Dream Concert Japan, Fansigns, and Future Content Wrap up “BONVOYAGE” Era For Dreamcatcher

We’re coming up on a month since Dreamcatcher’s latest album release, and like all good things, it does need to come to an end. That’s what we had this past week with their activities (with the last fansign actually being today, the day this article is being uploaded), but just because the era is closing up doesn’t mean that Dreamcatcher still isn’t cranking out the content, both for this past week and more importantly, for the future. Let’s take a quick peek at how the group spent the last full week of the “BONVOYAGE” comeback!

Dreamcatcher did double duty at the inaugural Dream Concert Japan this past week, performing at both the daytime and nighttime concert sets. Performing “BONVOYAGE” for both sets and then adding in 2020’s “Scream” for the day and recent B-side “Propose” for night, the group had distinctly different fashions for both sets as well as plenty of energy to keep things going through what was no doubt a long day of rehearsing, waiting, and performing. The lineup itself seemed quite boy group-focused as well, so Dreamcatcher seemed to do good as one of the few K-Pop girl groups to perform in Saitama. They even managed to sneak in a couple dance challenges for “BONVOYAGE” as well.

While there was no sign of any of their Japanese discography (I would speculate that the licensing/performances are a bit harder to secure) there was no doubt a lot of entertainment had, and quite a few people in the audience who hadn’t heard of the group, but who were impressed by Dreamcatcher’s vocals — especially when Main Vocal Siyeon hit her high notes in all of the songs.

The last of Dreamcatcher’s album fansigns (both offline and online) were peppered throughout last week’s activities for the group. On average it appears between 10–15 are held per comeback for Dreamcatcher, and I have to say that after a while I wonder if it gets to be a bit same-y for the group themselves. But as always, Dreamcatcher are professionals, and do seem to genuinely enjoy repeated interactions with their fans, so that certainly helps. Of course, some variance in what happens at fansigns certainly helps, from SuA getting a new pair of shorts referring to one of the group’s most hilarious and well-known memes to Gahyeon carelessly tossing play money to the floor. Between these and all the high-quality fansite photos and props, there are plenty of memories to be made and this comeback was no different.

https://weverse.io/dreamcatcher/live/0-121072311

And speaking of fans, Yoohyeon dropped in quickly to check on them in a (very brief this time) Weverse livestream. Given the time, and the location of them (they appear to be in the company building or the rented practice space), I’m always appreciative of them, even if it’s for a few minutes. We got to hear about songs Yoohyeon is listening to, how she absolutely can’t go without coffee for a day (one of those “she’s just like me fr” moments I’m sure) and what she’s been up to before she headed off for the night.

As much as it is fun and nice for fans to get a surprise livestream out of nowhere, however, nothing beats a good Special Clip drop, and that’s what Main Vocal Siyeon gave us this past week with her cover of Yuuri’s “BETELGUESE” from the OST for drama series “Super Rich”. Fans were quick to point out that this kind of studio-singing video was pretty much the same thing that Siyeon did for her “Speechless” cover, just about four years to the day. I’d never heard the song before, but hearing the emotion and power in Siyeon’s voice obviously made me go check out the original song as sung by Yuuri as well. Videos like this remind me of Siyeon stating that she A)loves to listen to and sing rock and B)that she’s quite capable of the J-Rock singing style and good and clear Japanese pronunciation that is required for it. Either way, it was a nice drop out of nowhere, and I look forward to hopefully more off-comeback content like it in the future.

The official YouTube channel also uploaded a brand new “WHAT-JJYU” episode as well, with foodie JiU having her best friend tag along for a tour of Sinsa-dong restaurants. This wasn’t the first time this friend has made an appearance in some of JiU’s content, so it’s nice to see that their friendship is still going strong and that the two of them have no issues with ribbing each other over food habits, calories, and more. Having these episodes be pretty long-ish (this one was 20) also just allows for a lot of room for JiU (and what will appear to be at least one guest) to talk about and appreciate what they’re eating.

https://twitter.com/RandomMindsPH/status/1670280241028407298

As for what might be in store for the group in the near future, one updated bit of news came from one of the partners responsible for organizing Dreamcatcher’s upcoming return to Manila in the Philippines in late August. Responding to concerns that the tier pricing needing to include an all-in-one tier or at least more logical flexibility, adjustments were made so interested buyers could pick up VVIP activities of their choice in a more organized manner. The current tiering now has a limited number of all-in-one slots, ensure ticket cost isn’t spent multiple times, and also appear to reflect the value-add of some activities over others (such as the group photo op over a soundcheck, for example). Dreamcatcher fans who are counting on coming should note the adjustments and plan accordingly, but hopefully, this will make things just a bit easier.

Last but not least on the future plans list is the news that JiU and Yoohyeon were selected as brand ambassadors for NEOGEN, starting with promotion of some of their best summer products that they got to choose. There’s a YouTube live stream event happening to kick off the partnership along with a photocard event for folks interested in collecting exclusive pics of both members with the purchase of products.

Brand ambassadorship opportunities, which area commonly known way for K-Pop artists to supplement income as well as build visibility for both the group and for the partnered company, have been few and far between for Dreamcatcher as a whole. There have been a few collaborations (NEOGEN for example engaged in one with the whole group in 2021 selling member-created hand creams and body mists) but not as many opportunities to become the face of a brand.

That changed this past week with the above news regarding JiU and Yoohyeon, and it seems the duo has been collecting a little bit of clout between this and the Ceci Korea Thailand photoshoot earlier in the year. Hopefully, this will lead to more for both JiU and Yoohyeon and of course, everyone else in Dreamcatcher as well. As I said last week, the focus on individual opportunities and activities for the various members doesn’t appear to be any accident, and it’s a prudent strategy to pursue as the members approach the latter parts of their careers together.

We’re heading into a relatively quiet July as of this writing, so perhaps we will see a bit of a break for the group before they return to work. Either way you can count on me dropping in more Dreamcatcher content, so be sure to check that out next week at the same time!