For self-organizational purposes...but you're welcome to look through if you'd like...
NON-BTS POSTS
Disclaimer about my viewpoint/expertise
Tumblr Cultural Knowledge
SERIES MASTERLISTS
Run BTS | part 2
Desert Island Disc Tournament (via @bts-polls)
Are You Sure?! Season 1
Are You Sure?! Season 2
Alphabetical BTS (via @bts-polls )
RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR
ARIRANG
FANDOM THOUGHTS
LIKE CRAZY LYRIC DIFFERENCES
WHAT MAKES A FAN SONG
SOLO TOUR MATH
Jimin's Production Diary: a rambling review
GOLDEN QUALITY INTERVIEW
Fake Love era
Jungkook Audacy Performance
GCF in Budapest
FACE, LETTER, & CLOSER THAN THIS
Some LIKE CRAZY thoughts
I Am Still: a Reaction
2026 Album Songcamp Theories
ARIRANG Hidden Track Release
MUSIC REACTION POSTS
TOO MUCH
3D: Justin Timberlake Remix
STANDING NEXT TO YOU: Usher Remix
FRI(END)S : The Song
FRI(END)S : The Music Video
Smeraldo Garden Marching Band
Musings on MUSE
Mona Lisa: an unconcluded journey
ARIRANG, an initial reaction
QUICK COMBOS
What's a Quick Combo? My personal recommendation of just a few songs for easy insertion into a playlist. This mini-combination makes an interesting transition or story when played in this order.
As stated in pt.1, this is just my personal experience at this one show. My experience is not yours and I fully expect some of my views will further shift when I attend some of the later concert dates.
Also, please don't judge the show by my extremely low quality gifs. Seeing the members with your own eyes is a high-definition experience and I was far more focused on that than getting good footage.
Setting the Stage
First, our show didn't start until 8:20. And boy those 20 minutes felt like absolute torture! I've heard that it was delayed due to the stadium not getting everyone entered in a timely fashion but these things usually aren't confirmed unless BTS mentions it themselves.
Secondly, so much of how any live music experience turns out is influenced by the people directly surrounding you. Unfortunately I was directly behind two girls that kept their hands fully raised for most of the show. Definitely not ideal but alas, such is the nature of society.
The pre-show music and visuals on the screen were interesting. I do like the concept of them theoretically but like I said above, we had quite a delay getting started and every sudden note got the crowd screaming, which waned some of the enthusiasm after enough times. The was also quite extensive Korean text included that wasn't ever translated. I'm sure it adds to the flavour and meaning of the show but it will just have to remain a mystery to myself and most of the attendees.
I'll talk more about the stage layout itself at the end of this post but I do want to quickly say that the screen design was excellent. Plenty of screen real estate to ensure every seat can see whatever is necessary whilst also minimizing obstructions as much as possible.
Entrance - Hooligan - Aliens - Run BTS
I'm going to spend a lot of this post talking about the entrances and exits. It's one of the main logistical challenges of any performance and the 360 stage presents such interesting opportunities and challenges for it.
The choice to first have one dancer run on stage holding aloft a colored smoke stick is absolutely perfect. It focuses the audience and prepares them for the members entrance whilst also setting a visual and musical tone. The rest of the dancers start entering and eventually running as well as the members are slowly revealed in the crowd.
Hooligan itself is a great choice for an opener. It's upbeat and the previous content released about the song made most attendees familiar enough with it to immediately be part of the magic that is attending live music, even if they weren't die-hard streamers, most ARMYs know the basics of the song.
Quick Side Note: I learned something about myself as an ARMY with this concert. I think some of you know but it took me a few years to truly arrive as a Jimin-bias. I always had this vague idea that I wasn't really THAT biased to just one member... lies... I did not even make it through the first minute of the concert without zeroing in on that blonde head even though he really didn't spend much time on my side of the stage for this song. There were very few moments in the show where I wasn't fully engaged in tracking wherever he was. I genuinely don't know how anyone can pay any amount of attention to all 7 when there is one PARK JIMIN anywhere in the vicinity. There were a few moments during the show where I had a stark realization that not only was Jimjn there but ALL of the other members as well! What a time to be alive!
There is no break between Hooligan and Aliens and we get our first taste of the central portions of the stage raising up individually. I vaguely remember noticing it very briefly from a stage design standpoint but I was so into enjoying the moment that I genuinely wasn't thinking about production. So it absolutely fulfilled its purpose, assisting the storytelling without pulling focus.
So...as counterintuitive as it may seem, Run BTS is actually a 'break' song for the members. The dancers leave the stage and BTS are up on the raised central platform. They're not performing the choreography except select moves but the blocking has each of them spread out just doing their own thing as the platform spins. It's such a high-energy song with an intense dance that we've only really seen performed once. It doesn't break the flow of the show but such staging is definitely not what I would have expected.
