The K-pop seven-piece delivered their first group live performance in three and a half years in Seoul's Gwanghwamun Square - one day after the release of new album 'Arirang'
BTS shut down Seoul's Gwanghwamun Square area tonight (Saturday March 21) for their first live performance as a group for three and a half years. Check out photos, footage, the setlist and more below.
The seven-member boyband last performed together in October 2022 at 'Yet To Come in Busan', a free concert held at the titular city's Asiad Main Stadium ahead of the group enlisting for their mandatory military service.
"I still vividly remember asking you to wait for us at our last concert in Busan a few years ago," singer Jin said towards the start of today's concert. "Thank you so much for coming here. Actually, I had so many worries before standing here today, but seeing you all again, I'm so grateful and happy."
Tickets for the concert were free - despite only 22,000 tickets being available, 104,000 fans descended on the area to catch a glimpse of the performance. BTS The Comeback Live: Arirang was also broadcast live on Netflix, marking the streaming platform's first-ever live music broadcast, following forays into sports and awards shows. The livestream is available to rewatch now.
Screens stretched down Sejong-daero, the main road from Gyeongbokgung Palace to City Hall, which was blocked off to traffic for the day. Fans took seats in sections placed around landmarks like the statues of King Sejong and Admiral Yu Sun-sin, and alongside the Sejong Performing Arts Centre. Billboards along the road that usually share regular adverts were taken over with BTS-related content.
"Hello Seoul, we're back," leader and rapper RM said, announcing BTS' arrival at 8pm KST, as he and his bandmates stood in a row in front of Gwanghwamun, the gate that leads to Gyeongbokgung Palace. Moments later, the band were onstage to perform in front of a square arch wrapped in LED screens, which framed the gate in its centre. They kicked off the hour-long set with 'Body To Body', the opening track from their new album 'Arirang', which was released yesterday (March 20).
Ahead of the group's historic return, Garrett English, Executive Producer at production company Done+Dusted, told press on a venue walkthrough that the event was "a little daunting" given its location being a "very meaningful place in Seoul". Gwanghwamun Square has long been a symbolic site to the South Korean city, formerly home to the Six Ministries, or core parts of the government, during the Joseon Dynasty, and the site of many notable protests and democratic movements, including 1919's March 1st Independence Movement against Japanese colonial rule.
"We wanted to celebrate Gyeongbokgung and Gwanghwamun Square and have the design embrace and celebrate them," English said, as well as "elevat[ing] BTS' return".
"It's truly an honour to perform at Gwanghwamun, the most historic place in Korea," rapper Suga said early on in the performance. "We wanted this album to capture our identity. That's why we chose 'Arirang' as our theme, and with that in mind, we decided to perform here."
Singer V added: "Being able to make our comeback in such a special place brings back a lot of feeling," before thanking fans who "came all the way to Gwanghwamun, and to the viewers watching us from around the world through Netflix".
During the performance, the group nodded to the history and heritage of South Korea, with the designs that covered the LED screens of the stage referencing the elements of geongongamri - heaven, earth, water, and fire - or the black symbols found in the four corners of the country's national flag.
'FYA' represented fire (ri), with red lights flickering along Gwanghwamun like flames, and dry ice mimicking plumes of smoke. 'Swim', the lead single from 'Arirang', symbolised water (gam), with blues and greens flooding the screens, and the lights in the centre of the stage forming the shape of waves. 'Like Animals' took on earth (gon), with crumbling mud and dirt showing on the screen as BTS performed sitting on the stage's steps. Finally, 'Normal' embodied heaven (geon), with cloud-filled skies rushing over the frame.
Speaking about their hiatus after 'FYA', rapper J-hope told the crowd that the group did "have anxieties about whether people would keep waiting for us or if we'd be forgotten". "That's right," agreed Suga. "During the time we had to pause for a bit, we spent a lot of time thinking about what we should hold onto and what we need to change. We're still not completely sure and still feel anxious at times, but I think even those emotions are a part of who we are right now."
"At this turning point, we kept asking ourselves what choices we should make and what kind of artists we want to be remembered as," RM added. "In the end, we found that the answer wasn't outside, but within us. listening to our own voices and capturing those thoughts and anxieties without hiding them - I think that was the essence of this album and the goal of this album."
As well as celebrating their comeback with new material, BTS also looked back over some of their past successes. The 12-track setlist featured English-language songs 'Butter' and 'Dynamite', as well as fan favourites 'Mic Drop' and 'Mikrokosmos'. The group performed in custom-made outfits from avant-garde Korean fashion house Songzio, with the concept of "lyrical armour" and clothes that nod to the country's past, "rebuilt for the world's stage".
BTS' comeback wasn't without its issues, though. Yesterday, the group's label BIG HIT MUSIC announced that RM's participation in the choreography would be limited due to an ankle injury picked up during rehearsals on Thursday (March 19). "A medical diagnosis confirmed a sprain of the accessory navicular, a partial ligament tear, and a talus contusion (which includes ligament damage and inflammation)," a statement on parent company HYBE's social networking platform Weverse read. "As advised by medical professionals, he must wear a cast and strictly limit movement for a minimum of two weeks to concentrate solely on his recovery."
The rapper appeared on stage in a black ankle boot and often performed from a stool at the side of the stage, which was part of his and the company's "decision to prioritise the medical opinion to preemptively prevent any further strain on his injury".
After the release of 'Arirang' and performing in Gwanghwamun Square, BTS will now turn their focus to their world tour, which kicks off in Goyang, South Korea, on April 9, before visiting Europe, North and Latin America, the Middle East, and more. "Every day we are working together to prepare things for the concert, so you can look forward to it," singer Jimin promised. "There are so many things that we are working on so that we can show you a great performance. Please look forward to it."
Singer Jungkook added, speaking in English: "As long as you're with us, we'll always do our best to bring you great music and performances. Thank you!" Earlier in the evening, J-hope shared: "ARMY [BTS' fandom name], I'm so happy to be back. This moment is possible thanks to you. BTS 2.0 is just getting started."
During a media briefing on Friday, Brandon Riegg, Netflix's VP of Nonfiction Series and Sports, discussed working with the K-pop superstars and the aims of the live broadcast. "It was very clear from the start that this opportunity was one we could not pass up," he said. "It really doesn't get any bigger than BTS and what this tour and performance represent [...] I would venture to guess this might be the biggest thing this year that we see on Netflix in terms of our live ambition."
Riegg added that the streaming platform views broadcasts like BTS The Comeback Live: Arirang as "an opportunity to reach fans and members around the world in a way that is becoming increasingly tough to find: singular events that really pull people together".
BTS' partnership with Netflix will continue on March 27 with the premiere of a new documentary, BTS: The Return. The film was directed by Bao Nguyen (The Stringer, The Greatest Night In Pop) and goes behind-the-scenes as the seven members reunited after military service in Los Angeles to work on 'Arirang'.
BTS' setlist was:
'Body To Body'
'Hooligan'
'2.0'
'Butter'
'Mic Drop'
'Aliens'
'FYA'
'Swim'
'Like Animals'
'Normal'
'Dynamite'
'Mikrokosmos'
BTS' 2026-2027 world tour kicks off on April 9. Visit here for more information.
