The kickoff for the U.S. leg of the BTS World Tour ARIRANG happened to be in Tampa, Florida. Florida isn’t a usual spot for hosting K-pop-related concerts, but because of one promise by Jin, Tampa was honored to host all of BTS.
All three concert dates were completely sold out in the first 30 minutes of the ARMY presale, which is unbelievable. Tampa ARMY showed up and showed out, bleeding purple for BTS.
Two days before the concert, there were merch sales outside of Raymond James Stadium. The merch sale was important enough to close down an entire road. The lines were long with fans standing in the blazing heat, but it was all worth it for the merch.
There were daily restocks, but it almost always sold out of the member jerseys before noon. Waiting in the lines, you saw ARMYs from all over, some with suitcases and others with umbrellas. Some ARMYs were giving out freebies for those in line, including bracelets, bookmarks, and stickers.
I attended the first show in Tampa and was blown away by the visuals, stage setup, production, and BTS themselves. When “Hooligan” started playing and all the members were on the stage, I remember being in shock, thinking they were actually real and right in front of me. It’s crazy to think that when I saw a Korean group in Tampa, BTS was always out of reach.
ARMYs were lighting up Raymond James and were singing along very loudly, doing the fan chants, and making BTS proud. The volume in the stadium from the ARMY was overwhelming, and the BTS members were feeling empowered and extremely loved.
The surprise songs on all three dates were something to be jealous of and kept getting better. The first day, ARMYs got “Permission to Dance” and “Magic Shop.” I was ecstatic when “Magic Shop” started playing, as BTS hadn’t sung this song in such a long time.
The second day got “Boy with Luv” and “Pied Piper.” I’m not crying. Who said that? The ARMYs on Day 1 wanted “Pied Piper” so badly. On the third day, the stadium was shaking when “Baepsae” aka “Silver Spoon” played, and I was officially jealous.
Now, let’s talk about the members for a second. No one warned me about BTS “2.0.” The outfits were stunning, thank God for the Florida heat, so we got tank tops.
Mr. Worldwide Handsome, Jin, wore a Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jersey (way to represent), and the members wore the merch themselves, which is something I haven’t seen from an artist.
They say once you Jimin, you can’t “Jimout,” the long hair and bun, I’m down bad for Jimin. Jungkook freed his arm tattoo for all to see, and V ate with those red gloves. Suga and J-Hope had effortless confidence and amazing style. All the interactions between the members were so holistic and cute that I feel even more amazing.
ARMY really made BTS feel loved and happy in Tampa. The enthusiasm, volume, and energy felt in the stadium were unreal, and the boys felt it themselves. When V said they might come back to Tampa on their next tour, I hoped we made that big of an impression on them.
The vibes were high, the ARMY showed out, and the first stop in the U.S. in Tampa was a huge success!
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