BTS: Why the megastar boy band never really went away

On first glance, it could look as if BTS's hiatus has diminished interest in the group.

According to stats shared by Spotify, global streams of their music dropped by 24% in 2023, and 30% in 2024.

They remained steady in 2025, and the streaming platform says it expects numbers to explode in 2026.

But what the numbers don't show is the way BTS's absence due to military service was carefully managed.

Rather than a drought, says Dr Felicity Davies, it meant there was a drip-feed of material during the band's hiatus, from solo projects and tours, to live streams from individual members.

Dr Felicity, who did her PhD on South Korean culture, tells Newsbeat the requirement for military service is "well-established".

"Fans know of it very well. They're preparing for it," she says.

Although all South Korean men must do military service between the ages of 18 and 28, the government actually changed the law to allow K-pop stars to delay theirs until age 30.

With BTS, each member staggered their about 20-month stints to minimise the periods when all seven members were missing from action.

And even though streams for the full band declined, some of their solo projects were hugely successful.

Singer Jung Kook's debut single Seven broke a streaming record, surpassing 2.5 billion streams, with his total solo output hitting more than 9 billion.

BTS's comeback is a big deal for fans, but also a huge moment for South Korea.

The band was a key part of a phenomenon known as Hallyu, which describes South Korean pop culture crossing over to the west.

It's included skincare products, dramas such as Squid Game and other K-pop bands dominating our feeds and For You pages.

Felicity says there have been fears for a while now that the "bubble would burst" and K-pop's global influence would start to decline.

She says the band's 2019 Wembley performance was "the moment - now we're going to see the downfall of Hallyu".

But Korean culture keeps proving her wrong.

Just when she thinks things have reached a peak, Felicity says "something will come along" to give K-pop "this whole new lens and lease of life".

K-Pop Demon Hunters, which won a Golden Globe this week, was 2025's success story, and it's likely BTS will rule 2026.

But do fans think they've still got what it takes?

Lauryn Adene, 22, from Buckingham, has been a fan since 2021 and feels there's just something about BTS.

"They have a special bond between themselves and between their fans as well," she says.

"I'm really inspired by how hard-working they are."

And while the band's solo projects have kept fans going, she says there's no substitute for the full package.

"It's like a puzzle where all the pieces are just fitting together really nicely," she says.

"So whatever they come out with, I can just trust that it's going to be good."

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