Soyeon of i-dle Holds Surprise Han River Concert for Solo Album Release

Soyeon, leader of K-POP girl group i-dle, turned a Seoul riverside stage into a pop-up celebration for her first solo album.

The singer performed at the Mulbit Stage in Yeouido Hangang Park on the evening of the 7th at 8 p.m. KST to mark the release of her debut studio album, "My Neururing Life."

The crowd was not only fans. Local residents and office workers heading home after work also filled the outdoor venue along the Han River.

Earlier that day, Soyeon walked through the restaurants and parks around Yeouido herself, handing out flyers to spread word of the show. By evening, fans who had seen the news online and passersby who had met her in person converged on the stage.

The concert came with a condition. It would only happen if at least 826 people showed up, a number chosen to match Soyeon's birthday on the 26th of the previous month. She took the stage with her eyes covered, opening with the i-dle song "MY BAG" backed by a live band. Later in the set, she removed the blindfold and saw that 1,011 people had gathered, well past the target. "I feel like I'm going to cry. Thank you so much," she said.

She then moved into the title track from her new album, "I Quit (Narr. Kian84)." "Work can be hard sometimes, but I think I really love what I do," Soyeon told the crowd. "Still, everyone dreams once in a while about quitting and just leaving it all behind, right? I hope 'I Quit (Narr. Kian84)' gives you three minutes of small freedom in the middle of your busy days. Please listen to it a lot."

From there she performed several other songs from the new album, including "Bankroll," "Can't We Just Love" (Geunyang Saranghamyeon An Doelkka), and "Sending Off Romance" (Nangman Bonaegi). After a fan request, she performed the title track "I Quit" a second time. She closed the encore with a rearranged version of i-dle's "Queencard."

The full album dropped earlier that day at 6 p.m. KST. Every track on "My Neururing Life" landed on Melon's HOT 100 chart, which tracks songs released within the past 30 days. The album also debuted at No. 1 on China's QQ Music digital album sales chart.