“If you can’t fly, then run!” The superstar K-pop band BTS will perform at Sun Bowl Stadium in May, choosing El Paso for its fourth stop in one of the most anticipated music tours of 2026.
BTS hasn’t performed or released a new album as a group in almost four years as the band members completed their mandatory military service in South Korea. They officially announced their new album, to be released March 20, and world tour at 8 a.m. Tuesday El Paso time.
Lizbeth Lopez, 25, of East El Paso has traveled to see the group in concert four times.
“We usually get overlooked so when a big artist comes to El Paso, it feels so validating,” Lopez said. “I would be so happy to also not have to think about travel expenses.”
The Sun Bowl shows are scheduled for May 2 and 3.
Presale tickets will go on sale Jan. 22, with general sales the following day.
Landing a spot on the BTS world tour is a major milestone for El Paso, said Bobbie Welch, a music promoter in the region for 40 years.
“K-pop has been a worldwide phenomenon and El Pasoans have embraced it wholeheartedly, with stores that specialize in it, KPop events at our libraries, and many other programs throughout the city,” Welch said. “The BTS concert will be the first time El Pasoans will be able to experience it live here, although I know many fans who have traveled for concerts, so I’m sure the attendance will be huge.
“If it sells as anticipated, it has the possibility of becoming the largest concert ever in El Paso, and will definitely prove the diversity of our music-loving audience,” she said.
The tour begins April 9-11 in South Korea, and then to Japan April 17-18. The first U.S. stop is in Tampa April 25-26, then in El Paso.
Posters and figurines of BTS band members sit on a shelf in the bedroom of Lizbeth Lopez of El Paso, a 21-year-old Korean pop fan, in 2022. (Brandy Ruiz/El Paso Matters)
BTS, also known as the Bangtan Boys, is largely responsible for making the Korean pop sound a global phenomenon. with songs such as “Dynamite,” “Butter” and “Life Goes On.” They are the first Korean band to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and have sold out stadium concerts around the world.
The seven members of BTS are RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook.
The group, which formed in 2010 and released its first album in 2013, last toured in 2022. The upcoming tour will mark their first performance in El Paso.
“To be on the (tour) map for a group as big as BTS would be seriously incredible,” said Kathryn Miranda, 24, of Central El Paso. “I definitely think they would sell out.”
Ximena Acosta-Granillo, 24, of Northeast El Paso has traveled twice to see BTS perform, in September 2018 to Fort Worth as part of their “Love Yourself” tour, and again
in May 2019 to Pasadena, Calif., as part of the same tour.
“The thought of your favorite artist being where you live is amazing,” she said of a potential Sun Bowl concert.
Coldplay was the last major act to perform at the Sun Bowl, selling out two shows last year.
Other major artists who have performed at the Sun Bowl include U2, the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, Elton John, Pink Floyd, One Direction, Guns N’ Roses and RBD.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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