In Manila, Ive’s princess charm meets baddie energy
If their concert in 2024 showed “what I have,” their recent stop in Manila showed “what I am.” And what Ive is right now is a well-rounded girl group capable of grittier, hard-hitting stages—without so much as their proverbial tiaras shifting out of place.
Their setlist was designed to highlight their “more mature and confident” sides, and An Yujin, Gaeul, Rei, Jang Wonyoung, Liz, and Leeseo wasted no time getting their point across. They opened the night with “Gotcha (Baddest Eros),” a rock- inflected track that sent the crowd at the SM Mall of Asia Arena into deafening cheers and screams.
Graceful silhouettes
The song sounded more deliberate and aggressive than their usual offerings, and if the distorted guitar riffs didn’t make their intentions obvious enough, maybe the costumes would. Last year, the girls spent most of their time onstage in pinks and frills and sparkles—every bit the “Manila princesses” they were. This time, they emerged in studded leather and boots—every bit the “Baddie,” as their cool hip-hop ditty suggests.
While the songs in the first part were still essentially Ive—danceable midtempos with burnished synths—they did exude a palpable flirtation with the experimental and eclectic. “TKO” featured swing beats and brass instrumentation that evoked Spaghetti westerns. There was a bit of trap in “XOXZ,” while “Blackhole” had a subtle Middle Eastern flair.
The dancing was noticeably sharper; the girls set aside the aegyo in favor of sultry glares and commanding strides. But perhaps still in keeping with the group’s sophisticated DNA, they never went over the top with the choreography, and mostly leaned into fluid arm movements, graceful poses, and silhouettes.
Charming members
The show was a display of the group’s growth as much as “an expression of each member’s charm.” For their solo numbers, they performed original songs—a leap from the covers they performed two years ago.
Wonyoung, the it girl, was “worth the wait” in “8.” With a bow and her ponytail set to the side, Rei brought her chibi-like energy in “In Your Heart.” Liz, meanwhile, unleashed her inner rocker chick with “Unreal.” In the dreamy “Odd,” Gaeul came into view seated on a white-draped sofa under a crescent moon. Telling “a story of a cool, mature princess,” Leeseo vogued every which way to “Super Icy—a song she had a hand in writing.
And finally, Yujin, one of the group’s strongest vocalists and most athletic dancers, put her swagger on in “Force.”
Catchy pop bops
But while Ive has proven that they could step out of their comfort zone and revel in what Rei described as “bold and dark atmospheres,” they still shone brightest performing impossibly catchy sugar-coated pop: “Heartbeats,” “Off the Record,” “Flu,” and “Wow.”
A hand heart here and a little wiggle of their angel wings there, and the Filipino “Dive” erupted into giddy shrieks and a chorus of woofs. And then they fell in love all over again as Liz and Wonyoung said, “Ako ang cutie niyo”; Yujin asked, “Maganda ba ako?” and “Magaling ba kami?”; and Leeseo assured everyone, “Mahal kita.”
As the show came to a close, Ive pulled out all the stops, dishing out hit after hit—“Love Dive,” “I Am,” and “After Like.” For the encore, Wonyoung held court from the DJ booth and turned the arena into a sprawling dance floor with “Supernova Love.” Bedlam. Clearly, two years apart felt far too long.
Still, Rei thanked the fans for patiently waiting. “We really felt how happy you are,” she said. “Please cherish the memories we made today.”
Here they stand
For Gaeul, the concert was the fulfillment of a vow they made last year—and the beginning of another one. “We promise we will come back,” she said.
In a behind-the-scenes video, the group was seen in the practice room, neck-deep in rehearsals and determined to deliver a “cooler stage” for this ongoing tour. There were moments of doubt, but also of clarity and grit.“I wondered if I would be able to do well,” one member admits. “No, I can do it!” another says. There’s a reason this tour was called “Show What I Am.”
Such glimpses of vulnerability showed that these same artists who had effortlessly flitted between princess and baddie are, offstage, hardworking performers pushing themselves further and yearning for growth. And with the crowd dancing and singing along to every lyric, it’s safe to say that the cooler stage they fought for had finally arrived—and there they stood.
