Tomorrow X Together reflected on their debut appearance at Lollapalooza ahead of returning to the festival as headliners yesterday (August 5).
The five-piece boyband were the first Korean act to ever perform at the Chicago festival, appearing on the Solana x Perry stage. This year, they became the first Korean group to headline the festival.
- READ MORE: Tomorrow X Together live at Lollapalooza 2023: returning boyband make headlining festivals look easy
In the band’s recent Disney+ documentary Our Last Summer, rapper Yeonjun expressed that he wasn’t “sure if we should be” on the line-up. “Did we deserve to be there?” he said. “We were worried that we might ruin the vibe.”
Speaking to NME backstage ahead of their headline set, TXT reflected on that first appearance at the festival. “Actually, I think I was very nervous because it was my first time going on such a huge stage and I thought that I was lacking and maybe that’s why I thought I didn’t deserve to be on such a huge stage,” Yeonjun said.
“But I think I’ve grown a lot and I’m trying really hard to become an artist that can fit that stage.”
Asked if they felt more confident to be performing this year, they all responded: “Of course.”
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Elsewhere in the interview, the band also discussed performing with a live band for the second time, bringing back the rock arrangements from their first time at Lollapalooza. “Since it’s a festival, I think the live band brings some more liveliness and it brings more enrichment to the songs,” Beomgyu said.
“We can also lock our eyes with the band and then we can just vibe together on stage, and I think that’s really appropriate and fitting for a festival.”
TXT recently released a new single, ‘Do It Like That’, which saw them team up with the Jonas Brothers. When I was young, I watched Camp Rock and I saw the Jonas Brothers,” Hueningkai said of his love for the trio. “I thought, ‘Oh, I want to be like them’. So they are my role model, and I was happy to collaborate with them. It was a dream come true.”
During their Lollapalooza 2023 headline set, Tomorrow X Together performed ‘Do It Like That’ live for the first time and invited Coi Leray to join them for a performance of their recent track ‘Happy Fools’.
In a five-star review of the performance, NME said: “This headline set shows they are more than worthy of this new, elevated slot on the line-up. Their performances are tight and impactful, their vocals phenomenal, and their stage presence nothing short of rockstar status […] History never felt so giddily great.”
Check back at NME all weekend for more reviews, news, interviews, photos and more from Lollapalooza 2023.