Madhavi Sutar, Kolhapur, Maharashtra

Big Hit Entertainment, the management agency of global superstars BTS, recently held a two-day online concert, Map of the Soul ON:E. Scheduled for October 10 and 11, they offered a new meaning to virtual concerts with the use of technology to connect fans with the artists on a real-time basis and up the scale of the production and performances.

This comes after the septet’s concerts planned for the year were postponed and later cancelled due to the pandemic. Though their fans, the ARMY, were initially slightly disappointed because they could not see the artists live, the online concert offered relief. The group had earlier held Bang Bang Con: The Live in June to celebrate their seven years together.

Their second online concert, Map of the Soul ON:E, held at the Olympics Gymnastics Arena in Seoul, was seen by 9,93,000 viewers from 191 countries. The preparations were done well as Big Hit Entertainment ensured that BTS could feel the presence of ARMYs directly. Thousands of army bombs, their official light stick, were placed on empty seats to represent ARMYs and a huge screen of ARMYs watching their performances live was installed.

On the first day, a total of 23 songs were performed. These ranged from hits from their previous albums, such as ‘NO’, ‘We Are Bulletproof Pt. 2’, ‘Butterfly’, ‘Run’, and ‘Dope’ to recent songs, such as ‘ON’, ‘Dynamite’, ‘Dionysus’, ‘We Are Bulletproof: The Eternal’, among others. They also performed on songs from their last album, Map of the Soul: 7.

On day one, the first performance of ‘ON’ from Map of the Soul: 7 set the bars high with their energetic performance. This was followed by their captivating performances of ‘NO’ and ‘We Are Bulletproof Pt2’. Later, RM performed ‘Persona’, and Suga performed ‘Interlude: Shadow’.

Another attraction was the members’ performance of ‘Black Swan’, followed by Jimin’s solo performance which was equally graceful. The rap line added more energy as they performed ‘Ugh!’ with an aggressive attitude. Performed in a boxing ring, it was a sight to behold. The vocal line, on the other hand, provided a contrast with ‘Zero o’clock’ with their melodious voices and serene set-up.

This concert also offered an opportunity to BTS and ARMYs to check out the solo performances of the members. Jungkook’s ‘My Time’, Jimin’s ‘Filter’, Jin’s ‘Moon’, and V’s ‘Inner Child’ were aesthetically pleasing and performed to the beat. On the other hand, J-Hope’s ‘Outro: Ego’ was full of positive vibes and invited the members to a cheerful dance number.

Chartbusters, such as ‘Boy With Luv’ and ‘DNA’, were full of visual treat, and the visual effects added to the beauty of the performance. ‘Dope’ was another attraction of the concert. They also performed their song that topped the Billboard Hot 100, that is, ‘Dynamite’. To end the concert was the heart-touching dedication to ARMY, ‘We Are Bulletproof: The Eternal’.

During the concert, the members also expressed their desire to see ARMYs. It was heart-warming to hear them, and ARMYs were moved to tears when Jimin couldn’t hide his feelings. He confessed that he was frustrated about being confined to their places due to the pandemic and how he wanted to perform at concerts. However, the members were overjoyed to finally meet ARMYs because they’d waited for so long.

The second day of the concert was equally fun and had a lot more surprises in store as the artists added the eternal ‘Spring Day’ and ‘Idol’ to their setlist.

This concert was so meaningful for both BTS and ARMY because they were meeting each other after months. Each performance was proof of their hard work, and their encouraging words offered relief and peace. It was truly a memorable concert.

Did you catch BTS at the online concert? Share your experience and thoughts in the comment section.