BTS sign deal with Netflix to air concert and behind-the-scenes documentary from comeback tour

South Korean boyband set date for first concert since completing military service

K-pop supergroup BTS are set for their first comeback performance with a rollout on Netflix that includes a live concert and a documentary.

The outdoor concert in Seoul’s historic Gwanghwamun Square will be livestreamed on Netflix on 21 March, a day after the group’s new album, Arirang, is released, according to Tudum.

The square is one of South Korea’s most iconic public spaces, located in front of the Gyeongbokgung Palace, and widely used for national ceremonies, civic events, and protest gatherings.

The concert, according to The Korea Herald, is intended to represent a symbolic return to music after the members completed their mandatory military service.

The boyband, composed of RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook, has been on hiatus since 2022 while its members completed their military service. The group’s new album release will be followed by a 82-show world tour covering 34 cities across 23 countries from April 2026 through March 2027. This will be their first full tour since Covid forced the cancellation of the “Map of the Soul” world tour in 2020 and 2021.

The demand for BTS shows in Mexico prompted an unusual political intervention, with president Claudia Sheinbaum confirming she had written to the South Korean prime minister requesting extra concert dates in the Central American country during the tour.

The Seoul concert will feature the first live performances of tracks from the fifth BTS studio album, alongside songs from their discography. Hamish Hamilton, the director behind the majority of Super Bowl halftime shows over the past decade, will direct the broadcast, which is also set to be the first live event from South Korea to be streamed globally.

A week later, Netflix will release the documentary BTS: The Return, which will track the group’s return to the studio and their preparations for the concert in Seoul, from recording sessions for the new album to full-scale rehearsals.

According to a press release, the film, directed by Bao Nguyen, follows the seven members as they “create new music that reflects who they are now, culminating in what will become a landmark album of its time”.

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BTS last performed together at a concert in Busan in October 2022, after which BigHit Music, the HYBE subsidiary that manages the group, confirmed that all seven members would enlist for military service. Since then, the group has remained largely absent as a unit, even as interest in their return has continued to build.

Industry estimates project BTS to generate more than $1bn in revenue on their comeback, combining ticket sales, merchandise, album purchases, licensing and streaming.

V, Suga, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Jimin and J-Hope of BTS at the 64th Grammy Awards (Getty)

While BTS were inactive as a unit during their military service, the members built parallel solo careers, keeping their fans engaged with a steady stream of projects.

Suga, performing under his alter ego Agust D, went on a 28-show world tour in 2023, while J-Hope’s Hope on the Stage Tour was held across 33 dates.

Jin followed the release of his EPs Happy and Echo with a solo world tour, with the band later revealing in a live broadcast that they travelled with him in order to keep recording together during the tour.

RM released albums Indigo and later Right People, Wrong Place, while Jimin scored a Billboard No 1 with “Like Crazy” from his debut solo album Face.

V released his first solo album Layover in 2023, and Jungkook followed with Golden.