For ARMYs around the world, the past two months have been a bitter-sweet experience. In fact, because of the announcement that the BTS members were going to take an extended vacation, fans could be forgiven for thinking that they too, could relax. Yet, within the same day, BTS launched their individual Instagram accounts, leaving unsuspecting ARMYs with three social media platforms to contend with and the relevant notifications to activate. BTS may have been on vacation, but anticipating their absence, they certainly prepared a feast for their fans in the forms of Artist-made merch, the 7Fates: Chakho webtoon, “Stay Alive” OST, and various postings across Weverse, Twitter, and Instagram.
There were also award shows to vote for, hashtags to promote, music to stream across the various platforms, birthday projects to plan (namely V, j-hope, and Suga), and a Vogue Korea & GQ Korea collaboration to survive. Then of course, the unthinkable happened as five of the seven members were diagnosed with COVID-19 at various times throughout their vacation period, and Jimin was forced to undergo surgery for appendicitis. Thankfully now though, the worst is over, and once V completed his quarantine mid-February, all seven BTS members were able to reunite.
When it comes to any artist, a comeback is a highly anticipated event for their fans. With BTS and ARMY, this is magnified to the umpteenth degree. In the ARMY psyche, everything becomes a clue to tease and tantalize our imaginations. And then there are the ‘hats.’
ARMY just know that when the hat selfies come out, there’s something exciting hidden underneath. Like ARMY member @cypherluscious commented - “That can mean only 1 thing: CB is coming.”
BTS is coming back, and like clockwork, the VLives have started again, first with j-hope’s birthday and then more recently with RM, Suga, and Jimin’s “Belatedly cracking bureom” get-together. Two entirely different reasons for live-streaming, and yet the synergies between the two are clearly indicative of the relationship that these seven young men share with each other. With the words “NO SPOILERS” subtly engraved in their minds, it’s quite entertaining to watch the members' spoiler alarms light up mid-sentence. With j-hope, perhaps it was the glasses unwittingly reflecting images from the screen of his computer, while Suga suddenly panicked with the thought that he had revealed important concert details, not yet released to the public.
Interesting, too, that while fans already knew the members were on vacation, spending time with friends and families, some of the members still utilized their ‘free’ time to hone their skills further. Suga took English lessons, while Jung Kook focused on dance lessons, and Jimin invested in vocal lessons. j-hope even mentioned that despite not being able to, he too had hoped to do more dancing. Perhaps that’s why he was able to spend more time working on the aesthetic concepts for his Instagram account and always seemed to be poised to click the ‘like’ button whenever any of the other members posted. As for Jin, we learned that much of his vacation was dedicated to playing games, an activity that ARMY knows is very close to Jin’s heart. So much so, that he will even skip meals when he’s gaming, and yet, he still found time to prepare a cake, strawberries, and source the perfect present for j-hope’s birthday.
Now that the dates have been confirmed for the Permission To Dance on Stage in Seoul concert and the permitted numbers for each of the three days has been capped at 15,000 attendees, Korea-based ARMYs can’t help but feel excited for what’s to come. With confirmation that the concert will be live-streamed as well, international ARMYs are also feeling the hype that is slowly unfolding. Speculations that there may be adjustments to parts of the setlist have been circulating on social media, and naturally, many ARMYs are utilizing these spaces as an opportunity to share their wishlists. Perhaps you’ve considered this yourself. If so, which songs would you love to see BTS perform at this next concert?
Ironically, although BTS have already performed several songs from their Map of the Soul:7 and BE albums in South Korea, this will be their first time performing the likes of “ON” and “Black Swan” in front of a live audience there. With this auspicious event less than two weeks away, we can only imagine how the members must be feeling. Daily workout routines and exercising to help reduce weight, tone the body, and build physical stamina will be important to the members. Likewise, honing their choreographies, vocal abilities for singing and rapping, and stage presence will also feature in their daily regimens as they prepare for the upcoming concert. Eating more healthily may also be part of their preparations, and while some of the members may deliberately adjust their diets, others may already be satisfied with this aspect of their lives. As we can see, a lot goes into preparing for a concert, and while the PTD concert is technically NOT a ‘comeback’ for BTS, there is definitely an element of ‘returning’ for the septet.
BTS’ comeback is a certainty. With that comes a new album and new songs, new concepts and photoshoots, behind-the-scenes footage, BTS members live-streaming more, and any other goodies that they may have secretly tucked away. Of course, with all of this is the added benefit of additional concerts and ultimately, a world tour. Understandably, ARMYs were ecstatic to see another four-day US concert announced just last week, this time in Las Vegas for the month of April — timed nicely for the rescheduled Grammy Awards. Knowing that BTS will be back on stage where they belong, doing what their hearts enjoy the most, is music to ARMYs’ ears.
BTS is Back!
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Written By: Shelley
Edited By: Aury
Checked By: Juju
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