Relive BOYNEXTDOOR’s Lollapalooza Trip With This Exclusive Photo Diary

When the members of BOYNEXTDOOR log onto our Zoom call, it’s barely been 18 hours since they graced the Lakeshore stage at Lollapalooza 2025. The sextet were announced as part of the lineup for Chicago’s famed festival in March and have been preparing for this moment ever since.

The performance might already be in the past, but they are still reeling from being part of the festival, with three of the members — Taesan, Riwoo, and Sungho — even rocking matching merch shirts they acquired during their time at the fest. “I actually wanted to buy more Lollapalooza merch, but when I went to the booth, they were all sold out. It was a bummer, ” Leehan laments. “ I wanted to buy a short-sleeved t-shirt and a hat, but they didn’t have any left.”

Despite the less-than-desirable amount of merch, the members still managed to make the most of their time in Chicago. After multiple rehearsals at HYBE’s HQ in Seoul, the group flew from South Korea to the US on July 31 to bring the performance to life on August 3 in a race-against-the-clock scenario. “Up until the performance, we obviously spent most of our time preparing and rehearsing. Also, it took us a bit of time for each member to adjust to the time difference and get over the jet lag, to be honest,” Taesan shares. “But when we had some spare time and during our off days, we tried to go out and enjoy the famous Chicago deep dish pizza and fried chicken, and also enjoy, you know, the Chicago vibes as much as we can.”

Though the group was scheduled as part of the main festival schedule, they also performed at House of Blues as part of the Lollapalooza 2025 Aftershows the day before their festival slot. “I think the size of the venue really matters less to us, but we felt like the style of the two shows was quite different,” Jaehyun explains. “Because of the way the venue was designed [for the aftershow], the way we exchanged energy with the fans was very different. The way that we communicated with the audience at the actual festival made it feel like we were the ones pushing the energy onto the crowd. Whereas during the aftershow, it felt like we were receiving more energy from them, because our fans were surrounding us.”

Both performances have gone on to the BOYNEXTDOOR memory hall of fame. “Even before I actually seriously wanted to become an artist, I knew what a big festival Lollapalooza was,” Leehan says. “Just watching on video, the fans and the crowd enjoying the vibe along with the artist was so touching even on screen. To experience it in person, it was just surreal. The excitement was so palpable. We couldn't believe that we were actually there.” Riwoo adds: “We were really looking forward to this stage, and it turned out to be even more amazing than we imagined. The energy from the crowd was incredible.”

“Even though we weren't on the main stage, it was so much fun and it was such an honor being part of Lollapalooza,” Woonhak continues. “Fans filled the stage, so we had such a huge crowd cheering us along. We also saw some other audience members passing by and gathering towards our stage, which made us really proud. The crowd was also singing along, which made us very happy and proud as well. This is a thought that crossed my mind right after completing our stage at Lollapalooza yesterday. We want to headline. We want to become a headliner one day and come back to the main stage.”

Their time at the festival served as both a chance to catch other artists perform — Taesan shares the group was particularly enthralled with Doechii’s set, which he singles out as a highlight, and Riwoo confirms it with a nod — but also a lesson in endurance. The group had previous festival experience, having appeared at Summer Sonic in Japan, but performing in a completely outdoor venue was a first.

“When we performed Summer Sonic, we remember talking amongst ourselves after and saying it was going to be such an unforgettable memory that would stay with us for such a long time. I think Lollapalooza is also up there. It was a new experience and memorable in a different way. For one, it was different because it was an outdoor stage, and the weather was quite a challenge,” Sungho explains. “We had to hold out and push through differently to deal with the blazing sun, so we were able to learn more from it as a performance. Going out and performing at a festival is a lot of fun for us, so I think it's really great for us to continue to experience various festival stages. We're grateful to everyone, and we're looking forward to more to come.”

While their time in Chicago comes to an end soon, BOYNEXTDOOR will remain on US soil for a little while as they gear up for the release of their new Japanese comeback later this month, which Taesan is quick to promote. “In a few days, we're going to LA and we're going to be doing a lot there. The first thing I'm looking forward to is going to the Grammy Museum and performing and meeting our fans. We have a lot in store. Since we're in the States, we'd like to meet as many fans as possible and make the most out of our time here. We wanna make more opportunities to connect with and resonate with fans who have not had that many opportunities to see us in person in the past.”

All in all, BOYNEXTDOOR’s journey in Chicago was full of “unforgettable memories,” as Riwoo sums it up, and Teen Vogue has an exclusive photo diary straight from Jaehyun, Sungho, Riwoo, Taesan, Leehan, and Woonhak's camera rolls.

^{All pictures are courtesy of KOZ Entertainment, exclusively for Teen Vogue. Digital composites by Sara Delgado. BOYNEXTDOOR's answers were translated from Korean via an interpreter. Additional translations have been provided by the writer.}