After 30 people passed out in the crowd, the K-pop band NCT 127 was forced to end their first performance in Indonesia early, according to the local police. Over 130 people, including more than 40 children, died in a stadium stampede in Indonesia last month, and the country is still in shock.

Endra Zulpan, a spokeswoman for the police, said late on November 4 that the concert outside of Jakarta had been going on for about two hours when fans began pushing forward to get closer to the stage. Media agencies reported citing concertgoers that the boyband had been handing out freebies to fans just before the crush. The police has given the go-ahead for the second day of NCT 127’s concert on November 5, but they have prohibited the giving out of freebies and called for stricter measures to keep spectators and performers apart. 

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What is NCT 127?

NCT 127 is the first permanent and second overall sub-unit of the South Korean boy band NCT, which was formed and is managed by SM Entertainment. Taeil, Johnny, Taeyong, Yuta, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Jungwoo, Mark, and Haechan are the current active members of the band, which debuted on July 7, 2016. NCT 127 has released four studio albums, two repackaged albums, and four extended plays in South Korea since 2016.

They broke into the mainstream in 2017 with ‘Cherry Bomb,’ which has since become one of their signature songs, and gained increased international attention from the general public following the release of ‘Kick It’ in 2020. NCT 127 is known for their experimental hip hop and R&B music, as well as their energetic dance performances, as evidenced by title tracks such as ‘Cherry Bomb,’ ‘Kick It,’ ‘Sticker’ and ‘2 Baddies.’

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On July 7, 2016, NCT 127 made their debut with the song “Fire Truck” and a seven-member initial lineup, including Taeil, Taeyong, Yuta, Jaehyun, Winwin, Mark, and Haechan. After the release of their first extended play (EP), NCT #127 (2016), they won the Best New Artist award at several South Korean music award shows. Doyoung and Johnny later joined the group in December 2016 prior to their second EP Limitless (2017) and its title track; Jungwoo, the group’s final member, was introduced in September 2018 in preparation for the group’s debut studio album Regular-Irregular (2018).