BTS 2018 Love Yourself Concert Review

 

As the first K-pop group to earn the top spot on the Billboard World Albums Chart, BTS has become a household name among music enthusiasts. Even though the boy group started small in South Korea, they are now one of the most influential groups in the music industry.

The bands’ “2018 Love Yourself World Tour Concert,” which arrived September 5 at Los Angeles in the Staples Center, was going to be more than just singing, with seven idols performing onstage.

An hour before the show started, fans were already screaming their lungs out. Although the concert was not even close to beginning,  the showing of BTS’s music videos on the screens of the stage was enough to hype up the fans and have them singing, or even screaming, along to the songs.

About an hour later, the lights finally dimmed, and the crowd went wild. The moment that BTS rose from underneath the stage and took their positions for their first song, “Idol,” was truly magical, and none of the fans could contain their excitement, excitedly yelling out their favorite members’ names, some of their voices already hoarse from the pre-concert music videos.

A few seconds later, bright and colorful lights filled the entire stadium as the first beats of the song dropped. The beautiful, flashing rainbow colors of the light sticks also added to the energetic vibe of the arena, and it was evident that BTS was also very excited to be performing on this last day of its Los Angeles stop.

After the first song, the band performed  “Save Me” from its 2016 album “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Forever Young,” which eventually transitioned into  “I’m Fine” from the most recent album.

The members then gathered on stage to greet their fans. They each introduced themselves and talked about how glad they were to be able to perform, and their journey in music. Even though it was a simple chat, the fans could not stop screaming and yelling every time a member started talking into the mic.  

The concert continued with the members’ solo tracks from their most recent album, “Love Yourself: Answer.” The solos started off with J-Hope, the main dancer and rapper of the group, and he performed his track “Just Dance.” His refreshing choreography, paired with his animated rapping, Jungkook’s solo, “Euphoria,” was lighter and had softer beats to it, calming down the audience and changing the energy of the venue.

After Jungkook’s solo, all seven group members returned to perform a few songs as a group.

The concert continued with  intervals of two solo tracks and group performances. The last solo was “Epiphany,” which is the newest track released from BTS, sung by their oldest member, Jin. He put on a spectacular performance; this was one of the most memorable songs of the night. Not only did he sing a complex ballad with many high notes, but he also played the piano during his song.

When the last solo was finished, and the fans started to dry the tears from their face, Jin started crying himself. And this started the whole cycle over again, as most of the fans in the stadium became even more emotional than before. The other three vocal members of the group joined him on stage, and they performed another soft and beautiful ballad, “Truth Untold,” which was also from their newest album.

After the heart-wrenching song, the atmosphere was once again totally re-energized as soon as the three rappers of BTS appeared on stage with their track “Tear,” the concluding song  for their 2018 album, “Love Yourself: Tear.” Since the song contains English-language lyrics, the whole stadium was able to sing together with the three artists, chanting along to the intense track.

After the breathtaking rap performance, BTS sang a few more of its popular tracks before ending the show “Answer: Love Myself,” a song about self love and empowerment. The performance was an emotional one, as everybody began to realize that the concert would soon be ending, and BTS would not be back to the U.S. until next year.

After the song, many teary-eyed fans ended the concert by chanting the group members’ names one last time before the lights dimmed and the concert was over. I had never felt such an overwhelming amount of positive energy and love in a concert setting before.

The concert lasted around three hours and contained many of the fans’ favorite tracks. BTS also did a great job of interacting with the audience, delivering meaningful speeches to the fans and even throwing out gifts at the end of their show.

BTS is truly a special group as they are using their platform to promote powerful and influential messages. The band’s music has inspired many while  helping others through difficult times. The concert was phenomenal, and most fans will be counting down the days until the world tour next year.