Photo Cr. Camryn Bierria
The 4-day, “all-ages geek culture convention,” more prominently known as MomoCon, had another amazing turnout for their 20th anniversary. Up in attendance from their already record-breaking 56,000 attendees in 2024, MomoCon 2025 was another weekend for the books.
Fans come together to conventions to celebrate their shared love of all kinds of media. MomoCon focuses on anime, gaming, comics, and more. Since fans can bring their favorite things to share at MomoCon, K-pop and K-dramas continue to rise as topics for panelists.
Photo Cr. Cheyenne Chong-Hoover
A local Atlanta K-pop Fan, hosted ‘Totally Slept on K-pop Hidden Gems’ where she highlighted groups ONF, Billlie, CSR, and Nowadays. The content included member names and the fandom name plus song samples to help potential new fans really find which next artist they might click with. The energy of a host can make or break a panel and this host was so enthusiastic and welcoming, that it encouraged others to join in on the fun and find the confidence to share groups and artists they hope others will enjoy as well.
Photo Cr. Camryn Bierria
Music was not the only discussion of Korean culture over the weekend. A MomoCon attendee of 11 years and long-time K-Drama watcher held a panel named Binge Worthy K-Dramas: Thrills, Chills, and Feels. This panel invited old and new K-Drama lovers to discuss popular shows and get introduced to hidden gems of the genre. The host focused on two shows from Netflix in each of the categories, (Thrills, Chills, and Feels), and gave a snippet of the show through their trailers. Shows that were featured include Squid Game, Bloodhounds, Gyeongseong Creatures, Parasyte: The Grey, Move to Heaven, and Good Bad Mother. The panelist drew the crowd in with their informational PowerPoints explaining the main points of the show, and even highlighted other shows the actors were in, truly enhancing the recommendations.
Other K-pop-related activities continuing to rise in convention culture include random dance play(s) geared toward fans of all generations, crafting like this year's "K-pop Dream Boards," and photocard trading, giving fans a nice rest on their feet and chance to connect with fellow fans.
Photo Cr. Camryn Bierria
As concerts also become more prevalent for conventions, artists like Alan Z and his collaborative Hip Hop concert stage "From Adult Swim to Lo-Fi" bring music from multiple styles for more fans to discover.
Photo Cr. Camryn Bierria
The night brought around more K-Pop inspired fun with the Prismatic K-Pop Festival that opened the door to performances by dance groups from the city. This could be categorized as a dance cover panel that showed the influence that K-pop has had on the dance community and was a stage for the performers to show their best selves. There were many groups dancing in cosplay, which garnered strong positive reactions from the crowd, and even participation with many attendees having light wands that mimic what would be a lightstick. For the late night crowd this was an event that brought the hype as groups danced and sang fan favorites bringing an overall good energy that flew through the night.
OUTSIDE THE MUSIC
The importance of inclusivity is a powerful force found at conventions around the world. MomoCon panelists share their favorite pieces of media and how the parallels and storylines found in anime and games help those watching and playing relate to what they're consuming.
This year, panels on these topics include Gender, Class, and Race in Anime and The Potentials of Representation.
The latter focused on how Yuri on Ice explores queerness, androgyny, and a diverse cast as well as how to create safe spaces and avoid harmful tropes. Stories like Yuri on Ice still have active fandoms even as the show doesn't have new updates because the story, even if someone is not a figure skater, aligns with emotions or obstacles real world people experience. In this panel, the hosts covered other anime/manga for fans to explore.
CAREER FOCUSED
Looking to break into a particular industry can be daunting. MomoCon panels like Voice Acting 101 and Making Music for Film, TV, Anime, and Video Games, help attendees learn more about the ins-and-outs of the entertainment industry.
And if fans are already working on their own space in entertainment, there are idol meet & greets and showcases that help local groups perform like at the "Sweet Peach Idol Fest."
GET READY
There is always more to explore than can be explained. Fans won't want to miss artist alley, vendors galore, hosting a panel or dancing along throughout the weekend.
For more, read MomoCon interviews here, and don't forget to get your tickets for MomoCon 2026 today!