Mai Nguyen K-pop group Omega X wrapped up their first world tour, Connect: Don’t Give Up on October 22nd. The month-long tour was fraught with logistical issues, including sudden show cancellations and poor communication with attendees. On October 23rd following the completion of the tour, SBS reported that the CEO of Omega X’s agency, Spire Entertainment, verbally and physically assaulted the group, including video footage of the incident in Los Angeles. SBS also reported that a company representative from Spire Entertainment canceled the group’s flight tickets to Korea, resulting in the members booking their own tickets to return home.
One day before the final show of the tour in Los Angeles, APA participated in a roundtable interview with the group to discuss the tour thus far and their aspirations.
After the group’s one year anniversary, Omega X embarked on their first world tour, though the road to this point wasn’t always easy. “This past year since debut has been full of ups and downs,” said Hangyeom. “We’ve just been working hard and performing non-stop. Of course we are human so we get tired, but ultimately our fans are the ones who keep us going to continue singing and performing.” He continued, “This is a great opportunity not a lot of people get to experience, so thanks to that and our fans, we know what love and happiness is.”
Touring with 11 members has both its upsides and downsides according to Omega X. “All of us have different personalities and preferences. Most of all, we like to talk a lot, which I personally love,” said Hangyeom. “The best part is that it always feels like I’m hanging out with my classmates every day.” On the flipside, Hangyeom said, “With 11 of us, we can get loud, so it sometimes can be a little bit too much.” Jaehan added, “The problem with having so many members is that if you’re missing one person, it’s hard to find them. Like Xen, he is pretty hard to find. [laughs]”
The fitting name of the Connect: Don’t Give Up tour is a result of the group’s determination, though the members share that there have been times they wanted to give up and found ways to pick themselves back up. “On this tour, we had a lot of heavy luggage to carry, not just our personal luggage, but others with outfits, accessories, and makeup. We had to carry them to the car, check them in, and lift them up, so it hurt our backs a lot,” said Hangyeom. “Those were times when we just wanted to give up and go rest, but we would tell each other, ‘Let’s not give up,’ so it almost became a life motto on tour for everyone.”
Adding onto Hangyeom, “It felt really challenging, and sometimes it felt impossible,” Yechan said. “It [touring] gave me a lot of stress during this time, but I know that I can get energy from the fans when I’m on stage, so I always try to wait in the sidelines until the show begins.” He also noted, “If we could have performed on a bigger stage with more equipment, that would have been awesome. Sadly, we had to perform on a square-shaped stage this time, so if there’s a next time, we’d like to use more equipment to hold more special stages.”
Looking ahead into the new year, Sebin shared the group’s aspirations: “Our goal is to tour everywhere around the world and meet For X.” Filled with ambition, other members eagerly chimed in to add that they aim to work hard to achieve a broadcast show win, as well as earn an award for best performance in the coming year.
Photo Credit: Spire Entertainment
