How K-Pop Fan Cafés, Lightsticks and Fan Chants Work: 8 Questions New Fans Ask
"Why is everyone shouting the members' names in the middle of the song?" That is usually the first question a new K-pop fan asks after watching a concert clip. The second one is about the glowing sticks, and the third is about something called a "fan café." These three things sit at the heart of how K-pop fandom works, and none of them is hard once someone explains the logic.
Below are the eight questions we hear most often from readers who are just getting into K-pop or planning their first show in Korea, answered as simply as we can.
Q1. What exactly is a fan chant?
A fan chant, called eungwonbeop (응원법) in Korean, is a set of words the crowd shouts together at fixed moments in a song. Chant formats vary by song, but some patterns come up again and again. Fans often call out the group's or members' names during the intro, stay quiet through parts where the singers need to be heard, and shout selected words with the artist or right after them. When an official guide exists, follow that.
The goal is not to drown out the music. A good chant fills the gaps. When a few thousand people get it right, it sounds like part of the arrangement, which is why live recordings of K-pop shows often feel so loud and tight.
Q2. Who writes the chants?
Many chants were first worked out by fans, who decided where the names and shouts should go and passed the guides around. Today, many groups and their agencies publish an official cheering guide for new songs, often as a video on the group's own YouTube channel around the time the song comes out.
Official guides vary. Some show the members demonstrating the chant themselves, while others use lyrics or performance footage, with the parts fans shout highlighted. In NCT DREAM's official "Beat It Up" guide, uploaded to the group's YouTube channel on November 18, 2025, the chant parts appear in yellow. The opening line reads "엔시티 드림 Beat / It / Up," with the group's name, 엔시티 드림 (NCT DREAM), in yellow.
If a song has no official guide, fans usually agree on one through the official fan community. Search for the song title plus "응원법" or "fanchant guide" and pick the version that comes from the group's own channel when you can.
Q3. How do I learn a chant before a concert?
The simplest method is the one most fans use:
- Find the official cheering guide video for each song you expect to hear.
- If the guide includes a member-name call, learn that order first. It may come back in other songs, but check each song's guide.
- Play the guide two or three times and only shout the highlighted words. Do not try to sing the whole song.
- Then play the normal music video and try the chant without the guide on screen.
Korean words in chants can be tricky if you don't read Hangul (한글). Many fans write the chant in Latin letters on their phone notes. That is completely fine. Nobody near you will check your pronunciation; they will just be happy you are joining in.
Q4. What is a lightstick, and do I need the official one?
A lightstick (응원봉, eungwonbong) is a handheld light made in each group's own design and color. Many established groups sell an official lightstick, and fans hold them up during the show so the whole venue glows in that group's color. In the photo above, the members are holding their own green lightsticks while they explain the chant.
Many newer official lightsticks can pair with a phone app over Bluetooth, sometimes with your seat number registered. At concerts that support it, a central control system then changes the colors of the lightsticks in the venue together, so whole sections flash or form patterns. Support varies by model and by show, and unofficial copies usually cannot do this, so if you want to be part of those moments, buy the official version from the agency's or platform's official shop and follow the pairing steps that the organizer posts before the show.
Do you need one at all? No. You can enjoy a concert with empty hands. But at an arena show in Korea, most of the crowd will have one, and many fans say it makes them feel part of the show rather than just watching it.
Q5. What is a fan café?
A fan café (팬카페) is an online fan community. For many years, many official K-pop fan cafés were hosted on Daum Cafe (다음 카페), a Korean online community service. Agencies used them to post notices, and fans used them to share photos, chant guides and event information.
Fan cafés often have levels. A new member can usually only read certain boards and needs to post or answer a short quiz to move up to a higher level. The rules differ for every café, so read the notice board before writing anything.
Q6. Is it all on apps now?
Much of it has moved to fan platforms. Weverse (위버스), operated by Weverse Company, part of HYBE, is used by HYBE artists and by many artists from other companies. On it, artists post messages and live videos, and fans can join official fan club memberships, buy merchandise and read official notices. Other groups use their own apps or fan sites, and some still keep a Daum fan café as well.
The practical tip is simple: check the group's official accounts to see where its official fan community lives, and only sign up there. Many fan-made accounts look official but are not.
Q7. Why does fan club membership matter for tickets?
For popular groups, concerts in Korea often have a fan club pre-sale. A paid official membership can make a fan eligible for an earlier pre-sale before the general sale opens. Separate registration or verification is often required, and joining does not guarantee a ticket. Membership can also be needed for some fan events, recordings or special seats.
Membership rules, prices and dates change for every group and every year, so we are not listing numbers here. Always read the official notice from the agency or ticket site, and check whether the membership is open to people living outside Korea. Some memberships have a separate global version.
Q8. Are there manners I should know at a concert?
- Chant at the right time. Shout the marked parts, and stay quiet when the artist is talking or singing a soft part.
- Keep your lightstick low enough. Hold it at chest or face height, not high above your head, so the people behind you can still see.
- Follow the photo rules. Many concerts in Korea do not allow filming or professional cameras. The rule is printed on the ticket page; staff do enforce it.
- Bring spare batteries. Most lightsticks run on regular batteries, and a dead stick in the middle of the show is a common complaint.
Chanting was not always allowed, either. During the pandemic, COVID-19 rules barred audible cheering at many South Korean concerts and sports events, and fans used clappers instead. Most nationwide distancing rules ended in April 2022, and fan chants soon came back.
If you are flying to Seoul for a show, you will likely have a free morning before it. Our Gyeongbokgung Palace visitor guide explains hours, tickets and the free entry for visitors wearing hanbok, which makes an easy half-day plan in central Seoul.
Watch an official cheering guide
This is the official "Beat It Up" cheering guide from NCT DREAM's YouTube channel. Watch for the words shown in yellow: those are the parts the crowd shouts.
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