K-pop
Watch: BTS delight fans with 2026 ARIRANG tour kick‑off, including first performance of I Need U in 5 years
BTS kicked off their ARIRANG world tour with emotional fan favourites, surprise revivals and multiple live debuts across a massive, career‑spanning setlist.
BTS launched their long‑awaited ARIRANG world tour with a high‑voltage opening night that delivered everything fans hoped for — new music, surprise revivals, emotional speeches and some of the most ambitious staging the group has ever attempted.
From the moment the lights dropped, the atmosphere inside Goyang Stadium on Thursday night (09.04.26) was electric.
The show opened with a cinematic intro built around Hooligan, before the group tore into a high‑energy run of ARIRANG tracks that set the tone for the night.
Early highlights included the live debut of they don’t know ’bout us and a snarling remix of Run BTS that had the crowd shaking the floor.
The production shifted into darker, more theatrical territory in Act 2, with a VCR sequence weaving in elements of Black Swan, FYA and 2.0.
The group then powered through a string of heavy hitters — including the first performance of Not Today since 2021 and a thunderous MIC Drop (Steve Aoki Remix) — before detonating into a reimagined Fire complete with pyrotechnics.
The encore brought some of the night’s most emotional moments.
Fans - who had braved the downpours queuing outside the venue - roared through Butter and Dynamite, lit up the stadium for Mikrokosmos, and then erupted when BTS performed I Need U for the first time in five years.
The group also debuted several new ARIRANG tracks, including Come Over, Please and Into the Sun, the latter closing the show with a fireworks‑filled reprise.
The ARIRANG tour continues with more dates in Korea before heading to Tokyo, and will run through March next year with stops across North America, Latin America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
