16th Korus Festival

Elizabeth Phan, staff writer

The 16th Korus Festival, located at Tysons Corner Center near Washington D.C., was held on Oct. 6 and 7. The Korus festival is a Korean Festival that aims at celebrating Korean culture, food, and music. The festival is free to enter and anyone is welcomed. With over 30,000 visitors, 50+ vendors, and more than 20 wonderful performances, the Korus Festival was definitely not a disappointment.

People of all ages and ethnicities came together that weekend to celebrate Korean Americans and Korean heritage and culture. I saw many people dancing and singing, even grandparents and their grandchildren stood by game stalls. The excited teens stood by the stage and danced along the EDM DJ EPX, and even I went up to the stage and sang along to a poplar hip hop duo, Jinusean.

Many of the main attractions included the food stalls. They served Odeng / Eomuk Tang which is fishcake on skewers, and Sundae. Both were equally delicious.

The other attraction was a stall that allowed you to try on a Hanbok, which is a traditional Korean dress. There was also an opportunity to color and design key chains and play games to win prizes ranging from a T-shirt to $50 dollar certificates.

As the night came to end, the stage was lit up with the main performers of the night, Jinusean and DJ EPX. Jinusean, a favorite hip hop duo of mine, surprisingly performed last minute for the festival and definitely succeeded. Everyone raced to the front of the stage smiling and jumping along. Even people of other ethnicities and grandparents sang along. DJ EPX also gathered everyone to the front and played heart pumping EDM.

Anyone can be involved in the festival. From coming to the festival to sponsoring, being a vendor, volunteer, or donating, anything helps. The Korus Festival is held every year, so be sure to be on the lookout for the next one.