BTS is set to officially return to music fans with their fifth studio album, titled “Arirang.” At midnight on January 16, their agency BigHit Music announced the title of the new studio album—scheduled for release on March 20—via the global fan platform Weverse. The long-awaited news immediately sparked an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response.
The album title Arirang is drawn from кσяєα’s most representative traditional folk song, symbolizing emotions that have been pαѕѕed down through generations. BigHit Music explained that the album is “a work that expresses BTS’s identity as a кσяєαn group, along with the lingering sense of longing and deep love held in their hearts”. The title Arirang itself serves as a symbolic condensation of the emotions the members wish to convey through this album.
In fact, Arirang is far from an unfamiliar song. It is a melody that has long been familiar and widely recognized by multiple generations of global K-pop fans. BTS themselves previously performed a modernized version of “Arirang” as the opening stage at KCON fяαи¢є x M! COUNTDOWN in 2016.
Notably, after the album title was revealed, fans also discovered that Arirang had been mentioned repeatedly by ARMYs in the past and fans even asked Jungkook to sing the song as far back as three years ago. At the time, Jungkook appeared confused whenever fans brought up the name during his live broadcasts.
Specifically, on the 16th, a compilation video surfaced showing moments from Jungkook’s 2023 live streams in which he looks at fans’ real-time comments and wonders why ARMYs kept mentioning Arirang so often. In reality, fans simply wanted him to sing the nation’s beloved folk song, but Jungkook seemingly misunderstood their intention, thought it over, and ultimately did not sing it.
Now that the title of the fifth album has been officially revealed, fans are humorously speculating that if the album had already been in preparation and its title selected around 2022—before Jin enlisted—then Jungkook’s reaction at the time may have been one of “panic,” thinking that ARMYs somehow already knew “soмєтнing” about Arirang. Others are laughingly suggesting that because ARMYs kept commenting about Arirang across multiple live broadcasts back then, the name may very well have ended up being chosen for the group’s 2026 comeback album.
On social media, the video has gone viral, drawing a wide range of entertaining reactions from ARMYs, including:
- jeon ‘i wanna give a spoiler so bad’ jungkook 2025… you gave us spoilers 3 years ago
- Lmao what if they have planned the album name before and he was sacred how come armys already know
- that moment of silence and contemplation before going “why are you suddenly saying arirang?” those comments really got my boi sweating, thinking the name got leaked lmao
- I was one of them huh! my arirang baby is coming!!!
- Jungkook is like: how did this get out already
- Arirang jungkook went so viral that he pitched it to them as album name or soмєтнing. It's feels so good that Album name is Arirang
- ARIRANG has been right under our nose this entire time
- JUNGKOOK was probably confused, he probably thought "how did the ARMYs guess the album name" and we had no idea
- NAH! I kid you not i was spamming ARIRANG in their Christmas live not knowing this was going to be the name of their banger album
- OMG his expression was such a d3ad give away. And we still didn't get it
Beyond the excitement over Jungkook seemingly having “spoiled” the album title three years in advance, the symbolic meaning of ARIRANG has become one of the most widely discussed topics among fans and global media alike. Since their debut, BTS has remained steadfast in using кσяєαn lyrics while building a distinct identity on the global stage. This time, choosing an album title deeply rooted in кσяєαn culture shows the group placing their national identity front and center. It is widely seen as a choice that carries a clear message: even as they target the global market, BTS has not forgotten where they come from.
Forbes commented: “‘Arirang’ is a кσяєαn folk song with approximately 3,600 variations across 60 different versions. The song is estimated to be more than 600 years old and holds a unique place in кσяєαn identity. The ‘Arirang’ title signals a return to roots after the group’s nearly four-year hiatus during military service. It suggests themes of reunion, homecoming, and collective кσяєαn experience, all of which are fitting for a group that spent years apart and is now reuniting both with one another and with their global fanbase.”
One fan also expressed, “By choosing ‘Arirang,’ BTS is signaling that they know where they came from, they respect it, and they acknowledge that their people are with them. And to the ARMYs who waited, loved, and stayed by their side—you are also within that song.”
Another fan concluded, “There is a reason why ‘Arirang’ is considered кσяєα’s unofficial national anthem. It is not just a folk song; it is the very heartbeat of кσяєαn culture. It is truly incredible that BTS is releasing an album titled ‘ARIRANG’ and naming the versions ‘Rooted in кσяєαn,’ ‘Rooted in Music,’ and ‘Living Legend.’”
