Pop megastars BTS electrify historic centre of Seoul with comeback concert

On Saturday, the heart of Seoul turned into a sea of purple.

It was splashed across landmarks, towering billboards, giant screens on high-rises, posters, masks and t-shirts. It was in the display of drone lights on the Han River.

The reason for it was impossible to miss.

“Welcome back BTS,” a banner on a 7-Eleven declared, surrounded by the K-pop act’s signature colour. The world’s biggest band was returning to the stage – after a break of more than three years because of mandatory military service.

“BTS is everything for us,” says Veronica, who along with her friend Amanda flew in from the US to catch Saturday’s show.

The concert was yet to begin. Members RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook had not made an appearance, but already, BTS was everywhere.

The megastars of pop were back.

And their “Army”, as their legions of fans call themselves, was ready – happy, singing, screaming, light-sticks in hand. These props can be seen at every K-pop concert but the big bands have their own.

Amanda and Veronica had them too. They wore wide grins and matching purple hanbok, the traditional Korean dress.

The band’s break is what made them seek out other members of the Army. “That’s how we met,” Amanda says.

But it had been a difficult three years, they added, spent yearning for the band to come back.

Finally, the wait was over.

As the sun faded, the square thumped with screams of the crowd. Fans erupted into chants of the seven members’ names.

Then the noise fell away as a deep, resonant toll of the Divine Bell of King Seongdeok rose – a part of “Number 29”, a track in BTS’s new album Arirang.

It rolled across Gwanghwamun Square, lingering – heavy and deliberate – grounding the spectacle in something that felt far older.

And then the seven K-pop stars appeared in front of the medieval gateway to the palace. “Annyeonghaseyo (hello),” the band’s leader RM greeted fans in Korean, before switching to English: “We are back.”

They walked to an impromptu stadium the city had set up in the middle of the square and climbed onto the stage, which resembled a triumphal arch.

It was a striking prelude to “Body to Body”, the album’s first full track, interwoven with Korea’s most iconic folk song and the album’s namesake, Arirang.

As the music swelled, the stage was washed in deep red. The comeback was under way.

And it seemed to win over an uncertain Kim Young-hee: “When I first listened to the album, I thought it was a bit harder to digest than their previous releases, but after seeing them perform live, I realised that BTS never disappoints us.”

There had been growing curiosity about the setlist. While the focus was expected to be on new material, many wondered whether the group would revisit the hits that defined their global rise.

And they did – with “Butter”, “MIC Drop”, “Dynamite” and “Mikrokosmos” igniting instant recognition, lifting the crowd into a shared, euphoric chorus.