The morning of BTS's comeback show has dawned.
At 8 p.m. on the 21st, the 'BTS comeback live: ARIRANG' performance will take place at Gwanghwamun Square in Jongno District, Seoul. This performance is special because it marks BTS members' full-group comeback after about 3 years and 9 months.
The free comeback live is expected to be attended by about 22,000 spectators. Ahead of the performance, experiential offline events called "BTS The City Arirang - Seoul" were prepared across Seoul landmarks, including a drone light show and broadcasting comeback commemoration videos on 10 large outdoor screens around Gwanghwamun Square. As a result, lines of fans who had gathered from around the world to enjoy the eve event formed early at the site, once again proving the intense interest in BTS's comeback.
Also, at 1 p.m. on the 20th, a day before the performance, the fifth full-length album "ARIRANG" was released, raising expectations for the comeback show. "Arirang" is an album that contains BTS's identity and universal emotions that many people can relate to. It showcases "the current BTS" by putting the sincere experiences and concerns accumulated during BTS's past journey into every track.
BTS members explained the reason for choosing "Arirang" as the title during a live broadcast commemorating the release of "Arirang," saying, "We thought the thing that can tie the seven members together is that we are all Korean. So after cautious consideration we chose that keyword." They added, "It has been a long time since we performed, so when we performed we were half excited and half worried about whether the energy we used to have would come out. Seeing how the members looked while practicing, I thought they looked cooler than before. I want to show it to you as soon as possible," further raising expectations.
Meanwhile, today (the 21st) BTS is scheduled to present stages of songs from "Arirang," including the title track "SWIM," for the first time through the comeback live. Because of the symbolic meaning of the word "Arirang," it was reportedly decided to hold the first stage in a space representing Korea. This is the first solo artist concert held at Gwanghwamun Square, and BTS plans to once again lead in promoting K-culture worldwide as a leading global K-pop act.
Notably, the performance will be simultaneously broadcast via Netflix to about 190 countries and regions. It is the first live event Netflix is broadcasting from Korea to the world. Netflix will continue the collaboration not only with the live broadcast but also by exclusively releasing on the 27th the documentary film BTS: THE RETURN, which covers the making of "Arirang."
However, just before the performance, news of leader RM's injury created regret. BigHit Music said, "RM sustained an ankle injury on March 19 while rehearsing for the performance and was taken to a hospital for detailed tests and treatment. As a result of the examination, he was diagnosed with 'talocalcaneal ligament sprain and partial ligament tear and talar sprain (ligament damage and inflammation)' and received medical advice to minimize movement and focus on recovery for at least two weeks after being fitted with a leg cast." It added, "Because this is a comeback stage in the symbolic space of Gwanghwamun, the artist himself strongly wanted to create a highly complete performance, but the company gave priority to the medical opinion and, in order to prevent worsening of the injured area, we and the artist together made the difficult decision to minimize RM's movement at 'BTS comeback live: ARIRANG.'"
RM said, "I practiced dancing really hard this time, but it's difficult to show the performance right now, so I don't think I can participate. Still, I will go on stage. Since it's a chance to meet you, I will go on stage and do my best with the singing. It's not a very serious injury, so don't worry too much. I am taking a lot of care and people are taking a lot of care so the prognosis can improve," and added, "It happened suddenly yesterday, so I feel sorry to the members. I will manage myself as best as possible until the Goyang concert and show you a good appearance," expressing his determination.
After the large-scale comeback show at Gwanghwamun, BTS will meet fans with the "BTS world tour 'ARIRANG'" concerts at the main stadium of Goyang Sports Complex for three days on the 9th, 11th and 12th of next month. Starting with this, BTS will continue a large-scale world tour, performing 79 shows in 34 cities across Asia, North America, Latin America, Europe and the Middle East, marking the largest number of shows by a K-pop artist.
[Photo] BigHit Music, Netflix
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