Last week, the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, was supposed to be bursting with energy, filled to the brim with fans waving light sticks topped with delicate plastic globes. The show at the 17,500-capacity arena would have kicked off K-pop group Ateez’s second sold-out United States tour in under a year. Though postponed indefinitely in the aftermath of the global coronavirus pandemic, The Fellowship: Map The Treasure Tour is an unprecedented feat for a group so young, proof of Ateez’s massive growth since their debut in October 2018. At this time last year, the less than six-month-old group was playing venues a fraction of the size of those they now headline. So, how did these fresh-faced rookies go from playing community centers to arenas in just over a year?

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