BTS Honors Their Roots and Looks to the Future on Long-Awaited ‘Arirang’: A Track-By-Track Breakdown

BTS Honors Their Roots and Looks to the Future on Long-Awaited ‘Arirang’: A Track-By-Track Breakdown The seven-member group is back with their first album in nearly four years, ‘Arirang,’ a hip-hop heavy, Korean folk-infused experimental exploration of how the biggest group in the world can move forward. By Nicole Fell Plus Icon Nicole Fell Assistant Editor View All March 19, 2026 Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on Reddit Post a Comment Share on Whats App Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Print the Article Share on Tumblr It’s been three years and nine months since the last BTS album — don’t bother to ask who’s counting; there’s millions of fans around the world who have been counting the seconds until this very moment. Arirang , the highly anticipated fifth studio album from the seven-member trailblazing K-pop group, and its lead single, “Swim,” arrived Friday (March 20). In the years since the last BTS album, all seven members of the group, consisting of RM, Jin, Suga, J-hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook, have released solo bodies of work and completed their mandatory South Korean military service enlistment. Fans of the group, collectively known as ARMY, have been waiting in anticipation as each member was discharged over the last year, setting the stage for the group’s return. BTS, never one to shy away from standing in the spotlight they worked hard to earn, has seemingly taken over their home city of Seoul to celebrate the occasion. The group is playing the album live for the first time during a Netflix live stream being broadcast from Gwanghwamun, a well-known Seoul landmark offering views of the city’s iconic Gyeongbokgung palace. Social media had plenty of opinions on what Arirang would sound like. BTS, and the K-pop groups that have gained popularity after them in the U.S., is no stranger to the allegations of hoping to “westernize” their music. It’s a complicated way of thinki...