Greetings - They Don't Know 'bout Us - Like Animals - FAKE LOVE - SWIM - Merry Go Round
The members each took turns saying a few things in English, giving us ample opportunity to scream for each of them in turn.
The performance of They Don't Know 'bout Us is the most conceptual one thus far. Between the on screen images, dancers, and stage blocking there's a wonderful message presented. Very apt for the first 'slow song' in my opinion. Unfortunately, the fan in front of me really vibes with this song apparently as I spent most of it moving back and forth just trying to see past her ARMY bomb.
As I said in my initial review of ARIRANG, I dont personally connect with the lyrics of Like Animals but the music itself is absolutely breathtaking. The production leaned into that sentiment by having such a simplified performance. The 'ipad background dance' totally works in person. The focus is correctly on the members' absolutely haunting vocals.
FAKE LOVE: I have a confession. I had overly hydrated after finally getting into the stadium but the bathroom lines were so long prior to the show starting that I told myself I'd just have to wait until the first intermission. Nope, as soon as I heard Fake Love, I knew that was my chance and I booked it out of my row. The irony is not lost on me that my first chance to hear one of the songs that dragged me into the fandom was the one that I abandoned. If you find yourself in a similar predicament though, I will say that there was absolutely no line and I made it back well within time for the next song!
Okay, SWIM. I'd definitely been looking forward to the production of this song. The choreography had obviously been developed with the 360 stage in mind. But the members spent the entire performance on the smaller raised platform again, which was not what I was expecting. I knew the backup dancers in the sheets would be a mechanism to get the members off stage for the intermission and the wave choreo for the backup dancers was a good execution to get the audience comfortable with the concept of sheet dancing but overall, the performance just fell a little flat for being the 'title' song of the album. I've definitely got some other thoughts on the overall marketing strategy of ARIRANG, including title selection, but I'll save those for another post.
Merry Go Round does make good use of the cloth choreography as well as subtly informing the audience that the members will shortly be disappearing from view. The actual exit is a little tedious with there being so many of the 'cloth tents' but it was effective to get the members off stage.
Intermission
I loved this so much! I didn't record a single moment of it. It's so well designed. The VHS, the portion where the dancers returned, how the members are hidden. It was wonderful.
There is just one problem, the audience. They are all so focused on just wanting the members to return that the concept was missed. Everyone was constantly shouting when they thought they'd be emerging again. This lovely performance of music and art was overshadowed by the hell-bent need to clap eyes on the members again rather than appreciating the performance they arranged for us. I hope future audiences improve... I do think tbe production company was aware that this behavior would be the likely result of the audience and this is them asking us to grow and mature with our artist. They are giving us a gift and a message with this section but we need to be willing to partake and listen rather that just waiting ravenously to consume our next moment of the member's presence.
2.0 - NORMAL - Not Today - MIC DROP - FYA - Fire
The members have returned from their costume change and are back to performing choreography for 2.0...again from the raised central platform. In any case, the energy levels are back up.
The members spread out for Normal to the outer platforms but they're contained to each of their sections as they raise/lower. Again, a good 'break' song for them, but nothing we haven't already seen in this show.
I actually like this arrangement of Not Today far more than I expected. The backup dancers also add a beautiful modern vibe to a skng many of us have heard for years. Not necessarily one of the songs I would have expected to be brought into this setlist but I think they did a great job with it.
MIC DROP is exactly as expected however. I really have nothing further to say here. It leads directly in FYA which is the first time the members spread out to the thrust stages... an hour into the show, and it definitely felt like it. The thrust stages are quite underutilized for how much space they occupy. The members aren't there for long as they're all back to the center to start Fire.
Body to Body - IDOL
The moment most of us had been waiting for! The true jewel of ARIRANG! I dont know that I even fully processed much of this song. Dear Park Jimin immediately came down the thrust stages closest to my section. All I knew beyond that was that we'd soon get to see how the US audience handled the Arirang. I think we did quite well. I still get some of middle section mixed up but it was such a powerful moment to be a part of!
Then it came time for IDOL. I knew the members would go on their walkabout and I was so excited for it. Genuinely didn't notice until right then that there are actually tents separating my section from the walkway... so we couldn't see them at all when they walked by us. Very disappointing but there were other benefits to being in the side section. It was great to see RM walking the whole time and not having to ride in a chair!
Everytime I see footage of them doing this walkabout, I'm reminded of how they wanted to run through the audience during Yet To Come in Busan but were unable to at the last moment. Also of Jin's run during his RunSeokjin encore, particularly when Jimin surprised him at one of the gates. It makes me feel like such a proud parent to see them finally able to put this plan into action.
