If you’re wondering why I’m posting this now, nearly a year later, I have a few BTS-related posts that I never got around to publishing and I hate myself for it. I’m missing the excitement of BTS events and looking through old photos makes me happy. So, here they are. Enjoy!

During the week leading up to the BTS
(방탄소년단), shows at Wembley Stadium, fans (ARMY) were given the opportunity to shop for merchandise items at multiple events. We had the BT21 pop-up store, which was open from the 28th of May – 2nd of June and the BTS World Tour pop-up store, open from the 28th of May – 3rd of June. There was also the Official BTS Concert Merchandise at Wembley which opened on the 31st of May. It was a crazy week, and I spent an unbelievable amount of money, but it was so completely worth it. My friends and I decided to attend, both, the BT21 and the BTS World Tour pop-up stores on the same day as it meant we could get it all out of the way in one day. We got to the BT21 store in Camden Market at around 8 AM and finished up at the BTS World Tour store at around 4 PM. We basically spent about 7 hours just queuing up and travelling between venues and the remaining hour was spent in the actual stores. I’ve grown so accustomed to queuing at this point, it’s practically become a hobby.

The BTS World Tour pop-up store was located in Shoreditch so the travel from the BT21 store didn’t take too long, which was extremely convenient.

Queuing for the World Tour store was crazy. There were queues going all the way around buildings and down the streets which, somehow, managed to remain pretty organised. There was a security guard at every 10 metres of the queue, so I guess people were too scared to cause problems, thankfully. I’m not sure exactly how long we actually queued up for at this event but the process was a lot quicker than I thought it would be, considering how many people turned up for the event.

When my friends and I (eventually) arrived at the front of the queue, one of the security guards at the entrance to the venue showed us the BTS choreography we could tell he had been practising for weeks. I could’ve sworn that I had found the 8th member of BTS that day. Just kidding, he was terrible but we gave him major brownie points for effort and making us laugh.

We could hear BTS’ music being blasted and tons of screaming, even from outside the actual venue. When we finally got in, oh my god, I could’ve cried; it was so cool! ‘SPEAK YOURSELF’ was written on the walls and doors, there was a huge screen with BTS music videos playing, a mirrored & LED light BTS logo and we were all greeted by a member of staff with a Speak Yourself slap-on wristband when entering. Gotta love a freebie.

The venue was pretty big and there were at least 150 people inside at the time, as they were letting people in in small groups. BTS’ music filled the room, with crowds of people in front of the big screen, singing and screaming the group’s lyrics. They were practicing for Wembley, I guess. This event was such a great idea, especially with it being free, because it allowed fans who maybe didn’t have tickets to the shows to experience it, somehow. It really could’ve just been a warehouse full of merchandise on racks but they made it into a whole ass festival and I just thought it was brilliant.

In terms of merchandise, there was a lot to choose from. There were t-shirts and hoodies of varying styles and colours. I only ended up purchasing a t-shirt and some small, relatively affordable accessories because I knew I’d be buying merch at the official store as well. Me being a financially responsible adult? We love to see it. You had to order the items you wanted with a staff member who would then put your items behind the till for when you go to pay, kinda like shopping at JD or something. It was very well organised, especially for an event for BTS fans because we both know they’re pretty wild.

There was a display of BTS’ Mattel Dolls, which I do not own and do not plan on purchasing but it was cool to be able to see them in the flesh. They’re still creepy though. There were other displays, such as BTS Uno and a cube full of hanging microphones which was a great photo zone.

I miss BTS and desperately want to go back to this time last year, preparing for and attending the shows at Wembley Stadium. Being back in arenas and stadiums with them will feel even better after this pandemic is over, because we’ve had to wait so long for it. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and whatnot. Well, until then…

Thanks for reading.

Stay safe and stay positive.

Love,

JK ♡