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The area in front of Seoul Olympic Stadium in Jamsil was jam-packed on the evening of Oct. 29 with people unable to get tickets for the BTS (Bangtan Boys) concert inside. Amid the chilly weather, they covered themselves in blankets, laid out mats, and nibbled on snacks from home as they waved their “army bombs” (official BTS cheering wands). The “floaters” are a form of culture where fans unable to purchase admission to concerts share in all its excitement and atmosphere by hanging outside the venue meeting with other enthusiasts and trading their own homemade goods. Among them on this evening was 40-something Park Mi-young, who was there with her husband.

“Our daughter, who’s in middle school, got a ticket, but I couldn’t get any, so I sent her inside while I cheer out here,” Park explained. “My daughter and I are both ‘Army’ members, and since we’re up from the provinces, my husband came with us as a driver.”

An epic world tour by BTS came to its close in Seoul. On Oct. 29, the group successfully concluded its final Seoul performance “LOVE YOURSELF: SPEAK YOURSELF [THE FINAL]” at Seoul Olympic Stadium to over 40,000 cheering fans. A total of 130,000 people attended concerts over the days of Oct. 26, 27, and 29.

People willing to ditch luggage unchecked to see concert

The stadium was brimming with the enthusiasm of the countless fans who had been gathered there since early in the morning on the day of the concert. They took pictures at photo zones set up around the stadium, purchased official merchandise, and took part in different activities as they waited for the concert to begin. A heap of luggage carriers could be found around the lockers near the venue at Sports Complex Station on Seoul Subway Line 2, where people left them after being unable to find lockers of their own. Such was the fans’ passion that they were willing to accept the potential loss of their bags.

Also in evidence was consideration for fans of Big Hit, the group’s entertainment agency. To address the inconvenience of having to stand in line for hours to buy official merchandise, fans were allowed to order them in advance through the app Weply and pick them up on site at the designated time. They were also able to check wait times and the rate of progress (“very slow,” “slow,” “smooth,” etc.) through the app Weverse, an official fan community service.

BTS drew on their fans’ passion for energy as they launched their spectacle. It began with “Dionysus,” performed with a dazzling cannon salute on a stage decked out with images from ancient Greek mythology. Fans let out tremendous screams and sang along in cadence to the group’s powerful choreography. The number was followed with other hits including “Not Today,” “Boy with Luv,” “Fake Love,” a remix of “MIC Drop,” and “IDOL.”

Next came solo performances by BTS’ seven members. The seven performers each sported several different looks, starting with J-Hopes “Just Dance” and continuing on to “Euphoria” by Jungkook, “Serendipity” by Jimin, “LOVE” by RM, “Singularity” by V, “SEESAW” by Suga, and “Epiphany” by Jin.

As the final performance, the spectacle was historic. Audience members were drawn in deeper with effects including lighting that changed from one moment to the next with the stage concept, while Jungkook flew around the stadium using a lift. The members also split up into moving cars to pull in closer to the fans on the third and fourth tiers, waving and posing for pictures. During the encore, a firework show rivaled the Seoul International Fireworks Festival. A particular highlight was a drone light show to the concert’s final number “Mikrokosmos.” Over 300 purple-lit drones were used in a presentation that started in space, passed the planets of the solar system, and arrived overhead in the stadium “microcosm” shared by BTS and their Army. The drones finally transformed into symbols for BTS and their Army, filling the venue’s night sky.

The members also delighted their fans at the end of the evening’s performance as their shared a slogan with the words “filling the BTS galaxy with the Army’s stars.” The end of their tour was celebrated with a souvenir photograph in front of the stage and an “Army wand wave.” Some of the BTS members broke into tears they shared their thoughts upon finishing the tour.

Preventing scalping and sales of illegal goods; concert affects public transportation

For the performance that evening, as much effort was focused on cracking down on legal violations as on bringing thrills to the crowd. As with previous shows, audience members underwent thorough ID confirmation procedures and were issued entry bracelets to crack down on scalping. Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) staffers were also present to prevent the sale and purchase of illegal goods.

The BTS performance’s impact extended to public transportation operations. Supreme Railways doubled the number of seats on its SRT train service from Suseo to Busan for the benefit of fans outside the Seoul area.

“We’d increased the number of seats before on the Chuseok and Lunar New Year holidays, but this was our first time doing it for the sake of a cultural event,” an SRT official said. “We made the decision after predicting there would be a lot of fans coming up from the provinces to see the performance in Seoul.”

Live concert broadcasts as new platform
The Oct. 26 BTS performance was broadcast live on Naver V Live, and the Oct. 27 performance at theaters. The online broadcasts, which started with a June performance at London’s Wembley Stadium viewed by 140,000 people, have established themselves as a new platform for enjoying the shows. The Oct. 26 show was viewed by around 140,000 people on Naver Live, while all 13,000 or so seats for live screenings at CGV, Megabox, and Lotte Cinema on Oct. 27 sold out in a flash.

The BTS world tour began in August 2018 and continued for the next 14 months. The 62 performances had a cumulative audience total of 2.06 million. Some 1.04 people came to 42 performances in 20 cities in the “LOVE YOURSELF” world tour, while another 1.02 million visited 20 performances in 10 cities in the following “LOVE YOURSELF: SPEAK YOURSELF” tour. In October 2018, the group became the first South Korean act to perform at Citi Field, home stadium of the New York Mets MLB team; in June 2019, they became the first South Korean performers to give a show at Wembley Stadium, considered a “shrine of pop.” They were also the first overseas act to give a stadium performance in Saudi Arabia, a country known for its strict adherence to Islamic law and conservative culture.

Seoul Olympic Stadium was also the venue where the group kicked off its world tour. “It’s come full circle: the tour started in Seoul and it’s ending in Seoul,” group member V said as the performance began. “We’re looking forward to an even more beautiful conclusion because we’re sharing both the beginning and end with you.”

Now that its 14-month journey has come to an end, BTS is poised for another start. The group is up for “Tour of the Year” at the 2019 American Music Awards on Nov. 24 -- but awards and other records alone are not enough to account for their value. As group leader RM put it, “The journey of learning how to love ourselves will never end.” In other words, LOVE YOURSELF: SPEAK YOURSELF!

By Shin Min-ji, staff reporter

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