Photos by Sofia Cardenas
Nestled below the San Gabriel Mountains, the Rose Bowl lives on the western edge of the SGV, where 20 miles of strip malls, boba shops, and sprawling suburbia make up one of the most prominent ethnoburbs in Los Angeles. On August 8, Asian-interest music collective 88rising took over Pasadena with their flagship festival, Head in the Clouds. Since its inception in 2018, the festival has spotlighted Asian-diasporic artists like JOJI, NIKI, Rich Brain, and Kevin Ape. In its seventh year, UCLA Radio highlights the sets that defined this year’s festival.
The August afternoon sun was unforgiving, but no deterrent for concertgoers to crowd the main stage for KiiiKiii’s U.S. debut. Cheers erupted as soon as the girls came onstage, animatedly performing “Dancing Alone.” Signed to Starship Entertainment – the same company that produced IVE and Monsta X – the 5-piece girl group had their break in January with their second EP, Delulu Pack. Their sound pulls from electropop and 2000s influences, similar to artists like NewJeans and Yves. As KiiiKiii moved through their performance, they leaned fully into the colorful world of their music, with playful styling and constant interaction with the crowd. The girls played their latest release, “Candy Pink Magic Hole Flip Phone,” two days ahead of its official release, giving the crowd an early taste of what’s to come. Produced by Korean hyperpop darling Effie, the track stands out with more experimental edges than the rest of the group’s catalog. The track pairs glitchy synths with a story about a sugar-sweet summer day with friends, fitting alongside the whimsical absurdism – mythologizing random household items, desserts – found in the rest of their discography. Before the girls said their goodbyes, KiiiKiii ended their set with their most popular song, “404 (New Era).” Colorful lyric visualizers lit up the screen behind them, and the crowd joined in on singing every word. KiiiKiii may still be in its infancy, but their U.S. debut proved that they have a crowd eager to follow wherever they’re next bringing a slice of their whimsical world.
I first saw Tiffany Day in October, DJing in the back of a West Hollywood bar for a small but fiercely energetic crowd. Ten months later, Tiffany Day can be seen on wheatpasted flyers along Sunset and Hollywood Boulevard, scheduled for a sold-out tour and even having performed at UCLA in May. She’s been impossible to avoid, amassing a cult following seemingly overnight, and is now making her festival debut at Head in the Clouds. Although Day has shifted away from her earlier bedroom-pop-inspired sound in favor of maximalist, hyperpop production, her presence has remained the same. Tiffany Day exudes an earnest playfulness. She spent her festival debut shouting out her parents and family dog on the livestream before berating her ex-boyfriend. As she sings and dances onstage, her lyrics show a level of emotional vulnerability, singing on “AMERICAN GIRL” about being anxious at parties, and on “SAME LA” about finding her footing in the city. Even her visuals refuse to take themselves too seriously – projecting dancing Cinnamorolls, neon text, and “IMAGINE LASERS HERE” during the climax of her broad daylight set. After her live set, Day continued the high-energy DJing in the Toyota Music Den. She effortlessly turned the festival into a rave, with throngs of people headbanging, fanning, and chanting along to her selects from EDM giants like ISOXO and Skrillex. Her double act proved one thing: Tiffany Day is a bright light.
As the summer heat mellowed into a night breeze, the crowd itched for the festival’s headliners to take center stage – two international girl groups, bridging the production, aesthetics, and culture of the East and West. XG kicked things off, pushing the envelope of what a traditional girl group could look like. Though the seven-member group is based in Japan, XG draws heavily from the Korean idol ecosystem and boasts a discography with predominantly English lyrics. The group came onstage donning neon outfits, with clashing prints and tulle skirts – making them immediately stand apart from the clean-cut, bubblegum nostalgia that girl groups often lean into. XG opened their set with “WOKE UP” – stating loud and clear that they were unapologetically avant-garde. Their set was just as much a spectacle as it was a live performance. Complete with a live band, rolling fog, pyrotechnics, and an elaborate set design, their performance had an air of theatricality. The girls fully leaned into their extraordinary universe, interacting with the universe they built onstage with tightly synchronized choreography. They closed off their set with their biggest song, “LEFT RIGHT,” sending the crowd to sing its iconic bridge with the girls:
“Let me take you to the other side /
XG we certified /
Alpha, Alpha, we gon’ ride or die /
Into the galaxy, know the vibes”
The entire day had an air of anticipation around it. Throughout the day, hints of KATSEYE could be spotted throughout the crowd, in the form of unofficial T-shirts, lightsticks in hand, or photocards hanging off clear bags. KATSEYE was founded on bringing K-pop’s tightly crafted performance into the accessibility and diversity of Western pop. HYBE and Geffen Records collaborated and recruited six girls to create a truly global group, offering representation for any fan. The crowd was a fitting reflection of the group’s founding tenets – young fans walked alongside their parents, while teenagers and adults stayed, unwavering, in the pit – fully intent on securing a good view. By the time KATSEYE took the stage, the energy inside the Rose Bowl was electric. Parents hoisted their children onto their shoulders as fans of all ages jumped and sang along. Sophia and Manon were notably missing from the performance – the former’s absence acknowledged and grieved, the latter’s left unmentioned – but the remaining four girls still gave Head in the Clouds everything they had. Dressed in feathers and satin pastels, Daniela, Megan, Yoonchae, and Lara served a dream pop fantasy as they performed nearly their entire discography. They closed out the festival with an extended medley of “Gnarly” – the song the crowd was waiting to hear all day. Even as the lights went out, EYEKONS sang and danced as they filed out of the Rose Bowl.
Across a single afternoon, fans of all ages sang their hearts out in the pit, while groups set up picnic blankets on the fringes of the main stage. Thousands of people gathered to see artists whose music crosses language, culture, and genre boundaries. Head in the Clouds has changed a lot over the years, morphing different lineups, stages, and cities, but the evolution of the festival shows how the industry has evolved year after year. At a time when global pop refuses to concern itself with borders, Head in the Clouds stands at the center of an increasingly interconnected soundscape.
