'BTS is my light and my Korean teacher': ARMY fans brave the heat in hanbok at 13th anniversary festa

"Thanks to BTS, I learned Korean and came to understand the meaning of 'Arirang.'"

Erica Joy Mendoza, 25, said this while dressed neatly in a hanbok, its lavender skirt swaying in the breeze. A Filipino fan who has loved K-pop groups across generations, Mendoza calls BTS "the singers who introduced me to K-pop."

On Saturday afternoon, laughter never stopped at Busan's Asiad Main Stadium, even as the heat index climbed above 30 degrees Celsius. The venue hosting the "2026 BTS Festa" — held in Busan to mark the group's 13th debut anniversary — was nothing short of a little global village.

At Jonghap Undongjang Station on the Busan Metro, waves of purple spilled onto the platform every time the train doors opened, and the carriages buzzed with a mix of English, Japanese, Chinese and French that recalled the departure gates of an international airport. At Asiad Main Stadium itself, people of every background gathered to turn the grounds into a festival that felt like a world expo.

International ARMY members held their light sticks high for photos and could frequently be spotted filming the "Hooligan" challenge — a B-side from BTS's fifth studio album. When fans in hanbok set up smartphone tripods, others from different countries spontaneously stepped in to help direct and shoot.

Among the striking sights filling Busan, styling stood out by far. Korean fans arrived in Generation Z-influenced looks, but overseas fans dressed differently. A notable number had put on hanbok in a range of colors — lavender jeogori and skirts among them — enduring the sweltering heat without complaint. Where purple accessories and clothing once defined ARMY's visual identity, hanbok has become another marker of that identity since BTS returned with "Arirang," the title of their fifth studio album.

"Loving BTS made me deeply interested in Korea," Mendoza said. "I wanted to understand the lyrics, so I started learning Korean, looking into history and getting curious about the culture."

She added that she had known about "Arirang" before, but the album made her want to study it again. "When I come to a concert, I really want to sing along to Arirang," she said. "I wore hanbok because I wanted to show the members how much I love and respect Korean culture."

BTS, by their very existence, have served as ambassadors for Korean culture and teachers of the Korean language. Most of the ARMY members encountered at the venue said BTS had not only led them to learn Korean but had drawn them into Korean culture well beyond K-pop.

Chloé Bernard, 27, a French ARMY member, said that when she first heard BTS's music, she thought only of how good the melodies were — but at some point she found herself wanting to fully grasp the philosophy and storytelling behind the lyrics.

"BTS is not just a group," she said. "Digging into the lyrics naturally led me to teach myself Korean, and as I learned to read hangul I fell deeply in love with Korean history and culture. BTS is the greatest 'Korean culture teacher' — one that opened up an entirely new world for me."

Manon Dubois, 26, who came from Lyon, France, said her love of BTS brought her to Korea to study. "I'm currently at Yonsei University's language institute learning Korean," she said. "There are more English lyrics these days, but when I was finally able to understand 'Spring Day' in Korean, I nearly cried."

With 13 years now behind them, BTS and their fans share a long history. ARMY members describe the group as a source of hope that rescued them during turbulent years of youth. The "Love Yourself" album series was the one fans cited most often as their all-time favorite.

Dubois said she went through a difficult period in her late teens. "There was a time when I constantly compared myself to others and blamed myself," she said. "Listening to BTS's 'Love Yourself' album and hearing the encouragement to love myself changed my life. BTS was the soundtrack of my youth — a ray of light that kept me from losing my way even in the dark."

Bernard said she discovered BTS while struggling with depression during the pandemic. "Their music spoke to me because it didn't hide dark inner feelings — it laid them bare honestly," she said. "I went back and listened through their older albums, and the songs from before they became famous moved me even more. BTS are people who always tell you it's going to be OK."

Different nationalities, languages and backgrounds — yet for the global ARMY members encountered at the venue, BTS represented a kind of purple salvation. Mendoza, who came from the Philippines, reflected: "Whether I was worn out from school or passing through a dark tunnel in life, BTS was my only refuge."

After years apart, ARMY members were overwhelmed to reunite with a complete BTS. Above all, fans said they were relieved to see the members looking more at ease after the intense years they had pushed through together.

"Seeing BTS still full of energy but more mature with time gave me a sense of reassurance," Bernard said, breaking into a wide smile. "I hope the members get to sing happy songs for themselves. Their existence is the greatest gift I could ask for."

BTS held the BTS World Tour 'Arirang' in Busan at Asiad Main Stadium on June 12 and 13, drawing an audience of approximately 110,000. The concerts were also streamed online through the global fan platform Weverse, reaching viewers in 191 countries and regions. A live viewing event ran simultaneously at movie theaters in more than 80 countries and regions.

The members told the crowd: "Coming home to celebrate our birthday and singing with you in this moment is truly meaningful and beautiful. We've spent 13 years together. I think it's because of all of you that we've been able to hold on for so long. We will never forget today. Please feel and enjoy to the fullest the precious emotions that exist only here."

In keeping with the concert's timing on their debut anniversary, BTS prepared special gifts for the audience — handwritten letters, parasols, solid perfume and face towels, a thoughtful gesture toward fans who had come out to an open-air stadium.