Cup Stadium in front of 40,000 fans.

“I say: ‘go hard or go home’, and I see this as a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see G-Dragon in the flesh in New Zealand,” Zhang said.

Born Kwon Ji-Yong, the wildly successful G-Dragon shot to fame with boy band BIGBANG before going solo in 2009.

The tour, his third, will be the largest undertaken by a Korean solo artist.

The concert, named G-Dragon 2017: Act III, MOTTE (Moment of Truth the End), is aimed at showing the “real” Kwon Ji-Yong, and not his G-Dragon persona.

Fans are also thrilled Kwon will be in Auckland to celebrate his 30th birthday.

“Plans are under way from fans to give him a Kiwi birthday surprise to remember.”

Banners, birthday cake, mass singing of the birthday song in Maori and Korean, and even a haka are some of what the star can expect.

In a video message released for New Zealand fans ahead of his New Zealand show, G-Dragon said he was looking forward to performing in Auckland.

“Hey, NZ, I’m coming to New Zealand for the first time,” Kwon said.

“I will like to celebrate the special concert with everyone of you, so don’t miss out.”

A rapper, singer, songwriter, producer and fashion designer, Kwon was the main songwriter for BIGBANG, which is arguably the world’s most popular boy band and the biggest act in Asia. It sold more than 140 million albums worldwide.

Kwon has written 22 No 1 hits, including BIGBANG’s signature hit Lies, and collaborated with international musicians including Justin Bieber, Missy Elliot, Boys Noize, MIA and Diplo.

Six of the songs he has produced have had more than one billion YouTube views, with Fantastic Baby and Bang Bang Bang hitting more than 200,000,000 views.

Kwon was named by Forbes last year as the most influential person under 30 in Asia’s entertainment and sports.

Local organising partner, Diane Lee, said G-Dragon is the “biggest name” in K-pop to be performing here.

“After a few K-Pop shows, we figured New Zealand is ready for the world’s top K-pop star,” Lee said.

Tickets are priced between $154 and $524 for the concert at Spark Arena, but the top-priced tickets have already sold out.

The Auckland concert is part of G-Dragon’s world tour, which includes Tokyo, Sydney, New York, Los Angeles, Bangkok and Singapore.

– G-Dragon, Aug 16, Spark Arena Auckland, $154.80 to $524.80.