After almost nonstop travel and performance, the Wonder Girls open yet another Jonas Brothers concert, this time on the West Coast in San Jose! This performance was particularly special because, one, San Jose is Yubin's hometown, and two, allkpop got to meet up with the girls before their Aug 3 performance. Cat (catchung), Alan (cityincolors) and I got a slice of the WG life on the American road; now, allkpop is ready to disclose that exclusive experience with you! After arriving at the HP Pavilion venue around 3PM, we were promptly led through a maze of backstage halls into a cozy dressing room area. All of a sudden, the girls began emerging one by one - Sohee flitted between dressing rooms, Yubin entered from the halls; a few minutes later, Mimi walked by, stopped in front of us and blinked curiously (typical 4D behavior), and Sun seemed to be cleaning up the dressing room... Yenny was the first to introduce herself, and the other girls also followed suit, shaking our hands and making small talk. They were all super friendly and made the perfect hostesses; I felt like I was a guest being welcomed into a family's humble abode. Ever since the female fivesome announced their trek into the American entertainment industry, there has been constant criticism about the girls' limited English being a language barrier. To be honest, I found myself completely at ease chatting with them - I never had to explain any words, speak slowly or do anything different than I would with a native English speaker. They're making leaps and bounds in language proficiency, and not just in English - I had a brief conversation in Mandarin Chinese with Sun, and her accent is surprisingly subtle. I think it may even be less noticeable than her English one. Since they're also dabbling in Spanish, are they on the road to being quadrilinguists?... JYP, you never fail to surprise! Speaking of JYP, I was also impressed by the support group the girls have - the big man himself was constantly in the room, and their managers were always in the vicinity or a call away. At one point, Joe Jonas even visited, greeting Yenny with a big hug before going off for concert preparations! Every performer deals with pre-stage stress differently - some swallow their jitters by listening to music, while others bypass anxiety and get excited. In the Wonder Girls' case, they acted like any other group of girls their age, goofing off, making (both Korean and American!) pop culture references, bursting into song spontaneously, getting on the computer... Around 4PM, we ventured into the open for the Wonder Girls' customary Verizon Event. A crowd was already waiting - fans immediately swarmed the girls, asking for photos and essentially screaming their heads off as the quintet approached the Verizon bus. The security had to escort the girls through the crowd to the front of the bus. There, each member introduced herself, and they taught the Nobody dance to everyone. After running through the dance once, each member chose someone from the crowd, causing a surge of excitement. I for one was totally floored (literally; I kimchi-squatted at the front and people steam-rolled over me within five minutes); the chain barriers eventually fell down as the crowd inched closer to the girls, and the staff actually had to stop the music to get everyone to back up. I totally understand the excitement of seeing your favorite celebrities standing right in front of you, but personal space anyone? After the event was over, we were escorted through the crowd back into the stadium for our interview. We went back into the dressing room and got a few autographs and photos. I was really nervous for my first interview but all of the girls were very patient and encouraging. Definitely check out the interview at the end of this article; we answered some of our reader's questions for the girls, and they divulge tidbits about their personal interests, American celebs, other kpop groups etc. Later on that day, we went outside to check out what else was going on, and let me tell you, the Jonas Brothers crowds are like no other - if you thought a crowd with a boa constrictor was intense, think of that level of hype, triple it, then put that to the fourth power. The ticket entry lines looped around each corner, criss-crossing with the meet and greet line for this, the sound check party line for that... I often lost my sense of direction just because there were so many people around me. Seeing the girls on video is nothing like seeing them in person - with all the kpop hype, it's easy to forget that the celebrity life isn't as glamorous as the media often makes it out to be. When we were walking back to the dressing room from that chaotic Verizon event, I asked the girls how they received their fans so well 24/7. Yenny explained how they were always grateful for the support they received and wanted to express that whenever given the opportunity. Then, Sun broke into a smile and added in, "yeah, it's always really nice to meet our friends and fans." After being in a mini mosh pit of Wonderfuls, it's safe for me to say that even a few hours of celeb chaos can be exhausting. Yet, even when the security was ushering them into the stadium, the girls would stop and sign autographs and take photos with anyone who approached them, and treat them with a friendly smile. This may be my Wonder Girls bias talking, but meeting the quintet in person gave me a new level of respect; it's obvious that these girls are thankful for how far they've come, and are enthusiastic for what their American career will bring. Make sure to checkout our exclusive photos + interview! Thanks to Paolo, Kelly, Fai & Lana for your questions. For those of you that want to catch the Wonder Girls in action, the JB tour is still in full swing! Check out the dates on the girls' official website, apply to be a FAN*TASTIC and join the official Wonder Girls Street Team to show your support!
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