BTS Kicked Off 2020 With A Show-Stopping New Year’s Eve Performance
New Year's Eve is one of the few holidays recognized around the world. And among those that celebrate New Year's Eve on Dec. 31, no party is bigger than the one in New York City's Times Square, with New Year's Rockin' Eve. The world's biggest party needs the world's biggest musical act, which is why BTS' New Year's Eve 2020 performance was one of the most hotly anticipated performances of the evening.
The seven-member squad — Jimin, Jin, RM, Suga, Jungkook, J Hope, and V — took the entire space by storm to the screams of their fans, known as the BTS ARMY. Unlike some acts, who stuck to the central stage set up in the center of the crowd, BTS' performance ranged all over. The boys started on Times Square's famous LED festooned "Red Steps," before heading out along the cordoned-off streets of New York, where they greeted and sang to the assembled crowd. The back half of the performance started with them finally taking the stage.
The group sang multiple hits during their extended set, starting with this year's "Make It Right" from their Map of the Soul: Persona album, and ending with the highly choreographed "Boy With Luv."
Check out the video:
New Year's Rockin' Eve held BTS until almost the last possible moment. The show traditionally starts at 9 p.m. ET, with a 30-minute break off-air from 11 to 11:30 p.m. for the local news. BTS was the final act of the 9-11 p.m. portion of the show, going on just after 10:40 p.m.
Even so, the band was trending long before the boys finally took the stage, with ARMY members hyping the upcoming performance. Once they took the stage, the screams were deafening enough to be heard on other networks airing live from Times Square who weren't showing the performance.
This is BTS' second time performing as part of New Year's Rockin' Eve. For New Years 2019, they performed "Mic Drop" and "DNA," but as part of a pre-taped package, not live in Times Square.
But the boys' performance wasn't the only spot they got in the New Year's Celebration. As the clock rounded to midnight, the whole group joined Ryan Seacrest on stage along with Post Malone and other stars to witness the ball drop live on TV.
After the ball drop finished, Seacrest asked RM what it meant to them to be in New York City to witness the Times Square celebration live. His response was great:
This is the thing: We've been watching [the ball drop] since [we were] six, in the movie Home Alone. We cannot still believe it. We have Christmas trees, family & friends, eating together.
Fans expect BTS' next album to arrive in early 2020, with hints of a tour to follow the album's release in the spring.
