Concert Review: ARIRANG in Tampa

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. kicked off the North American leg of their world tour this past Saturday, Sunday, and Tuesday, performing three sold-out shows in front of over 70,000 adoring fans. I was lucky enough to be one of them, on all three days of their first-ever Tampa concerts. Although I have been proud to call myself Army–the name for BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’s fandom–for over a decade, April 25th marked the first time seeing them in person. And although I may be just a little biased, I must hand BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. their flowers for the practically flawless execution of their biggest shows to date. 

For starters, we have to talk about scale. Literally. Upon entering Raymond James Stadium on the first day, I don’t think a single person was not wide-eyed and slack-jawed at the sheer size of this show. And I don’t only mean the massive stadium or crowd. The stage itself, a 360-degree technical masterpiece, took up nearly the entire football field on the stadium floor. With four thrust stages extending out into the crowd, and a massive circular base, BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. made certain that no seat–even those that seemed sky-high–was a bad one. 

The skill needed for performers to successfully utilize such a stage is not insignificant. The group has talked themselves about the unique challenges that come with rehearsing and choreographing a show that is made to be viewed from, literally, all angles of the venue. On Saturday I was seated in the lower bowl of the stadium, and on the following 2 days, the floor section near the thrust stages. BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. balances their concert beautifully, with the beginning of their show taking place center-stage on large turntables that raise and lower them to be better seen from each and every seat, before they took to the extended stages and catwalks to get closer to their fans.

The show started with ‘Hooligan’, a rap-heavy hip hop track from their latest album Arirang, for which the tour is named. The crowd goes wild. BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. , seven vocal powerhouses backed by an equally powerful sound system, could barely be heard over the crowd chanting nearly every word of the opening song. And the hype didn’t stop there. Barely leaving anyone with room to breathe, the members jumped into ‘Aliens’ and the long-anticipated concert addition ‘Run BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’, which prior to this tour had only been performed a single time following its release in 2022.

Understandably, BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. has reined in the extensive choreography required during this tour due  in part to the sheer number of shows that they will be performing. However, you can barely feel the difference at all. The flow of the show hits in a way that makes it difficult to focus on anything but the energy they bring to the stage. And when they are dancing, they are dancing hard, and with the passion and technique only BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. can bring to the table. And even when they are not in militant formation for choreography, they are still in nonstop motion. Each member works hard to never leave a corner of the stage unattended, and the precision and care with which they played to the entire crowd–whether in the front row or in the highest rafter seats–was unbeatable.

One of the most anticipated parts of the show was, of course, the surprise song segment. For each tour stop, the “DJ”, whoever the mysterious staff member may be, breaks out two tracks from BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’s discography to surprise both the members and the audience. On April 25th, the stadium was filled with signs calling for ‘Pied Piper’, a 2017 track from their album Love Yourself: Her which has never been performed in the U.S. Over the years, the song has become something of a cult classic among BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’s fandom. And on April 26th, the aforementioned DJ delivered. The moment the first sultry notes of ‘Pied Piper’ began blasting through Raymond James Stadium, the crowd went wild. BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. themselves expressed their shock at the reaction, even going so far as to playfully ask why we liked the song so much. 

As someone who has watched BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. concerts from afar via movie theater releases and livestreams for years, it was this familiar, banter-like attitude that captivated me the most, even when I wasn’t sitting mere steps from the stage. Being at the concert didn’t necessarily feel like showing up to watch a performance, although said performance was indeed spectacular. It felt like a reunion between friends. The bond that BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. has built with their fans over the past thirteen years was easy to feel in the stadium. They even forewent their typical greetings, where in the past each member has introduced himself to the crowd. It was as if they were saying we know you, you know us, skip the formalities–let’s celebrate. And a celebration was exactly what it was. It was clear that Tampa was thrilled to have been chosen as the very first tour stop, and even clearer that BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. was intent on proving that they’re back, bigger and better than ever. And the moment that proved it the most was perhaps their performance of ‘Body to Body’, when the members went quiet to listen as 70,000 people sang the Korean folk song ‘Arirang’ back to them–word for word. 

The concert is a masterful next step into BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’s future as performers and an ode to their newest album, but they didn’t forget to throw in some classic hits, either. With songs like ‘MIC DROP’, ‘Fake Love’, and ‘Not Today’ making the cut for the setlist, they incorporated their past without losing focus on their present musical identity. The Arirang album was undoubtedly the heart of the show, and they closed their concert with a soulful performance of the last track on the album, ‘Into the Sun.’ The seven superstars exited the stadium to the final chorus as fireworks went off overhead, lighting their way. “I’ll follow you into the sun,” the song’s lyrics promise, and whether that is a promise from BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. to the fans, or vice versa, both are most likely true.