BTS Wrap up U.S. Tour with Sellout Concert in New York

BTS performed in front of a sell-out crowd of more than 40,000 fans at Citi Field Stadium in New York on Saturday.

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BTS perform at Citi Field Stadium in New York on Saturday. /Courtesy of Big Hit Entertainment

They became the first Korean band ever to perform at the home stadium of the New York Mets, joining a select group of pop stars like Paul McCartney, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga. Tickets sold out in 15 minutes after going on sale in August.

As the opening music began, the stadium was bathed in waves of blue light and the crowd erupted in cheers of joy. When they took to the stage to perform their opening number, Idol, the decibel level climbed even higher.   

Long lines of tents formed in front of Citi Field Stadium a week before the concert, as the group's die-hard fans, known as "The Army", camped out to secure front-row tickets in the standing area. In the U.S., all standing area tickets are sold on a first-come first-served basis.

The New York City Subway ran extra trains on Saturday to handle the crowd for the concert. Posters showing directions to Citi Field were put up in both Korean and English in nearby subway stations.

People of all races, nationalities and age groups sang along together in Korean with BTS all the way through their three-hour concert.

With the concert, BTS wrapped up their U.S. tour, which started in Los Angeles in May.

All 220,000 tickets to their 15 concerts sold out quickly. "BTS join artists like Zac Brown Band, Dead & Company, Lady Gaga and Beyoncé, who have played in the baseball diamond before", Forbes magazine said. "Their shows were certainly special for them, but for BTS, this latest bit of impressive good news is a sign that we still have no idea how much bigger K-pop, once a style of music only appreciated by those musically in the know or who had ties to Korea, is going to become".