BTS battled rain in Goyang
BTS kicked off their Arirang World Tour in Goyang despite heavy rain on night one, running a set that included crowd favorites like “Fake Love,” “Dynamite,” “Butter,” and “Mikrokosmos,” and even had ATEEZ’s Jongho join them onstage. ( )
BTS opened their new world tour on Thursday, April 9, at Goyang Stadium in South Korea, and the first image fans got was seven members trying to dance through heavy rain on an open-air stage. Weverse listed the show for 7 p.m. Korea Standard Time and confirmed three Goyang dates: April 9, April 11, and April 12. (weverse.io) This was not just another stop. It was the first full-group world tour launch after the band’s long break for South Korea’s mandatory military service, with the Associated Press noting the group was returning to the road after nearly four years. (apnews.com) Goyang is the kind of venue you choose when you want a homecoming to feel enormous. The Korea Times reported that BigHit Music framed “Arirang” as the largest concert tour ever mounted by a Korean act, starting with three stadium nights just west of Seoul. (koreatimes.co.kr) The stage itself changed how the concert worked. BigHit Music said the tour uses a 360-degree setup with no front-facing section, which means BTS had to keep rotating like performers in the middle of a clock so every side of the stadium got a real view. (koreatimes.co.kr) That design also helps explain why the rain became part of the show instead of stopping it. Rolling Stone reported that the group kept moving across the in-the-round stage for songs like “Run,” while a 40,000-person crowd stayed with them through the downpour. (rollingstone.com) The setlist was built like a reunion album in live form. Billboard and setlist trackers both showed night one mixing new “Arirang” material with older anchors, including “Fake Love,” “MIC Drop,” “Fire,” “IDOL,” “Dynamite,” “Butter,” and “Mikrokosmos.” (billboard.com, setlist.fm) The encore is where the weather and the nostalgia really collided. Yahoo’s concert report said “Dynamite,” “Butter,” and “Mikrokosmos” landed together at the end, which turned the wettest part of the night into the part most fans seemed to treat like a singalong. (yahoo.com) The tour around this show is massive even by stadium standards. The Korea Times reported 85 shows across 34 cities, with stops planned in Tokyo, North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia, and said the first 46 announced dates had already sold out. (koreatimes.co.kr) “Arirang” is also tied to a new album, not just a greatest-hits run. BTS’s official site describes it as the group’s first album in three years and nine months, with the members involved in songwriting and production as they set the direction for this next chapter. (bts.ibighit.com) Reports from fan-shot clips and concert recaps said ATEEZ member Jongho appeared onstage during the Goyang opener, which gave the night one more talking point beyond the rain: a stadium launch for BTS that also turned into a cameo moment for another major fourth-generation Korean pop act. That detail is circulating widely, though official BTS tour notices focused on the concert logistics rather than guest appearances. (x.com, x.com, x.com)
