BTS’s Bang Bang Con draws 50m viewers globally

More than 50 million people tuned into Bang Bang Con, a two-day video streaming event featuring concerts by K-pop band BTS, last weekend (18–19 April).

At its peak, Bang Bang Con, which featured performances from previous BTS live shows and fan meets, was viewed by 2.24m people concurrently. It follows the Learn Korean with BTS series of videos as the latest social distancing-friendly initiative from the South Korean superstars for their housebound fans.

In addition to streaming video, the event utilised BTS’s official light sticks, known as ‘Army bombs’, to connect fans across the world. The band’s label and management company, Big Hit Entertainment, changed the colour of the light stick throughout the weekend, so fans tuned who into Bang Bang Con on Weverse “felt as if they were gathered in one place” and “cheered together”, says Big Hit.

Half a million people in 162 countries connected ‘bombs’ and shared their colourfully lit pictures on WeVerse and Twitter, using the hashtag #BangBangCon.

In total, Bang Bang Con featured nearly 24 hours of programming across the two days, according to a Big Hit infographic:

Before the coronavirus hit, BTS planned to play their first continental European stadium shows this summer, as well as returning to London for two nights at Twickenham.

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