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BTS to embark on second world tour from May 4 to July 14

BTS to embark on second world tour from May 4 to July 14

Posted March. 18, 2019 07:37,   

Updated March. 18, 2019 07:37

한국어

The world-famous K-pop boy band BTS will embark on their second world tour starting from May, and it is expected to be the largest ever in scale in the history of K-pop.

Through their official website on Sunday, BTS has released the schedules for their new world tour “Speak Yourself,” which will take place from May 4 to July 14. BTS’s new tour will be held in eight regions of five countries including the U.S., Brazil, the U.K., France, and Japan, staging 16 concerts in total.

One of the characteristics of the upcoming tour is massive scale of the concerts. All the concerts will take place at big concert halls that can accommodate more than 50,000 spectators. It is the first time ever in the history of K-pop singers’ world tours. The Rose Bowl Stadium in Los Angeles, more than 90,000 seats, will be the first leg of the concert tour. The stadium previously served as a venue for an Olympic soccer final, a World Cup soccer final and the Super Bowl. The second concert hall, Soldier Field in Chicago, is also a facility where American pop stars Rolling Stones and Bon Jovi held concerts, and can house more than 60,000 people. The New Jersey concerts on May 18 and 19 will take place in MetLife Stadium, with more than 80,000 seats, where the final match of the 2026 World Cup will take place.

BTS’ concerts will be gigantic in scale not just in the U.S. Their London concerts scheduled for June 1 and 2 will be held in Wembley Stadium with more than 90,000 seats, and Stade de France for the K-pop band’s June 7 and 8 concerts can accommodate more than 80,000 spectators. The French stadium was used for the 1998 World Cup, the 2003 the IAAF World Athletics Championships, and the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

In the upcoming concert, fans will be able to appreciate BTS’ new album “Map of the Soul: Persona,” which will debut simultaneously around the world on April 12. BTS has decided to unveil the album through NBC’s popular comedy show “Saturday Night Live” on April 13, a day after the album’s release, sparking expectations among the band’s American fans. Their new album ranked first in the CD and vinyl categories in just one day after Amazon started taking pre-orders on Wednesday (local time).

Fans around the world are already enthusiastically responding to the news on BTS’ second world tour. Tickets for 10 of the 12 concerts, for which reservation started, have been already sold out. The sales will likely exceed the record of their first world tour “Love Yourself,” which started in Seoul on Aug. 25 last year and concluded in Bangkok on Sept. 7.


chan2@donga.com