BTS is coming back. On the 21st, a comeback live concert will be held in and around Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul. It has been 3 years and 9 months since BTS performed together as a full group, after the anthology album "Proof" in June 2022. Police expect up to 260,000 people to gather in the Gwanghwamun area.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government and label HYBE on the 11th, BTS will hold "Comeback Live: Arirang" in the Gwanghwamun area on the 21st. It will be their first time on stage after the release of the fifth full-length album "Arirang" at 8 p.m. on the 20th, the day before the concert. Starting with the eldest member Jin in 2022, all BTS members enlisted in the military in 2023 and returned to society in June last year.
The fandom that follows BTS numbers more than 30 million. According to Weverse, over 10 million of them are "active users." Active users are people who regularly come to Weverse to buy merchandise and engage in fan activities. There are also survey results showing that people would travel 240 miles (about 3,283 km) to see a BTS concert.
All 15,000 seats scheduled for the day of the event sold out. In response, BigHit decided to open an additional 7,000 seats from 8 p.m. on the 12th. The additional standing-only sections will be set up south of Sejong-daero Intersection, from Gwanghwamun Station on Seoul Subway Line 5 to near City Hall Station on Line 1. All will operate as standing areas, and the performance can be watched via large LED screens installed on site.
It is, quite literally, a "return of the king." Oh Se-hoon, the Seoul mayor who leads the host city for this event, also said, "The return of the king is approaching," adding, "We must pay particular attention to safety issues, traffic flow, and reducing inconvenience to citizens."
The event itself will proceed as if welcoming a king. BTS is expected to make its opening by walking the so-called "king's path" from Geunjeongmun inside Gyeongbokgung, through Heungnyemun, to Gwanghwamun. This is the first time a singer will hold a solo performance at Gyeongbokgung and Gwanghwamun Square. Some artists have staged special segments at Geunjeongjeon, but there is no precedent for a solo performance that uses the entire area. It is using national heritage as a dedicated space.
Returning to fans in this way, BTS plans to take the stage with 50 dancers and 13 members of the Arirang gugak ensemble. In addition, on the day of the performance, the Gwanghwamun walls will be filled with Korean traditional cultural content using a media facade.
The concert will be broadcast live via the online video service (OTT) Netflix to 190 countries and 300 million users. It is Netflix's first live event transmitted worldwide from Korea. The organizers said, "More than 50 million viewers are expected to watch BTS's return," calling it "a global live broadcast event on a scale similar to the World Cup or the Olympics, considered the world's biggest festivals."
During the event, the nearby area will be on "pause." To minimize traffic disruptions and ensure safety, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will have trains pass through four nearby subway stations without stopping—Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5, City Hall Station on Lines 1 and 2, and Gyeongbokgung Station on Line 3—and will close the station entrances and exits. Other nearby stations, such as Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station, may also be bypassed without stopping as needed depending on congestion. Gyeongbokgung and the National Palace Museum of Korea will be closed on the day of the concert. Gyeongbokgung's regular closing day is every Tuesday, and it has otherwise been open on weekends and public holidays.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government will prepare a variety of events across the city to create a festival space for domestic and international tourists to enjoy. It plans to stage welcoming visuals for global fans throughout the city and offer tourism and experience programs, transforming the entire city into a new festival venue.