BTS return with Gwanghwamun concert for new album

“Given BTS’s massive global fandom, Netflix’s live broadcast from Gwanghwamun is likely to set a new viewership record,” the U.S. business magazine Forbes said. This Saturday, the world’s attention will turn to Gwanghwamun in Seoul.

Anticipation is building rapidly for BTS’s comeback performance at Gwanghwamun Square on Sept. 21. The concert coincides with the group’s return with its fifth full-length album, “ARIRANG,” nearly four years after its last release. International media outlets have closely tracked developments surrounding the event, reporting not only on preparations at the historic square but also on the release of BTS’s new light stick.

Ahead of the performance, BTS’s agency BigHit Music released an animated video on the group’s YouTube channel on Sept. 13 conveying the message behind the album “ARIRANG.” The video begins with seven young men listening to the melody of “Arirang” on a phonograph in 1896 and ends with a scene of BTS standing before Gwanghwamun. The one-minute clip surpassed 3.3 million views within two days of its release.

The event will mark the first time a K-pop artist has held a solo concert at Gwanghwamun Square, a location widely regarded in South Korea as a politically and socially symbolic space.

Rolling Stone described the Gwanghwamun performance, titled “BTS Comeback Live: Arirang,” as “one of the most anticipated comebacks of the year.” Britain’s The Guardian called the event “a global spectacle with the potential to influence even the world economy.”

Global attention has also focused on Seoul itself. Reuters reported that at least 260,000 people are expected to gather on the day of the concert, with the South Korean government and the Seoul city government closely monitoring potential safety risks.

The New York Times reported on Sept. 13 that intense competition for tickets has driven some fans to PC gaming cafes across South Korea. The newspaper said fans gathered at the venues ahead of the K-pop supergroup’s full-member concert because they offer reliable internet connections and a communal atmosphere.

BTS is expected to make its entrance along the route known as the “King’s Road,” which runs from Geunjeongmun Gate of Gyeongbok Palace through Heungnyemun Gate to Gwanghwamun, performing as they proceed along the historic path.

HYBE, the group’s agency, initially prepared 15,000 seats for the event. After the tickets sold out, the company opened an additional 7,000 seats, which were quickly snapped up.

Police plan to deploy about 6,500 officers and roughly 5,400 pieces of equipment to manage safety during the event.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government also said subway trains will pass nearby stations without stopping between 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. on the day of the concert, and some station entrances will be closed depending on crowd conditions.

Police and city officials are also considering closing the main entrances of 31 nearby buildings that have been designated for heightened security management. The upcoming release will mark BTS’s first album as a full group since the anthology album “Proof,” released in June 2022, a gap of three years and nine months.

It will also be the group’s first full-length studio album since “MAP OF THE SOUL: 7,” released in February 2020, nearly six years ago.


김도연 기자 repokim@donga.com