Billboard calls Stray Kids' Rock in Rio headline set a 'perfect debut' — first K-pop act to top the festival
Stray Kids headlined Rock in Rio's main stage Sept. 11 in front of 100,000 fans. Billboard ran a full feature the next day.
K-pop's first Rock in Rio headliner
Stray Kids took the Palco Mundo main stage at Rock in Rio on September 11 (local time) at Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They were the first K-pop act ever to headline the festival. Around 100,000 people showed up.
Billboard published a feature on September 12. "Stray Kids, the first K-pop artist to headline Rock in Rio, thrilled South American fans with a historic debut," the outlet wrote. The piece called the set a "perfect debut."
The full write-up noted that members took the stage with styling drawing on Korean traditional aesthetics. They ran through multiple hit songs and kept close contact with the crowd throughout. "Could there be such a perfect Rock in Rio debut? It was historic, intense, and left you wanting more," the piece read. "The first page of K-pop that will heat up Rock in Rio."
During the set, the group performed Chk Chk Boom with samba steps woven into the choreography.
STRAYCITY keeps the Latin America run going
The Rock in Rio date sits inside a broader Latin American campaign. STRAYCITY — a new festival co-organized by JYP Entertainment and Live Nation with Stray Kids as headliners — opened on September 9 in Bogotá, Colombia. Buenos Aires, Argentina followed on September 14–15. The run closes out September 25–26 in Mexico City, Mexico.
(Three countries, one month — the Latin American market is clearly the priority for this era.)
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