When BTS’s “Love Yourself: Tear” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart in May, K-pop began yet another serious bid for American mainstream acceptance, six years after the breakout of Psy’s viral hit “Gangnam Style.” But for hundreds of thousands of American K-pop fans, BTS arrived in the U.S. long before — as part of the 2014 Los Angeles KCON lineup.

KCON, a festival that brings Korean pop stars into proximity with its die-hard fans, has grown exponentially from its inaugural 2012 edition in L.A. into a globe-trotting envoy reaching K-pop fans in Japan, the United Arab Emirates, France, Mexico and Australia. Last year it attracted 43,000 to the Prudential Center in Newark, where it will return for the fourth consecutive year this weekend. The East Coast version of the event showcases popular and emerging acts that might not draw well enough outside South Korea to independently tour the States on their own. Here is a sampling of acts worthy of note:

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