{"id":358674,"date":"2026-03-22T02:00:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T02:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/358674\/"},"modified":"2026-03-22T02:00:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T02:00:14","slug":"k-pop-stars-bts-return-with-comeback-concert-in-seoul-after-four-year-hiatus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/358674\/","title":{"rendered":"K-pop stars BTS return with comeback concert in Seoul after four-year hiatus"},"content":{"rendered":"

K-pop supergroup BTS have returned after a four-year break with a massive free comeback concert in Seoul, where thousands of police locked down a central boulevard for the Netflix-exclusive spectacle that drew tens of thousands of fans.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnnyeonghaseyo! We\u2019re back,\u201d RM, the band\u2019s leader, told the crowd, using the Korean word for \u201chello\u201d, as they opened with Body To Body, setting off delirious screams from fans waving purple-and-red light sticks and thrusting smartphones into the air.<\/p>\n

All seven members of the band \u2013 RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook \u2013 recently completed South Korea\u2019s mandatory military service, and hope to reclaim their status as one of the world\u2019s biggest pop acts.<\/p>\n

\"K-popK-pop boy band BTS onstage during a comeback concert at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, South Korea (Kim Min-Hee\/Pool Photo via AP)\n<\/p>\n

The performance at Gwanghwamun Square launches a global tour spanning dozens of shows across the United States, Europe and Asia, which analysts say could generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue per quarter.<\/p>\n

The hour-long concert came after the group on Friday released their fifth album, ARIRANG, which sold nearly four million copies on its first day, said the band\u2019s management company HYBE.<\/p>\n

The company also said RM had injured his ankle during a rehearsal, but he still performed with modified choreography.<\/p>\n

The BTS concert, which began at 8pm local time, drew several tens of thousands of fans to the Gwanghwamun area, including 22,000 who secured free seats in the designated viewing zone and others who watched on screens nearby.<\/p>\n

The show was streamed live on Netflix.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be amazing because it\u2019s been so long that BTS (was) not with us,\u201d Dallila Di Tullio, a 32-year-old fan from Italy, said before the concert, calling it a once-in-a-century event.<\/p>\n

\"K-popBTS performed for an hour (Lee Jin-man\/AP)\n<\/p>\n

BTS debuted in 2013 and have a legion of global supporters who call themselves the \u201cArmy\u201d.<\/p>\n

They became the first K-pop act to top Billboard\u2019s Hot 100 chart in 2020 with their first all-English song Dynamite.<\/p>\n

Jung Dukhyun, a pop culture commentator, said that the impact of BTS\u2019s return as a full group would be tremendous at a time when global fandom for K-pop has grown much stronger, as shown by the success of Netflix\u2019s animated sensation KPop Demon Hunters.<\/p>\n

The dark streets blazed with light as waves of fans sang and cheered from cordoned sections, a jubilant scene that unfolded under an unusually heavy police presence managing the crowds.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still vividly remember how, at our last Busan concert a few years ago, we asked you to wait for us. Thank you so much for coming here like this,\u201d Jin said.<\/p>\n

The group performed songs from their new album, including SWIM, alongside hits such as Dynamite and Butter.<\/p>\n

\"KpopKpop group BTS wave at the end of their comeback concert in central Seoul (Kim Hong-Ji\/Pool Photo via AP)\n<\/p>\n

Some members appeared to tear up while thanking fans who braved the chilly night, before holding hands and bowing to the crowd to close the show.<\/p>\n

Police and city officials closed nearby streets and roads, halted the area\u2019s subway and bus services, and sealed off dozens of surrounding buildings, in what amounted to a full-day shutdown of the district.<\/p>\n

Thousands of police officers maintained a tight perimeter around the performance venue, channelling the crowds with a maze of fences and buses.<\/p>\n

Concertgoers began queuing by midday to secure spots along nearby roads, passing through security checks and metal detectors at designated entry points.<\/p>\n

The restrictions forced nearby shops to close and police to use their buses to shuttle wedding guests to a nearby venue.<\/p>\n

\"FansBTS fans Taylis Fahel, left, and Daniele Favero, from Brazil, take a selfie (Lee Jin-man\/AP)\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI was hoping to (see) if we can go through some holes or be around. Apparently we cannot because they will be asking people to move,\u201d said Bernice Sanchez, a 52-year-old fan from Switzerland, as she looked for a place to wait.<\/p>\n

While South Korean officials have taken crowd safety more seriously since a 2022 Halloween surge that killed nearly 160 people, critics say the controls went too far and undermined the symbolism of performing in Gwanghwamun, seen as Seoul\u2019s spiritual heart and most prominent gathering space.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of thousands have gathered in Gwanghwamun in recent years to mourn, protest and celebrate as the country weathered tragedy and political upheaval.<\/p>\n

\"K-popK-pop band BTS perform on the stage, centre top, during a comeback concert at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, South Korea (Lee Jin-man\/AP)\n<\/p>\n

The BTS concert came about a year after waves of demonstrators filled the area, calling for the ousting of then-president Yoon Suk Yeol over his brief imposition of martial law in December 2024.<\/p>\n

Those months-long rallies were marked by a festive atmosphere and a striking blend of politics and pop culture, with protesters singing and waving colourful K-pop light sticks, and ended without major safety accidents.<\/p>\n

The new BTS album, ARIRANG, takes its name from a centuries-old folk song, regarded as an unofficial anthem in both Koreas, whose themes of separation, longing and quiet resilience have echoed across generations.<\/p>\n

Gwanghwamun and nearby Gyeongbok Palace provided a sweeping historic backdrop to Saturday\u2019s show, which was highlighted by lighting effects that bathed the palace gate and walls in purple, red and blue.<\/p>\n

\"KpopThe Kpop group on stage at the BTS The Comeback Live Arirang concert (Kim Hong-Ji\/Pool Photo via AP)\n<\/p>\n

Suga told the crowd that the album\u2019s title and the decision to perform in Gwanghwamun reflected the group\u2019s focus on identity.<\/p>\n

RM said the band focused on making music that felt true to themselves as they reconvened to work on the new album.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to show who we are and how we can come together,\u201d he told the crowd.<\/p>\n

South Korean officials, including current President Lee Jae Myung, expressed hope that the event would promote the country\u2019s culture and soft power.<\/p>\n

The group\u2019s comeback follows a nearly four-year hiatus driven by South Korea\u2019s mandatory military service, which requires most able-bodied men to serve 18 to 21 months under a conscription system aimed at deterring aggression from North Korea.<\/p>\n

\"ABTS have returned after the band members completed their military service (Kim Hong-Ji\/Pool Photo via AP)\n<\/p>\n

BTS members began serving in 2022, with Suga the last to complete his service in June 2025.<\/p>\n

Some analysts say the group\u2019s ARIRANG world tour could become the biggest K-pop tour ever by scale and revenue, with 82 shows planned globally in stadiums of around 50,000 seats.<\/p>\n

Ha Jae-keun, a cultural critic, said BTS were likely to have a \u201csecond heyday\u201d, as they maintained a highly powerful fandom and would benefit from the broader international ascent of K-pop.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will do our best to give everything we got,\u201d J-Hope said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"K-pop supergroup BTS have returned after a four-year break with a massive free comeback concert in Seoul, where…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":358675,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[93,61,60,278],"class_list":{"0":"post-358674","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-ireland","11":"tag-music"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=358674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/358675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=358674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=358674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=358674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}