South Korean megapop stars BTS start their world tour in South Korea and with 85 countries in their sights some music analysts expecting it to outperform Taylor Swift's major money spinning Eras Tour.
BTS, the world's biggest boy band, begin their global tour in South Korea on Thursday riding high off the back of a record-making livestream show on Netflix.
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K-pop's magnificent seven returned to the stage and their screaming fans for the first time last month following a years-long break for mandatory military service and the release of their new album, 'ARIRANG'.
The performance, on the steps of the historic Gyeongbokgung Palace, brought more more than 100,000 fans to central Seoul, the group's label said, while the streaming platform says the live concert attracted an estimated 18.4 million viewers worldwide.
"We all agreed that the most important thing for a singer is a concert," member Jin said in a statement released hours ahead of the concert.
"We want to meet audiences all over the world as soon as possible, and since this is our first world tour in a long time, we want to experience the culture and concert atmosphere of each region firsthand."
BTS recently became the first K-pop act to top the US Billboard 200 for two consecutive weeks with the latest album, while its tracks also secured top spots across multiple Spotify charts.