EXO’s Baekhyun Brings Sweet Dreams to Sugar Land with “Reverie”
As the EXO member completes the U.S. and Europe legs of his first solo world tour, Mochi recalls Baekhyun’s “Reverie” stop in Texas.
About three hours before the show, and even long before then, fans crowd a nearby bubble tea shop down the street from the Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land, Texas. Photos are plastered on the wall among giant balloons that spell out the arrival of tonight’s performer: Baekhyun from K-pop boy group EXO.
Baekhyun first debuted as part of the original 12-piece South Korean–Chinese boy band EXO in 2012 as a main vocalist. Over the years, he’s also been active in the group’s subunits, EXO-K and EXO-CBX, and since 2019, as a solo artist. That same year, he joined the short-lived SuperM, a K-pop group made up of members from other SM Entertainment bands including SHINee, EXO, NCT 127, and WayV, as the group’s leader. Though many of his group activities span a wide range of genres, Baekhyun is most well-known for his tenor vocals that often get highlighted in his R&B songs.
While he’s still an active member of EXO, which has shrunk in size since its debut, Baekhyun founded his own record label and entertainment company INB100 in 2023, officially beginning his solo activities under the company the following year. That same year, he embarked on his first solo Asia tour. After releasing his EP “Essence of Reverie” in May 2025, he’s back on the road — this time expanding even further.
The 2025 Baekhyun World Tour “Reverie” marks the artist’s first world tour on his own. After wrapping up his U.S. leg in Los Angeles, Baekhyun performed in Europe, and will stop in Australia and Asia in August, finally ending the tour in Japan in October.
While many international EXO fans, or EXO-Ls (formal) and Eris (informal), hoped to see all members as a unit after several years since their last full comeback, Baekhyun ventured to the United States for a solo tour — one of the first of the group to do so. His bandmate Kai will follow in his footsteps at the end of August.
From Sexy to Sweet
The Smart Financial Centre is a smaller concert hall that maxes out around 6,000 people, so the stage setting is fairly simple due to limited space, with a three-paneled screen as the main focus. The middle panel juts forward and rises to act as an entrance for the singer, who appears in a dark ensemble — black pants, white scalloped shirt with a black tie, and a black leather jacket — after a dramatic VCR (videos that serve as transitions between each section) full of bright flashing lights and orchestral music. A group of eight backup dancers, both male and female, move in from the wings to join him on stage.
Baekhyun owns the stage as he highlights his performance range and exhibits his versatility. Earlier sections are sensual and more mature, with the performer dressed in darker colors as he performs his R&B and more recent synthpop hits.
His solo songs are perfect for showcasing his smooth vocals and talent, with satisfying high notes and ad libs, usually in the last chorus that fans eagerly anticipate. Throughout the night, he hits them with ease, rolling into one song after another without any issue.
Though other EXO members tend to add the group’s repertoire to their solo setlists, Baekhyun has enough of his own songs so he doesn’t have to. Instead, the crowd goes wild for some of his iconic singles. There’s screaming as the opening beats of his debut solo song “UN Village” play — and even more as the song enters the bridge. To match the lyrics “Rolling, rolling, rolling hills,” Baekhyun and one of his female backup dancers stand close together, doing body rolls. It’s one of the most replayed sections on YouTube videos of the performance — a key point in the choreography — and the crowd loves it.
Another fan favorite is the seductive “Bambi,” the lead single from Baekhyun’s fourth EP. During the chorus’s key choreography, the singer opens his legs wide and slowly rolls his body, while covering his eyes with a fedora. Two female background dancers flank him and mimic the move. Each time, the audience makes its enthusiasm known.
The singer’s performance is broken up into several sections by the usual K-pop VCRs, costume changes, and ments. At times, it’s hard to keep track of how many there are. A few songs are more laidback, and Baekhyun sings and walks casually around the stage, but most songs incorporate dancing.
One section “is about a man and his journey with love,” he introduces, squaring his shoulders as the translator shares. “Somebody who feels heartbreak and eventually struggles with and is changed by love that he experiences. You’ll feel the heightened and rising emotions throughout.” This launches him into a trio of bolder, more aggressive rock songs: “Truth Be Told,” “Cold Heart,” and “Psycho.” Flashing lights wash the stage in green and red, and onscreen visuals depict more delayed and jerky movements to match the different tone.
During “Psycho,” Baekhyun disappears for a moment before emerging in a black jacket with red accents. On stage, he dances a duet with another male dancer dressed in red and a matching face covering. This is largely contrasted with his next section, where he returns to the stage in a more youthful, and slightly extra, look — sneakers, baggy jeans, a white tee, patterned vest, aviator hat, and full-on crossbody bag. The next songs, “Black Dreams,” “Betcha” and “Candy,” are older but well-known, and fall back into the hip-hop and R&B genre with a more upbeat mood.
Chatting and Playing with the Crowd
Among EXO and their fans, Baekhyun is known for his charming, youthful personality — and his openness in teasing his members and fans. All night, he chats animatedly with fans, commenting on his songs, providing insight into their inspiration and creation, and sharing his hopes for his fans.
