Seoul\u2019s city center turned into a sea of purple on Saturday as fans gathered in massive numbers to welcome back BTS for their first major performance in more than three years following the members\u2019 mandatory military service.<\/p>\n
Purple, the band\u2019s signature color, flooded the capital\u2019s landmarks, billboards, high-rise screens and storefronts. Banners reading \u201cWelcome back BTS\u201d decorated shops across the city, while drone lights illuminated the sky above the Han River in celebration of the group\u2019s long-awaited return.<\/p>\n
Tens of thousands of fans, known as the \u201cArmy,\u201d packed Gwanghwamun Square ahead of the concert, many waving the group\u2019s signature light-sticks and wearing purple outfits. Some had traveled thousands of miles to witness the moment.<\/p>\n
Fans Amanda and Veronica, who flew from the United States for the show, said the band\u2019s hiatus had been difficult. \u201cBTS is everything for us,\u201d Veronica said as they waited for the performance to begin.<\/p>\n
The seven members \u2014 RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook \u2014 made their entrance after the resonant toll of the historic Divine Bell of King Seongdeok echoed across the square as part of the intro to \u201cNumber 29,\u201d a track from the group\u2019s new album Arirang<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cAnnyeonghaseyo\u2026 We are back,\u201d leader RM told the crowd in Korean before switching to English.<\/p>\n The group performed on a specially built stage resembling a triumphal arch, set dramatically against the backdrop of the historic Gwanghwamun gate and the surrounding mountains. Their comeback performance began with the album\u2019s opening track \u201cBody to Body,\u201d blending modern pop with elements of Korea\u2019s iconic folk song Arirang<\/em>.<\/p>\n Although the concert focused on the band\u2019s new material, fans were also treated to beloved global hits including \u201cButter,\u201d \u201cMIC Drop,\u201d \u201cDynamite,\u201d and \u201cMikrokosmos,\u201d which sparked massive sing-alongs throughout the crowd.<\/p>\n Authorities had estimated that up to 250,000 people might attend, though the crowd appeared to number in the tens of thousands. The event marked the first time Seoul\u2019s central square had been transformed into a large-scale K-pop concert venue.<\/p>\n The choice of venue carried symbolic meaning for the band.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m deeply honoured to perform at Gwanghwamun, the most historic place in South Korea,\u201d Suga said during the performance. \u201cWe named the album Arirang<\/em> and chose this venue to reflect our identity.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the large-scale event also drew criticism from some commentators who questioned whether it was appropriate to dedicate such extensive public resources \u2014 including thousands of police and emergency personnel \u2014 to a concert streamed live exclusively on Netflix.<\/p>\n Others argued that granting BTS access to the landmark site could set a precedent for other artists seeking to stage large events in the city center.<\/p>\n Despite the debate, the comeback marked a major cultural moment for South Korea\u2019s global music industry. After years away from the stage, BTS signaled their return to the top of the K-pop world with a performance that blended modern spectacle with Korean heritage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Seoul\u2019s city center turned into a sea of purple on Saturday as fans gathered in massive numbers to welcome back BTS for their first major performance in more than three years following the members\u2019 mandatory military service. Purple, the band\u2019s signature color, flooded the capital\u2019s landmarks, billboards, high-rise screens and storefronts. Banners reading \u201cWelcome back […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":128,"featured_media":15300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[3672,16724,16727,16723,16568,16728,16725,16726,16729],"class_list":["post-15295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-amat","tag-bts-arirang-album-launch","tag-bts-army-fans-seoul-concert","tag-bts-comeback-concert-seoul","tag-bts-military-service-return","tag-bts-netflix-livestream-concert","tag-gwanghwamun-square-bts-performance","tag-k-pop-global-superstars-bts","tag-south-korea-k-pop-industry-comeback"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15295","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/128"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15295"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15295\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swifteradio.com\/update\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}