Intermission
This one is the classic ARMY time, where the cameras show different audience member briefly. Usually the ones that are holding signs or flags. I totally get why this is a thing at concerts but overall, it's so tedious to me. The same thing over and over again. It's an effective strategy to keep most people engaged for the time the members are changing but it also encourages behavior that I don't think necessarily should be encouraged. We did learn that it's an effective method of communication with production though as there were clearly many signs requesting Pied Piper which was played the next night.
Come Over - Butter - Dynamite
I'm mostly getting over any bad feelings I have with the distribution method of this song. It's just so unbelievably beautiful! Exactly up my alley and would have been tied for my favorite song of the album with Body to Body. Having the members slowly walk out to the backing track sets the perfect tone for the encore. The stage blocking has the members standing in a line in front of each side section in turn.
The members clearly are just doing whatever they can to entertain themselves whilst performing Butter. I'm not saying they dislike it but there's not much for them to do that hasn't already been done. As RM says when he introduces the song, everyone's heard it before this is specifically for the people who may not be very familiar with the BTS discography.
Likewise, the only thing interesting about Dynamite is the choreo chain by the vocal line. Again, I'm not saying these are bad songs but it's clear they're included in the setlist as a matter of obligation.
Surprise Songs
So, as a setlist strategy, the surprise songs are the perfect way to incorporate the vast BTS discography whilst removing the pressure from the members to have old choreo and lyrics prepared.
Personally, I think they'll stick to OT7 songs with one possible exception: the members birthdays. Here's my predictions for each members birthday:
Jungkook: SEVEN (Los Angeles)
RM: none (no tour date)
Jimin: Who (Lima or Santiago)
Jin: SuperTuna (Bangkok)
V: FRI(END)S (Jakarta)
Hobi: Killin It Girl (Sydney)
Suga: Daechwita (Hong Kong)
Anyway, on my night, we had Permission to Dance and Magic Shop. While PTD is a fine song, it's incredibly clear that it was specifically chosen purely because it was the first US stop as the remaining English song. The crowd definitely was not as enthused for it as I think production was expecting. Magic Shop got a great response though. I genuinely didn't even notice an issue with the sound during the actual performance itself. It wasn't until Jungkook's post about it that I even watched it back. Honestly I feel worse for Jungkook than for us. We know how much he cares about the performance quality and to have this happen during his song is beyond unfortunate. I definitely expect this song will be re-added to the pool for a future concert.
Member's Ending Ments
One of the best moments of stage design! I know everyone makes fun of the members in their spinning microwave but it's such good design to both give them somewhere to sit during this section as well as keep it somewhat dynamic. No section of the audience feels left out by having the members facing away from them for the duration. And it creates a more intimate conversation by letting the members literally sit with us.
Into the Sun
Thank goodness they don't overlay the vocal effect in the live performance!! The song is allowed to stand on its own two feet while we both appreciate the members skills and treasure the final moments with them. I knew when I first heard the outro of this song on the album that it would likely be the concert ending song. It's perfectly designed for it. The members stay on the spinning outer ring of the central stage but it totally works here.
Before the song finishes, the confetti gets going. And they've specifically designed it to reach as much of the audience as possible. This song is the best reason to get a seat in one of the side sections. I had confetti raining down on me with fireworks both in front of me and behind me. The only words I have to describe it is purely magical. That feeling has lingered to this day and I'm so grateful to BTS for giving that to me.
Overall Thoughts
As expected, I think it was a well-designed show and highly worth the money, time, and energy I invested even without the BTS factor, it was a solid production. The main improvement they could make is better utilization of the thrust stages. As I said above, they consume quite a lot of the footprint of the arena and they don't fulfill the subconscious expectation made by their presence.
Ok, that's enough from me for now. Thank you to anyone that made it all the way through this exceptionally long post! 💜
Disclaimer: Just my personal experience and viewpoints with attending Tampa D1. Y'all know I have a very analytical/process driven mindset. I don't claim to speak for every attendee.
Merch: Weverse Shop Pickup Booth
I had a weverse pickup appointment for 1:30 on concert day. This experience was so smooth! There was plenty of signage, the directions I'd recieved from weverse were perfect and I literally didn't have to wait in a line at all. The staff were very kind and efficient.
Reminder: They don't NOT provide bags. I brought my own and was very glad I did.
Merch: Amazon Just Walk Out Booth
While I was walking around the stadium grounds trading freebies, I kept walking past the Merch booths and there were a couple of things I wasn't able to get in my pre-order... I resisted for an hour or so but nothing was selling out and the line was short so I finally decided to just get them. Got in the normal merch line (which wasn't long at all). Was waiting less than 2 min and staff came over to us to say the other merch tent had literally no line so a bunch of us went over there.
Again, the staff was so kind and efficient. I didn't even think about it until I went to the exit but I had all of my previous merch still on hand in my other bag but there were no issues.
