In Busan, the BTS show started long before the stadium lights went on

BUSAN — Tosin Ojulari did not have a ticket to BTS’s “Arirang” concert in Busan. She came anyway.

For her first trip to Korea, she flew from Canada to Incheon International Airport, then traveled another 400 kilometers (249 miles) south to Busan on a four-hour express bus. By Friday afternoon, she was standing near Haeundae Beach, where BTS songs drifted over the shoreline and fans moved between experience zones, photo spots and other festivities under the clear June sky.

“As soon as the dates were announced, even though I hadn’t gotten tickets, I booked my hotel within 10 minutes,” Ojulari said.

Born in Nigeria and now based in Canada, Ojulari has been a member of BTS’s fandom, known as ARMY, for five years. She came to Korea for the Busan edition of “The City Arirang,” BTS’s citywide promotional project, which coincided with the anniversary of the group’s debut on June 13, 2013, and its two-night concert run at Busan Asiad Main Stadium on Friday and Saturday.

On Friday, the first day of the concerts, Haeundae Beach became one of the main stages of that citywide celebration. A sand sculpture with the words “Keep Swimming” — a phrase defining the theme of BTS’s “Arirang” era and its lead single “Swim” — stood against the deep blue sea as fans took photos, jumping and posing in front of it.

The sand art was part of BTS’s collaboration with the Haeundae Sand Festival, one of several local events folded into the Busan edition of “The City.” Nearby, the “Love Song Lounge” hosted by BTS’s agency HYBE ran from Friday to Sunday, inviting fans to write messages to BTS on red fabric banners, one of them reading, “Eight years of dreaming — now I can finally see BTS.”

For Ojulari, that was the point. Even without a concert ticket, she said, Festa week — BTS’s annual anniversary celebration, marked by online and offline events — gave her enough reason to make the trip.

“Even if I wasn’t going to go to the concert, there would be things for me to see,” she said.

This year’s anniversary carried added meaning for fans like Ojulari. It marked BTS’s first Festa celebrated together after the group’s military hiatus, which followed its 2022 “BTS Yet To Come in Busan” concert at the same stadium — the septet’s last full-group activity before the break.

“When I first met BTS, I was going through a lot,” Ojulari said. “And I was like, before BTS comes back from the military, I’m going to have an apartment, a job, everything and then go see them — and that kept me going.”

Busan had been preparing for fans like her, with more than 110,000 visitors projected to come to the city for the two-day concert at Busan Asiad Main Stadium. They included not only ticket holders, but also fans who had come to Korea simply to celebrate BTS’s 13th anniversary with fellow ARMY as the city joined in with media facades, local festivals, pop-ups and banners — some official ones from HYBE, and others fan-made — spread across major tourist spots.

Annie, a New York-based fan from Thailand and an 11-year ARMY, also flew in from North America for her first visit to Busan and her first offline Festa. She arrived in Seoul first, joined an ARMY-themed tour there and then took a four-hour bus to Busan. Though she booked only one night in the city on Friday, she planned to return to Seoul before coming back to Busan by KTX on Monday for another ARMY-themed tour.

“Yesterday, I actually went on an ARMY tour in Seoul,” she said, wearing a purple shirt with BTS member Jungkook’s name stitched on the back. “Even people who don’t have tickets are here. I’m just happy to be with people from all over the world.”

For many fans arriving from Seoul by KTX, Busan Station was their first stop. Inside the station’s Busan Eurasia Platform, a Welcome Center offered the first introduction to the Busan edition of “The City,” with an information counter, listening zone, photo spots, a photo booth, games and message displays filled with handwritten notes from fans.

At one photo spot, Busan’s seagull mascot Boogi posed with visitors. On the walls, messages from ARMY showed the scale of affection that had brought fans from across the world to the southern port city.

Aizhan Yermek, a longtime ARMY from Kazakhstan, still had her luggage with her as she waited in line for the photo booth. She had secured a seat for Saturday’s concert, which would be her first BTS concert in person.

“Busan is the city where some of the members were born,” Yermek said, referring to Jimin and Jungkook, who were born and raised in Busan. “And all fans dream about visiting Korea.”

For many fans, she said, coming to Busan meant fulfilling two dreams at once: seeing BTS and visiting Korea. Although she had previously stayed in Seoul for an internship, it was her first time in Busan, and she planned to spend four days exploring the city’s local culture and food.

Another must-visit spot on most fans’ itineraries was the official pop-up store at Shinsegae Centum City Department Store in Busan, which ran from June 5 to Sunday and featured an exhibition zone and a merchandise sales area. Fans dressed in various shades of purple waited in a long line, while others with reserved time slots wandered through the department store before their turn.

Photos and album components from BTS’s latest album, “Arirang,” decorated the walls of the exhibition zone. Fans could print postcards with customized vinyl designs, leave messages for an electronic display and take photos inside a closed booth surrounded by ARMY Bomb light sticks flickering in time to BTS songs in shades of purple and red.

Later Friday night, Gwangalli Beach, overlooking Gwangan Bridge — one of Busan’s most iconic seaside landmarks — glowed with hanging lanterns. On a stage installed on sand, dancers and a DJ warmed up the crowd with K-pop’s EDM classics, including Kim Gun-mo’s “Wrongful Meeting” (1995). Some visitors had gathered for the Gwangalli Eobang Festival, where they could experience traditional culture and eat street food, while others were waiting for the BTS-themed drone show to unfold above the bridge.

At 10 p.m., some 1,000 drones rose into the night sky from between nearby buildings, beginning with a greeting: “Hello, ARMY.” Set to songs from BTS’s latest full-length album, “Arirang,” the drones formed images tied to the album, including a sailing ship, before displaying the faces of the seven members one by one over Gwangan Bridge.

Jeong, an older Busan resident who came to the festival with her friends and husband, did not know which member was which as the drones traced their faces in the sky. Still, she joined the crowd of ARMY from around the world, smiling as she and her husband tried to guess.

“I heard that some members are from Busan,” she said as the drones retreated and the crowd began to disperse ahead of the next night’s anniversary concert. “I’m of course proud. It’s good to see Busan being found by so many people.”

BY SHIN HA-NEE  [[email protected]]