I should have known something was up when I saw a guy walk down the parking lot of Koreatown Plaza with a glittery red suit. See, I was there to judge a street karaoke and K-Pop dance competition ...

Karaoke is supposed to be fun. It’s a release. You can turn off your brain after work. You can embrace the cheesiness of the radio hits of your youth. You can relax in a comfortable, low stakes ...

8:12 a.m. July 26, 2023: In an earlier version of this story, a photo caption said it was showing Shero accept second prize in the dance competition. The photo shows Project: KND accepting the award.