[PHILIPPINES] Fans Welcome Hwang In Youp Home at His First Fan Meeting in Manila

It was a stormy Saturday last September 24, 2022, but the mood inside the New Frontier Theater was that of warmth and excitement as Hwang In Youp was finally here to hold his first solo fan meeting in the country.

Although Filipino HIYILYs just saw him three months ago at a “fun meet” organised by cosmetics brand BYS, this event marks In Youp’s first visit to Manila as an actor. Let’s travel back in time and relive the special night for In Youp and his beloved HIYILYs!

Catching Up With Hwang In Youp

Against a heavenly backdrop of stars, Hwang In Youp started his fan meeting with a heartfelt performance of Starlight from the True Beauty OST, after which he formally introduced himself to the audience. MC Sam Oh then joined him on stage to kick off the activities lined up for the night.

The first segment called “Hwang Quiz” tested In Youp’s knowledge on all things Filipino: festivals, food, holidays, and phrases. Thanks to his first-hand experience of living in the Philippines, In Youp breezed through the quiz and won a delicious cup of Filipino dessert halo-halo as a prize.

In Youp shared that he also had halo-halo the night before his fan meeting when he visited the local fast-food chain Chowking in SM Megamall. He expressed love for the dessert, saying, “I always eat this whenever I’m in the Philippines. I can eat this every day.”

Apparently, it was among Youp’s go-to food while he was studying in Davao City. When asked what he was like as a student, he said that he was an average one back then and that he enjoyed typical Filipino things such as Jollibee, street basketball, and playing the box drum.

“Do you have any plans to return to Davao?” MC Sam Oh asked, reading one of the questions sent by fans. In Youp replied that it’s difficult to work around his schedule for now, but he plans on making a personal trip before the year’s end.

Part of the reason why In Youp’s schedule is jam-packed, he explained, is due to the fact that he’s working on a “secret project” at the moment. K-Drama fans have long been speculating that In Youp is involved in the upcoming remake of the 2006 hit series Princess Hours.

Adding fuel to the rumour mill fire, In Youp also mentioned during the fan meeting that he wants to try out more ‘royalty’ roles in the future as Princess Hours was extremely popular in the Philippines back when he was living here. Whatever this “secret project” is, one thing’s for sure: In Youp will have another successful drama to add to his stellar filmography.

The King of Fan Service

Hwang In Youp had always promised that his fan meetings would be intimate affairs, and it’s safe to say that he did not disappoint his beloved HIYILYs. From start to finish, there was no shortage of fan service — from close interactions to thoughtful gifts, In Youp did it all for his fans.

Perhaps the most heart-fluttering of them all would be the “In Youp Game” segment, where lucky audience members were called on stage to play with the actor himself. Several HIYILYs had the chance to take In Youp one-on-one in a staring contest, a clapping game, and an arm-wrestling match.

The players each took home a signed polaroid of them and In Youp together, and there’s no doubt that they will cherish that photo forever. Another lucky HIYILY also received a signed traditional Korean fan from the actor with a touching message that reads: “I hope your days are filled with love and happiness.”

The actor also shared a behind-the-scenes look at some of the roles he had taken on. He described the historical drama The Tale of Nokdu as a challenging project, primarily because of the costumes. “The hanbok usually has three to four layers,” In Youp explained, “so my makeup would be melting. I lost a lot of hair while filming, too, because the ponytail was so tight.”

As for his most recent project, the SBS drama Why Her, the actor said that he specifically accepted the role because it was different from his characters in 18 Again and True Beauty. MC Sam Oh praised In Youp’s performance in the SBS drama, particularly the wide emotional range that the actor displayed in the series. Indeed, we are all raring to see In Youp expand his repertoire of characters, and it looks like we will not have to wait too long as his next project is just right around the corner.

More Than a Fan Meeting, It Was a Homecoming

If we were to assign a theme to Hwang In Youp’s first fan meeting in the Philippines, no motif would be more fitting than a ‘homecoming’. Although many years have passed since he lived in the country, the actor still talks so fondly of his time here as though it happened just yesterday.

To repay the love that In Youp has shown to the Philippines, Filipino HIYILYs were determined to make the last stop of his first Asian fan meeting tour the best one yet. His Filipino fan club spearheaded various fan projects, including a surprise video of several fans’ personal messages to the actor, all of which ended with the same sentence “Welcome home, Hwang In Youp.”

Even the fan-made banners bore the same message. But this time it was written in Cebuano, the language spoken in Davao: Welcome home, among palangga. Gi higugma ka namo! (Welcome home, our love. We love you!)

It is hard to imagine In Youp lining up to order Chickenjoy, playing basketball with a makeshift ring on the streets, and having an impromptu acoustic jamming session with classmates during recess like the rest of us did. It’s heart-warming to think that a K-Drama superstar like him lived the same experiences that we had, and that he used to call the Philippines home as we do.

At the beginning of his fan meeting, In Youp said that he always feels like he is returning home whenever he is in the Philippines. Now that he has spent quality time with Filipino HIYILYs, we are sure that he knows his fans will always be here to welcome him home.

The Seoul Story would like to thank Ovation Productions for the media invite! We look forward to seeing Hwang In Youp in Manila again soon. 🙂

Check out more photos from the fan meeting HERE.

Written by: Sai
Photos by: Sai

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