BTS is gearing up for their highly anticipated comeback with the album ARIRANG and a special free concert at Gwanghwamun Square on March 21, 2026, which has generated massive online buzz. However, the event has also sparked significant backlash, with netizens claiming the prominent red lighting signals political support. Following all the chatter, HYBE released a statement. Read on to know all about it!
HYBE Clarifies Red Lighting At BTS’s Gwanghwamun Square Concert Is Not A Political Endorsement
The popular group’s agency HYBE stepped in to clear the confusion. They said that the red lights have nothing to do with politics. Red is simply the main colour for BTS’s new album, ARIRANG, and it asks fans and the public not to look for any hidden political message in it, but to just enjoy the event.
After the release of their album on March 20, BTS will perform as a full group at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul the next day, March 21. It is a free show and is expected to bring around 260,000 people together. Not just this, many famous places in the city will light up in red and the theme will spread to other areas too, including Yeouido Hangang Park and Dongdaemun Design Plaza. Special big structures inspired by the ARIRANG album will also appear.
BTS fans, also known as ARMY, noticed the colour change right away. The group is famous for using purple, Hence, switching to red surprised many people. Some Korean netizens linked the red colour to the People Power Party, which is reportedly a conservative group connected to Seoul’s mayor. They worried that might look like BTS was supporting one political side, especially since elections are coming soon. A few online posts called the idea “ugly” and said they should not mix music with politics. Many fans felt the new colour did not match BTS’s original image.
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Following which, on March 18, 2026, HYBE released an official statement. They explained that the colour is the group album’s theme, and the Seoul Metropolitan Government agreed to use the colour after HYBE requested it. HYBE made it very clear that the red is only for promoting the album.
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