OUR TOP 5 KCON LA 2026 MCOUNTDOWN HIGHLIGHTS

KCON LA 2026 was an exciting genre-crossing event this year, featuring 36 acts across the three-day festival. Held Aug. 14 to 16, under the theme “K-SOUL CITY,” KCON LA 2026 brought a total of 144 brands and companies to KCONers over three days. The energy of the festival reached past Los Angeles, as fans around the world were able to tune in via digital platforms that reached more than 250 regions. 

In particular, this year’s MCOUNTDOWN stages were especially memorable, featuring a diverse lineup of performers, unexpected surprise stages, and the debut of one-hour headliner programming. Rookie groups, rising soloists, first-time performers, and veteran artists all took the KCON LA MCOUNTDOWN stage, making the experience more inclusive than ever and offering something for every KCONer to enjoy.

THE RETURN OF WANNA ONE 

After nearly 10 years and following the group’s reunion, WANNA ONE has returned to the KCON LA stage! 

The nine currently active members, JISUNG, MINHYUN, SEONGWU, JAEHWAN, JIHOON, DAEHWI, SUNGWOON, WOOJIN, and JINYOUNG performed three of their highly popular songs: “Energetic,” “Boomerang,” and their most recent release, “Spring Breeze, Again,” a nod to their time as a group and memories they’ve made with fans.

In between songs, a montage of their careers as WANNA ONE was played, taking fans back to their debut, their journey as a group, and their final moments as WANNA ONE. The montage featured the missing members KANG DANIEL, who is currently active in the military, and LAI GUANLIN, who retired from the K-pop industry. 

The group closed off with “Spring Breeze, Again,” interacting with fans throughout and closing off with heartfelt group choreography and a shout to fans promising to remember the moment together. The group teased more reunion activities will come in the future, and from the deafening cheers, highly energetic crowd, and heartwarming smiles on the present members’ faces, this return was much needed and appreciated by KCONers. 

ONE-HOUR HEADLINERS 

The MCOUNTDOWN STAGE carried each night’s biggest moments, with headliners NCT 127, ZEROBASEONE and TOMORROW X TOGETHER performing hour-long sets that housed exclusive performances, covers and collaborations. During these one-hour sets, fans filled the arena with an energy that felt even bigger than years before, all buzzing with excitement at seeing their favorite groups in a way KCONers have never experienced.

Through the one-hour headliners, the groups were able to present songs many fans don’t get the opportunity of hearing live. As a mix of solo performances, covers, and group songs all fans adore, fans were able to experience their favorite groups in a mini-concert style new to the festival’s programming.

Fans from around the world came to see the headliners, and every other seat was filled with each headliner’s lightstick, giving KCON a mini-concert feel for the artists, which provided a unique experience for KCON attendees compared to the years past.

Our top three performances from the headliners’ setlists?  

DAY ONE: NCT 127 

• “TOUCH”
• “FACT CHECK” 
• “BLINGY” 

DAY TWO: ZEROBASEONE 

• “V FOR VISION” 
• “TOP 5” 
• “EXOTIC” 

DAY THREE: TXT 

• “ANTI-ROMANTIC” 
• “GOOD BOY GONE BAD”
• “DANGER”

COVERS EVERY KCONer LOVED 

KCON LA gave performers the chance to cover more songs than ever, each day filled with surprise solo stages and collabs that excited all KCONers. 

ZEROBASEONE’s performances at this year’s MCOUNTDOWN were cover-heavy! TAERAE filled the arena with his emotional cover of IU’s “Love Wins All,” GUNWOOK, along with KickFlip’s KYEHOON and TREASURE’s JUNGHWAN, covered Crush and J-HOPE’s “Rush Hour,” and the group as a whole surprised KCONers with a cover of Justin Timberlake’s “Sexyback,” a perfect representation of the group’s newly constructed image.

izna and ALPHA DRIVE ONE created some memorable moments on stage through covers as well, with izna channelled their inner fierceness through BLACKPINK’s edgy track “DDU-DU DDU-DU,” and ALPHA DRIVE ONE delivering a captivating performance of BTS’ “Fake Love.”

One cover that stood out the most was MODYSSEY’s cover of “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction. The group reimagined this song by incorportating elements of vouging, which excited the crowd in more ways than one. Whether or not KCONers were familiar with MODYSSEY beforehand, the group definitely left a lasting impression by making a song everyone knows and loves uniquely there.

FRESH FACES YOU SHOULDN’T UNDERESTIMATE 

This year’s MCOUNTDOWN stage featured many recently debuted acts and KCON LA first-timers. From recently-emerged soloists to groups who haven’t officially debuted yet, the KCON LA 2026 MCOUNTDOWN stage gave many acts a chance to show their skills to an audience who may not be familiar with them. Here are two we think you should look into!

&TEAM 

&TEAM not only made an exciting KCON LA debut this year, but KCON LA 2026 marked the group’s first time in the states. &TEAM, formed through the survival show &AUDITION, gave it their all on the MCOUNTDOWN stage, performing a melody of their highly popular songs “Deer Hunter” and “Rush,” as well as a collaboration stage with SANTOS BRAVOS. &TEAM embodied the spirit of what KCON is, providing KCONers unique and highly anticipated stages you can only experience at the festival. The energy in the crowd for &TEAM proved their U.S. popularity, and KCONers have already been hoping for their return to the U.S.

RESCENE  

If you think you aren’t familiar with RESCENE, think again! You have definitely heard a version of the 2nd-generation girl group KARA’s song “Pretty Girl,” which has gone viral on social media platforms. KCON LA gave RESCENE the chance to officially introduce themselves to K-pop fans through multiple stages at the festival, including the MCOUNTDOWN stage, where they performed the well-known song as well as “Love Attack.”

KCON LA 2026’s HIDDEN GEM: SANTOS BRAVOS 

This year, KCON LA featured many underdog performers, but one stood out the most to us: Santos Bravos! 

The multinational Latin boygroup from HYBE Latin America took the KCON stage for the first time this year, bridging the line between the K-pop industry and global reach. The group performed two of their popular songs, “Velociadade” and “Mhm,” and a collab stage with &TEAM where they did a BTS medley consisting of “Permission To Dance,” “Hooligan,” and “2.0.”

Santos Bravos’ appearance at KCON LA, and the audience’s screams of excitement when the group was on stage, proved KCON’s mission of globalizing the K-pop scene is needed and acknowledged.

KCON LA 2026 proved to be more inclusive than ever, with a variety of artists marking their moment on the MCOUNTDOWN stage. More exciting news followed shortly after: save the date for KCON LA 2027, happening Aug. 13-15! As KCONERs look forward to what’s to come next, KCON LA promises more music, moments, and memories for K-pop fans to experience together in the future.

What was your favorite KCON LA 2026 stage? Let us know on Instagram or Twitter/X!

Featured Image Credit: CJ ENM