5 days ago
29
BTS is set to perform at the National Stadium on Dec 17, 19, 20 and 22. The first presale session began at 12pm on Wednesday (Jun 3). Here's everything that went down.
This handout photo taken on March 21, 2026 and provided by BIGHIT MUSIC and NETFLIX shows members of the K-pop boy group BTS, (from L to R) V, Jin, Jimin, Suga, Jungkook, J-Hope, performing during the BTS comeback concert at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul. South Korean megastars BTS performed their first show in nearly four years on March 21, in front of enormous crowds in Seoul for a K-pop extravaganza livestreamed to millions more worldwide. Handout / BIGHIT MUSIC and NETFLIX / AFP
New: You can now listen to articles.
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
The first day of ticket presales for K-pop superstars BTS' upcoming Singapore concert kicked off at 12pm on Wednesday (Jun 3), with queue numbers in their ten thousands.
Many members of the CNA Lifestyle team took part in Wednesday's presale, which was open to fans who held an official ARMY membership from fan platform Weverse. The colleague with the best queue number ended up placing 28,644 in line.
At about 2.25pm, roughly two and a half hours after the presale session first started, one CNA Lifestyle journalist finally managed to enter the ticketing page and was able to purchase two CAT 2 tickets. Despite initially wanting to purchase VIP tickets, she revealed that her ticketing journey saw her facing long waiting times as well as numerous lags and crashes.
"The system kept crashing every time I selected the [VIP] section," she said, adding that she experienced about five crashes.
"At this point, I’ll take anything."
Similar issues were reported by other fans on the social media pages of Ticketmaster, the ticketing platform for the BTS concert in Singapore, as well as various fan channels.
One user commented: "I had a horrible experience trying to book tickets on [the Ticketmaster] platform. Even after meeting all the criteria and the tickets being available, I wasn't able to book them. After selecting seats, the page wouldn't go to the payment page. And this happened with both me and my friends who were trying for all different dates. The page interface was really bad."
In a Telegram group for Singapore-based ARMYs seen by CNA Lifestyle, some fans admitted to joining Wednesday’s queue despite not having the required Weverse membership, potentially inflating the already massive queue numbers.
CNA Lifestyle's queue number. (Photo: CNA Lifestyle)
Wednesday's presale session also saw Ticketmaster providing regular updates on the availability of tickets via their live blog, as well as the ticketing page itself.
At one point, the company urged those without the required ARMY membership to exit the waiting room "to ensure those who did can secure tickets".
Ticketmaster also reiterated several times that more tickets would become available during the Live Nation presale and general sales on Jun 4 and 5, respectively.
One of the many updates provided by Ticketmaster during Wednesday's presale session. (Photo: Ticketmaster)
On the flip side, a sizeable number of ARMYs told CNA Lifestyle that they had a way more positive ticketing experience, with one such fan saying that she had "no complaints".
Another fan that CNA Lifestyle spoke to revealed that she managed to secure VIP tickets within 10 minutes of presales, scoring prime viewing spots in the first row of the PB5 section. This fan disclosed that her queue number was 500 when presales started.
Other fans reported similarly low queue numbers, in the triple digits, and managed to get good tickets.
A check on social media platform X also found that other users had also snagged VIP tickets within 10 to 15 minutes, with some putting them up for resale.
A fan managed to snag VIP tickets within 10 minutes of presales. (Photo: CNA Lifestyle)
Given that the presale session took place on a weekday, many fans that CNA Lifestyle spoke to said that they had to participate in the presales during work and lessons.
One fan even resorted to buying tickets in a private hire vehicle while she was en route to her office.
"We were talking about the tickets and I think the uncle heard me say that if I’m not back in the office by 12pm, I will camp downstairs," she said.
"I swear he drove faster to make it happen."
One BTS fan had to resort to buying tickets while en route to her workplace. (Photo: CNA Lifestyle)
BTS will perform at the National Stadium on Dec 17, 19, 20 and 22 as part of their Arirang world tour, marking the group's first Singapore concert as a complete seven-member act in seven years.
Wednesday's (Jun 3) sale is the first of two presales ahead of the general sale on Jun 5 for the group's run in Singapore. Ticket prices start from S$148, excluding booking fees, with VIP packages priced at S$388.
Fans have also been reminded to purchase tickets only through authorised channels. The Singapore Police Force (SPF) and Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) have issued advisories warning concertgoers about ticket scams and unauthorised resellers.
SPF added that it has reached out to resale platform Carousell to remove ticket listings for the upcoming Arirang concert. CASE president Melvin Yong said that ticket service providers may void tickets that have been resold.
Demand for the tour has been intense internationally. In Melbourne, overwhelming demand during the ARMY membership presale on Tuesday (Jun 2) prompted the group's label, BigHit Music, to announce an additional show on the same day, bringing the city's total to three concerts.
The ticket frenzy has also sparked unusual fan rituals elsewhere. Where observers would typically pray for a spouse, Taiwanese BTS fans are praying to Yue Lao – the Taoist god of love and marriage – for luck in securing tickets to the group's upcoming concerts in Kaohsiung, according to local media.
Meanwhile, ahead of the December shows, Singapore ARMYs will also be able to catch BTS' upcoming Busan concert on the big screen when it is livestreamed at Shaw Theatres and Golden Village cinemas on Jun 13, which coincides with the group's debut anniversary.
