KEY POINTS A K-pop event hosted by Setsunan University, produced by KBS Cheongju's DGDG Studio and run by HELLOWORKS takes place on Nov. 1. Pairing a show featuring NEXZ with an audience-participation random play dance, it presents a content partnership model at a Japanese university festival.
HELLOWORKS (헬로웍스), a K-pop performance company, is bringing a combination of K-pop performance and audience participation to a Japanese university festival, working with Setsunan University and DGDG Studio of KBS Cheongju. The stage is 'K-POP Setsunan University Stage with DGDG Studio' (K-POP 摂南大学 Stage), held on Nov. 1 in the main gymnasium of the Neyagawa campus of Setsunan University (摂南大学, 세쓰난대학교) in Osaka Prefecture.
The event pairs a first half in which the audience watches the artists with a second half in which the audience dances. NEXZ, the JYP Entertainment (JYP엔터테인먼트) boy group, appears in part one. Part two is a random play dance produced by DGDG Studio (딩가딩가 스튜디오), the K-pop YouTube channel of KBS Cheongju (KBS 청주방송총국). Setsunan says it is the first time a DGDG Studio random play dance has been held at a Japanese university.
Setsunan hosts, DGDG Studio produces and HELLOWORKS plans and runs the event, from the stage programme and artist management to operations on the day. The university has made it an official programme of its 52nd Setsudai Festival (摂大祭). The arrangement puts a broadcaster's content production and a performance company's execution on top of the university's festival.
From a NEXZ show to a random play dance: watching and joining on one stage
According to the university's Oct. 21 press release, part one opens with Japanese and Korean dance teams from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. A K-pop idol showcase with NEXZ and others follows from 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m., and the part-two random play dance starts at 2:30 p.m. A university introduction for invited high-school students begins at 10 a.m.
NEXZ is a seven-member group that debuted in May 2024 through 'Nizi Project Season 2', the Korea–Japan audition run jointly by JYP and Sony Music. Its members are Tomoya, Yu, Haru, So Geon, Seita, Hyui and Yuki, and its Japanese label is Sony Music. In June it completed its first Japanese arena tour, 'Hellmate', and on Aug. 24 it released the album 'SAUCIN''. We;Na and Kandis, a girl group whose performances HELLOWORKS has produced, are also on the bill.
In a random play dance, K-pop hits play in random order and participants perform the choreography they know on the spot. Unlike a concert, which separates artists from the audience, the audience's participation is itself the content, turning the part-one viewing into a hands-on cultural experience. Part two, however, is limited to students and other members of the university.
High-school invitations and local residents: K-pop as a university outreach programme
Entry is free with advance registration, through separate channels for each group. Students apply via the campus portal UNIPA or QR codes on campus posters; members of the public apply through a banner on the university website and are chosen by lottery. High-school students were invited on a first-come basis through the admissions website, with applications closing on Oct. 23. The university is providing them with free charter buses and festival food-stall tickets, tying the concert to a visit to the campus.
HELLOWORKS, from planning to on-site operations, eyes more Japanese universities and local festivals
HELLOWORKS plans to build on the event with participatory K-pop programmes for Japanese universities and local festivals. Koo Yong-nam (구용남), its chief executive, described the company's role. "The university is the host and KBS Cheongju's DGDG Studio is producing, and HELLOWORKS has taken it from planning through to running it on the day," he said. "It puts a show you watch and a programme you join into a single day."
Koo singled out direct audience participation as the core of the programme. "A random play dance is a format where the audience gets on stage. Japanese students won't just listen to K-pop; they will dance to it together and experience Korean culture that way," he said. "In line with the slogan 'Music connects us', we will make a stage that links young people in Korea and Japan with the local community through music. We will build on this event with more participatory K-pop programmes for Japanese universities and local festivals."
HELLOWORKS has produced and managed performances for K-pop acts including Kandis and is also developing content businesses beyond live shows. On Oct. 3, at the Korea session of the Global Stage Hollywood film festival at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, its U.S. office presented the intellectual-property business for 'Lipie' (라이파이), Korea's first science-fiction comic. It is also pursuing a partnership with a short-drama studio.
Exchange agreements with Dongguk University widen links between campuses through Hallyu
Alongside the K-pop event, Setsunan is building ties with Korean universities. On Oct. 12 a delegation led by vice-president Shinji Sakuma (佐久間信至), head of the Global Center, and deputy head Tomoomi Mori (森類臣), associate professor in the Faculty of International Studies, visited Dongguk University (동국대학교) in Seoul. They paid a courtesy call on president Yoon Jae-woong (윤재웅) and signed a comprehensive partnership agreement and a student-exchange agreement. The delegation also discussed cooperation with Chung Gil-hwa (정길화), head of Dongguk's Hallyu Academy (한류융합학술원). Setsunan's Global Center is also the contact office for the K-pop event.
The slogan is "Music connects us" (音楽が私たちをつなぐ). Setsunan designed the event so that local residents and high-school students, not only its own students, could encounter Korean culture through K-pop and dance and take an interest in international exchange. "We hope it will be a chance to experience Korean pop culture and K-pop first-hand on our campus," the university said.
Official university channels and fan communities widen the local audience
Promotion ran through the university's official channels, social media and fan communities. Setsunan posted the event on its website on the morning of Oct. 19 and emailed an announcement at noon. On Oct. 21 it issued a press release through the University Press Center (大学プレスセンター), which was carried by outlets including the Hokkaido Shimbun's website. Recipients also included PR TIMES, the Osaka science and university press club, the Hirakata press club, the Kyoto Shimbun news desk, Koukousei Shimbun and the Private University Education and Academic Newspaper. The same day it announced NEXZ's appearance on its official Instagram account (@setsunan_univ) and sent the flyer out on TikTok and LINE, and Japanese NEXZ fan accounts shared the announcement.
The K-pop event runs alongside the existing festival programme. On the day, the Setsudai Festival on the Neyagawa campus (Nov. 1–3) features a talk show by voice actor Yuki Kaji (梶裕貴), and the 14th Setsuyu Festival (摂友祭) on the Hirakata campus hosts a Yoshimoto comedy show.
For the industry, the point is that this goes beyond a K-pop act performing abroad: the show and the participatory content were built around a local university's exchange and outreach needs. The broadcaster handles content production, the performance company handles planning and operations, and the university handles festival programming and recruitment. The question now is whether that division of roles can become a partnership model that other universities and local festivals can adopt. As the event has yet to take place, whether it leads to an ongoing business will have to be judged on how it runs and what follow-up partnerships it produces.
Date Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026 · 10:00 university introduction and reception, 11:00 part one, 14:30 part two
Venue Main gymnasium, Neyagawa campus, Setsunan University (17-8 Ikedanakamachi, Neyagawa, Osaka)
Programme Part one 11:00 Japanese and Korean dance teams / 12:15–13:45 K-pop idol showcase · Part two 14:30 random play dance (university members)
Line-up NEXZ, We;Na, Kandis
Host Setsunan University
Production DGDG Studio (KBS Cheongju)
Planning & operations HELLOWORKS (헬로웍스)
Entry Free, advance registration (public by lottery, high-school students invited first-come)
Contact Setsunan University Global Center, +81-72-800-5500
Quotations are from Koo Yong-nam of HELLOWORKS and from Setsunan University. Event details are from the university's Oct. 21 press release, LINE and Instagram posts and the poster; the Dongguk agreements are from the university's Oct. 19 notice.