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Agence France-Presse

K-pop megastars BTS will release a new album in March ahead of a world tour, the group announced on Thursday.
South Korea’s biggest musical act has been on self-described hiatus since 2022 as its members undertook national military service required of all men under the age of 30.
All seven members were discharged last year, and the group announced a comeback for the spring of 2026.
They confirmed on Thursday that they would release an album on March 20, before heading on tour.

The exact date was revealed in handwritten letters sent to paid members of the official BTS fan group, and later confirmed by their label Big Hit Music.
“I have been waiting more earnestly than anyone else,” group leader RM wrote in the letter.
No further details about the album or tour were given.
The album will be the group’s first since the anthology Proof, which became South Korea’s bestselling record of 2022.
Before their military service, BTS generated more than 5.5 trillion won (US$3.8 billion) in South Korea per year, according to the government-backed Korea Culture and Tourism Institute.

The figure is equivalent to roughly 0.2 per cent of the country’s total GDP.
BTS has expanded beyond their home nation to become a global musical phenomenon in recent years.
They hold the record as the most-streamed group on Spotify, and became the first K-pop act to top both the Billboard 200 and the Billboard Artist 100 charts in the United States.


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K-pop stars BTS to reunite with March album and world tour after military service

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Fans of K-pop boy band BTS pose for photos as they queue up for the annual ‘BTS Festa’ in South Korea earlier this year Photo: AFP

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South Korea’s top act has been on hiatus since 2022 for military service. Their new album is the first since 2022’s record-breaking ‘Proof’


South Korea’s top act has been on hiatus since 2022 for military service. Their new album is the first since 2022’s record-breaking ‘Proof’.


K-pop stars BTS to reunite with March album and world tour after military service

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}South Korea’s top act has been on hiatus since 2022 for military service. Their new album is the first since 2022’s record-breaking ‘Proof’

South Korea’s top act has been on hiatus since 2022 for military service. Their new album is the first since 2022’s record-breaking ‘Proof’