BTS to come back in March — HYBE source

BTS. Image: BigHit Music via The Korea Herald

BTS is set to make its long-awaited full-group comeback in March next year, multiple industry sources confirmed to The Korea Herald.

With all seven members completing their mandatory 18-month military service by this weekend — Suga is scheduled for discharge on Saturday, June 21 — speculation has been mounting among fans and the wider K-pop industry over when the group would reunite and resume full-scale activities.

“BTS’ comeback date is set for March next year,” a HYBE official confirmed through The Korea Herald’s source recently.

Two additional sources based overseas also said the biggest K-pop act in history is preparing to return as a full group early next year.

“While the exact date is unknown, I think it will be mid-March. I heard BTS is returning in the same month as their brother group Tomorrow X Together,” one source told The Korea Herald. “It could be BTS first, then TXT — or the other way around.”

Another source said that Enhypen, a boy group under Belift Lab, had initially planned its comeback for March, but moved it to January to avoid overlapping with BTS’ return. Belift Lab is a HYBE subsidiary under its multilabel system along with Big Hit Music, which manages BTS.

BTS members (from left) V, Suga, Jin, RM, Jungkook, Jimin and J-Hope. Image: Weverse

BigHit said no confirmation has been made on the group‘s comeback schedule.

While March may seem distant, HYBE CEO Lee Jae-sang previously signaled a longer timeline during the company’s shareholder meeting in March this year. He stated that the BTS members would need time for preparation and creative work after their military discharge.

“We’re preparing alongside top-tier producers, but the artists also need time to reflect and prepare,” Lee said.

Meanwhile, Jin is scheduled to kick off his solo fan concert tour “Runseokjin_EP.Tour” starting June 28-29 in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. The tour will take him to nine cities including Chiba and Osaka in Japan, Anaheim, Dallas, Tampa and Newark in the US, as well as London and Amsterdam, with 18 shows planned through Aug. 10 — making a BTS comeback this year unlikely.

However, industry insiders see a possibility of a prerelease single or other project dropping before the group’s official return. /ra