The most anticipated comeback in the k-pop industry
By Mahjabin Rahman
It’s been a while for BTS, hasn’t it?
At the 2022 BTS FESTA dinner, when the group announced they would pause group activities, that came as a tremendous shock to all the fans around the globe. Even after that announcement, they stayed active through solo schedules, music and content. Yet the OT7 essence has a different hold on us. It was still the same people, doing what they love, but something always felt missing.
On December 13, 2022, Jin, the oldest member of BTS, enlisted in the military and my goodness the way we all bawled our eyes out that day. Before leaving he gave us a parting song. Suga and J-Hope did solo world tours, all of them released albums. RM and Jimin dropped two albums before and during their military service.
All the music had a different vibe and taste, showing the world the individuality of each member and not to mention those albums were successful on their own level and fans did not get time to breathe at all. They had said it would be a hiatus but boy! It was a roller coaster of music, performances, documentaries that kept the fandom connected but in the middle of all this we all missed what we were most used to. The seven of them, all together. And just like us, BTS also missed being a group and doing everything together from setting the album theme to releasing the album.
And that is why this comeback roughly four years later feels extra special to fans and to BTS themselves.
Photo Source: Weverse Official
The fifth studio album called Arirang has a very special theme. Arirang is one of Korea’s oldest and most emotional folk songs, often called the country’s unofficial anthem because it has lived in people’s hearts for centuries. It carries themes of longing, separation, and survival, which is why it has remained so powerful across generations.
In 1896, a group of Korean students studying at Howard University in Washington, D.C. introduced the song to Americans by performing it at social gatherings. Later that year, ethnologist Alice C. Fletcher recorded them singing it on a wax cylinder, marking the earliest known audio recording of Arirang. Even during Japanese colonial rule, when Korean identity was suppressed, Arirang remained a symbol of resilience, and today it is recognised by UNESCO. BTS naming an album Arirang feels like a modern tribute to that same cultural spirit.
Photo Source: Weverse Official
In the album concept trailer video, it is shown how back then 7 boys from Korea travelled across the sea and introduced their music to the west and over 100 years later another group of boys did a similar thing with their music. This is the fascinating story of this album concept.
The album consists of 14 tracks and a hidden track titled “Come Over,” which appears on the deluxe vinyl edition that is now available. The album also reflects a wider global collaboration, bringing together producers and musicians from different parts of the industry. International names such as Diplo, Kevin Parker of Tame Impala, Mike WiLL Made-It, and Ryan Tedder contributed to the production, giving the album a diverse sonic landscape with BTS showing their creative identity.
Photo Source: Weverse Official
The title track Swim had its music video released on March 20. Rather than being too loud like many K-pop comeback MVs and even some of BTS’s previous music videos, this time BTS went with a slower paced and more cinematic approach. It had those old navy officers who set sail for the blue sea vibe and we get to see Lili Reinhart as co-star in the video. The song has a calm tone to it. In the music video it shows lily is having trouble but somehow BTS is always there in every turn she takes, fan made theory is that lily represents ARMYs and BTS is always there when we need them, when the lyrics goes “Swim, swim, I could spend a lifetime watching you” it means them watching over us always and also this reminds me of Finding Nemo’s famous line which is keep swimming, it kinda symbolises that we must keep going.
This album has two more videos, one is 2.0 and the 3rd one is Hooligan. For the 2.0 MV, we get to see BTS taking inspiration from the 2003 movie Old Boy, well! Those who have seen this movie knows how that movie left us traumatised so when we see that elevator scene and the last fighting scene set in the MV, we all saw another POV of those scenes and not to mention the hilarious way they had started the video. On an interview with rolling stone when RM was asked what is 2.0 is about, is it about them being the next version of themselves or not, that’s when he said, “this song is about haters, we were apart for 2 to 3 years, there are ARMYs that’s waiting for us but the haters, they pray everyday for BTS to collapse but thats not happening, you guys had your fun and now knock knock knock, we are at your doors”, and with that the lyrics-
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, pull up at your block
We gon’ knock, knock, knock, knock, yеah
Had your little fun, fella?
Pop, pop, pop, pop, yeah, camе back for what’s mine, we don’t (Stop, ride)”
Photo Source: Official MV Sketch
The most interesting song on the album would be Body To Body because in this song BTS went on with the fusion of the actual Arirang song with their own song. Not just people around the world, even Koreans were surprised with the way they have blended their modern song with the 600 years old folk song. During an appearance on the talk show Hot Ones, when asked about the song’s fusion concept, Suga explained that in 1988, during the Seoul Olympics, there was an official song called Hand in Hand. The group drew inspiration from that idea and wanted to create a 2026 version of a similar concept. They explored sampling different sounds and eventually arrived at the final fusion that became Body To Body.
The album has some soft songs too, Into The Sun, Marry-Go-Round, One More Night and Come Over. These tracks show the yearning and emotional vulnerability that BTS have always been good at expressing through their music.
And if I had to choose my favourite song from this album then it would be Like Animal, because this song gives me the assurance that I never got from anyone but I needed that. When they sing “If you wanna be animals, Baby, we can be animals”, it’s the symbolic way of saying we can be whatever we wanna be and in that siren melody that makes me feel compelled that I actually can be my true self with them.
Photo Source: Billboard Official Instagram
This album would be a commercial success we all knew that but the way it dominated the charts around the world, well that was impressive. In its first week (chart dated April 4, 2026), BTS made history with their album ARIRANG by dominating multiple Billboard charts simultaneously. The group became the first act ever to occupy all top 10 positions on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart with tracks from the album, while also taking 9 of the top 10 spots on the Billboard Global 200. ARIRANG further debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 641,000 equivalent album units, marking the biggest week for a group since 2014. Adding to the achievement, the title track SWIM secured the No. 1 position on the Billboard Hot 100, solidifying the album’s global commercial success.
The comeback was also marked by a Netflix livestream, BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG, where BTS performed songs from the album and connected with fans worldwide in real time. The event quickly became a major moment of the era, bringing ARMYs together across the globe. This was followed by a Netflix documentary that offered a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the album and the group’s return, giving fans a more personal glimpse into the era.
The way I love this album, I as a fan also have some controversial opinions about it. While BTS cannot be confined to just the K-pop category, many of us originally became fans of them within that space. In this album, the limited use of Korean lyrics is something that feels a bit concerning. Even though the entire theme is inspired by their oldest folk song, the presence of Korean lyrics still feels comparatively low.
Photo Source: Weverse Official
We also know that line distribution is usually based on what best serves the song, but in this album, some tracks feel uneven in that aspect. These are entirely my personal opinions, but they are small things that stood out to me.
But I had to give it to their marketing team for the innovative way they had promoted the album with flowers on each major city in the world and asking us What’s your love song?
Well, right now BTS are on a sold out tour that will continue for 82 days, and the way they are performing has only added to the momentum of this era. With ARIRANG, they have already shown the scale of their return, and the stage only amplifies it further. The kings of K-pop are back, and whether the world is ready or not, their presence in global pop is once again impossible to ignore.