Entering the Stadium
Crazy. There was no clear understanding of what lines lead to which gates. Our tickets referred to the gates with Names but many fans were referring to them by Letters.
At one point someone in a bright yellow shirt with a walkie talkie was shout out that we shouldn't be in lines at all and should all push toward the gate...
We initially all said that sounded like a bad idea. Let alone fandom etiquette but actual safety?? Eventually we got pushed toward the gate which funneled into separate security lines for the metal detectors. My line got majorly slowed when someone's bag was too big. They spent forever talking with the agent about it amongst their group rather than stepping to the side to let the rest of us in.
If any of you are going to any show on the tour, I'm begging you, familiarize yourself with the venue's policies and follow them. None of this, 'oh, they won't really check'.
Exiting the Stadium
Not as crazy. A big part of my particular anxiety for large events is the process for leaving. Because of this, I've always booked a hotel in walking distance from the venue in my kpop planning journeys. So it really was just a matter of walking myself back amongst the crowd. Definitely felt like I was the slowest moving fish in our stream though. Some very sweet ARMYs checked in on me as I was getting close to the hotel. I explained to them that it wasn't a poor shoe choice that made me slow but rather an old knee injury. The perils of being an aging fan!
When I was finally settling down for the night, I ran a load of stuff out to my car in preparation for an early start to my long day of driving and I saw it was still bumper-to-bumper traffic. I truly feel for everyone that was stuck in the jam. The lack of efficiency would have kept my anxiety spiraling. So even though the close hotels are expensive, it's a price I'm willing to pay for my sanity.
Yes, I was one of those people that refused to turn off the ARMY bomb until I absolutely had to close my eyes to go to sleep.
Okay, that's enough for this part. I'll break down my thoughts on the actual show in the next post.
Successfully got a lightstick ordered for merch pickup at Tampa. Depending on how they manage the queues and organization. I'm hopeful this will be a much better method of selling merch at concerts.
Does anyone remember seeing on the livestream if they actually did anything cool with the audience lightsticks? Other than the colour-shake mode...
I have been collecting so many thoughts and discussion points to share with y'all regarding this comeback. And there still are some really interesting things we can chat about, specifically from a logistics and marketing perspective. I'm sure I'm not alone though in just how overwhelmed I've been these past few weeks. Life unfortunately doesn't pause just because BTS is active again. And there's is so much.
But I do want to say one thing for now though before I even catch up on everything. Long post about the release of Come Over below the cut. No spoilers included as I haven't listened to it myself yet.
The whole idea of a hidden track on only the dekuxe vinyl version feels so scummy. I haven't listened to it yet and honestly, I'm feeling conflicted about even seeking it out.
Many of you know how much I adore Letter. It still remains my singular favorite song. Keep in mind, I hadn't purchased an actual album in well over 10 years before Jimin released FACE. I remember exactly where I was when I first heard letter and I knew that I had to put forth some money to actually own the atoms of that song. It is the singular reason I did start buying BTS albums.
I vaguely wondered if there'd be a hidden song on the cds of ARIRANG. I even thought when they released SWIM remixes for each member that it would have been a good strategy to put those on the member-focused vinyls.
But a hidden song that's now ONLY on the deluxe vinyls? It honestly makes me feel like I'm purposefully being excluded directly by BTS themselves. Not due to geographical or financial limitations. Intended dismissal of the VAST majority of the fan base. Vinyl as a media is incredibly niche. There are few reasons to indulge even if financial, space, and resource limitations are not a consideration. I absolutely could buy a player and albums and listen to this. But I still dont think I'd feel good about it.
And I haven't even heard the song yet.
From the very litte I've seen others say before I scroll away, it seems like it's going to satisfy my musical taste which is even more disheartening.
I dont know. One of my earlier posts on this blog was about the idea 'fan songs' and I briefly mentioned that sometimes the method of delivery can indicate that the song is a gift. A reciprocation for those that have been willing to devote their time and money to buying albums.
Anyway, I'm not writing this to invite a flood a hate speech toward the members or the company. As I've said before, I won't post asks that aren't made in good faith. So if you do decide to send something my way and you want it posted, try to not just send vile takes. I'll only engage with any that actually bring forth points for discussion.
I think the thing that's getting me with the ARIRANG hidden song. It the message is: just buying isn't enough. To recieve this level of gratitude, one must fall into the 'correct tier' of purchasing. While streaming and charting won't be a motivating factor for this song, it's divisional, and that has not been a message BTS has ever communicated to me. So getting this now definitely hurts.
Ok, since I'm always giving y'all 'identify the members' polls on @bts-trivia , here's my official guess for this. In case it's not clear, I think Jin is behind Jimin.
Ok, since I'm always giving y'all 'identify the members' polls on @bts-trivia , here's my official guess for this. In case it's not clear, I think Jin is behind Jimin.
