TWICE in Turin: the Queens of K-pop Are Finally Coming to Italy
For years, Italian K-pop fans watched major world tours stop in Paris, London, or Berlin without ever truly reaching Italy. In 2026, however, something changes. TWICE will finally arrive in Turin with one of the most anticipated stops of their world tour, marking a historic moment for Italian audiences and for the growth of the Korean Wave in the country.
The concert will take place on May 20, 2026, at the Inalpi Arena and represents far more than just a musical event. For thousands of Italian fans, known as ONCE, it will be the culmination of years spent following albums, livestreams, music videos, and performances from afar. TWICE are not simply one of South Korea’s most famous girl groups: they are one of the acts that contributed the most to transforming K-pop into a global phenomenon.
TWICE officially debuted in 2015 through the survival show Sixteen, produced by JYP Entertainment, one of the most influential agencies in the Korean music industry. The project had a clear goal: creating a group capable of captivating audiences “twice,” both through music and through charisma and performances. That idea inspired the name TWICE.
The group consists of nine members: Nayeon, Jeongyeon, Momo, Sana, Jihyo, Mina, Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Tzuyu. One of the elements that made the group so powerful from the very beginning was its international identity. Sana, Momo, and Mina are Japanese, while Tzuyu comes from Taiwan. This multicultural dimension helped TWICE quickly build a global fanbase.
Behind the group’s success, however, lie years of extremely intense training. Before debuting, all the members spent long periods as trainees under JYP Entertainment, facing days structured around vocal lessons, dance training, foreign languages, acting, and stage presence. Leader Jihyo, for example, spent almost ten years as a trainee before officially debuting — one of the longest training periods in the K-pop industry.
The educational background of some members also says a lot about the Korean idol system. Tzuyu, Dahyun, and Chaeyoung attended the famous School of Performing Arts Seoul, known as SOPA, one of South Korea’s most prestigious performing arts schools and now a symbol of K-pop culture itself.
SOPA is famous for having trained countless Korean idols, actors, and performers. Students attend classes focused on music, dance, performing arts, and acting while simultaneously training at entertainment agencies. For many trainees, this means living two parallel lives: spending mornings in school and the rest of the day inside agency practice rooms. SOPA’s iconic yellow uniforms have become one of the most recognizable symbols of Korean idol culture.
This combination of artistic education and professional training helped create one of the most prepared female groups in the Asian music scene. TWICE are famous for the precision of their choreography, their stage energy, and their ability to sustain extremely demanding world tours.
Their official debut came with Like OOH-AHH, but their real breakthrough arrived quickly thanks to songs that became iconic in modern K-pop history, such as Cheer Up, TT, Likey, What Is Love?, Fancy, Feel Special, and The Feels. Their viral choreographies, instantly recognizable choruses, and colorful aesthetic transformed the group into one of the defining symbols of contemporary female K-pop.
Over the years, however, TWICE have also shown strong artistic evolution. From the brighter and more youthful concepts of their early years, the group gradually moved toward more mature, elegant, and international sounds while always maintaining a strong emotional and visual identity.
In recent years, the group has achieved historic milestones: millions of albums sold, Billboard chart rankings, stadium concerts, sold-out world tours, and international collaborations. TWICE are now considered one of the most influential girl groups of the Korean Wave and one of the acts that contributed the most to the global expansion of female K-pop.
The Turin concert therefore carries an even deeper meaning. It does not simply represent a European tour stop, but a symbol of how much K-pop has grown in Italy. In recent years, Italian audiences have developed an increasingly strong interest in Korean music, K-dramas, Asian cinema, fashion, and South Korean pop culture.
The arrival of TWICE at the Inalpi Arena proves that Italy has now officially entered the major international routes of K-pop tours.
For many Italian ONCE, this will be the first opportunity to see live the artists who have accompanied years of music, emotions, and personal growth. And perhaps that is exactly what makes the TWICE concert so special: not just a show, but the meeting of different cultures united by the same passion for music.