Baekhyun also shows off his humor. When one fan screams loudly as he’s talking, he makes a surprised face before saying, “It seems like there’s some interesting characters in the crowd tonight.” He smiles playfully and asks the audience, “Are you OK?”
Even after the sexy “Love Comes Back,” Baekhyun pokes fun at the audience for dancing along to the sad lyrics about a complicated relationship. “Surprise!” he exclaims, after revealing what the song is really about.
And of course, because it’s Texas, he adds in a “yeehaw” during the group photo session, much to the crowd’s delight.
Though some higher sections of the theater aren’t completely filled, and my row in the Club section is a little more subdued, fans fill the venue with their passion, going wild for each song and word with loud screams and cheering.
The crowd matches Baekhyun’s energy and jokes. Many wear silly costumes, like strips of bacon — a nod to an interview he did on Ellen with SuperM.
One of the highlights from Baekhyun’s interactions comes during his encore — lightstick time, a performance he also incorporated into his last Lonsdaleite tour. “You guys are shining, shining stars,” he tells his fans, as they pull out their EXO lightsticks, or Eribongs, to shine them brightly in the air. He holds his own, indicating for the crowd to follow his hand motions. “Follow me. Don’t be shy,” he adds in English before diving into a cover of BoA’s “Garden In The Air.”
For three minutes, the singer leads the crowd through a variety of arm exercises, waving his lightstick slowly, fast, low, high, back and forth, and in tiny motions. During the chorus, he demonstrates for the crowd to move their lightsticks in front of them in a circle. As all lightsticks round the bottom of the circle, the theater goes dark. But as the audience returns to the top, a sea of lights emerge.
As he wraps up the encore, Baekhyun shares, “I hope that today has been a sense of joy and strength for you as you go about your daily lives. Tomorrow will be a better day than one that you’ve ever had before.” He continues, “Even though you might be sad because you won’t be seeing me tomorrow, you’re gonna win the lottery!” The crowd screams in response, to which the performer asks, “Wow, you guys like the lottery more?”
Baekhyun poses another question to the crowd: win the lottery and never see him again, or not win the lottery and see him five times a year? As the crowd answers in his favor, the singer smiles gleefully. “Baekhyun wins!” he yells in English, before adding via the translator, “But I know that if you guys win the lottery, you’ll still be very happy. Because it means that if you win the lottery, you can come see me any time — even if I’m performing in a different country.” He taps the side of his head. “Genius,” he says in English. “Wait, I hope you guys win the lottery! And I hope in each of your days, you’ll be happy and healthy and just like right now, keep that beautiful, beautiful smile.”
Creating a Dreamlike Atmosphere
Throughout the show, Baekhyun leans into the “Reverie” theme, promising his audience a dream and fantasylike experience. Though each section highlights distinct and different concepts, this idea ties the whole performance together so that it feels cohesive. Dreams and sleep are incorporated throughout Baekhyun’s songs and his VCRs.
One particular VCR portrays an interaction between two Baekhyuns — one innocent and another mysterious — in an elevator (a nod to another song). After a disturbance, the lift leads the innocent Baekhyun to an empty space with a bed, full of white sheets and pillows, where he tucks himself in, smiling. A final message appears: “Good Night Sleep Well,” an allusion to his next song, “Black Dreams.”
The song comes from a special saying he often shares with Eris, wishing them a restful sleep, without any dreams and free from worries and troubles. Moody purple lights illuminate illustrations of a cozy bedroom and a night sky filled with squiggles, bubbles, and text messages.
He closes out the concert by introducing a bonus song added into the setlist — “Late Night Calls,” the only full English song on his latest EP and a present for his fans.
After, it’s time for the true final song, “Amusement Park.” Baekhyun describes how he wants to be like an amusement park for his fans — a place we can always go back to and still enjoy, no matter where we are in life. He wants to be someone we can depend on, and he sees his fans as that for him, too.
While the romantic opening piano notes play, a merry-go-round appears on screen against peaceful pink and blue skies. As Baekhyun serenades the crowd, he walks slowly to every corner of the stage, waving and making sure no section of the audience is missed. For the final bridge and chorus, he announces, “Texas, I love you,” before blowing a kiss into his microphone and launching into a climactic high note. Fireworks go off on the screen.
The piano continues its encore as Baekhyun says his final goodbyes and walks toward the lifted screen so he can return backstage. He slowly strolls backward so he can get his final farewells in, but bumps into a little barrier on the stage, stumbling a bit to giggles. As the screen comes down, he squats to keep waving at the audience. “Have a goodnight! Take a rest!” he yells until he’s completely covered, the picturesque backdrop of pink clouds against a blue sky coming in once more and the last notes of “Amusement Park” signaling the end of his “Reverie” and a truly dreamy night.
Setlist at Smart Financial Centre, Sugar Land
- YOUNG (Song with Loco)
- Ghost
- Pineapple Slice
- Woo
- Underwater
- Bambi
- Chocolate
- Rendez-Vous
- Good Morning
- Love Comes Back
- Lemonade
- UN Village
- Truth Be Told
- Cold Heart
- Psycho
- Black Dreams
- Betcha
- Candy
- Elevator
- Encore: No Problem
- Encore: Garden In The Air
- Encore: Late Night Calls (Shortened)
- Encore: Amusement Park
