‘It's just pure, genuine joy': BTS fans turn Stanford into sea of purple for sold-out concert weekend

Outside Stanford Stadium on Saturday, Ashley Keele and her daughters carried four grocery bags stuffed with handmade necklaces, buttons, stickers and photo cards - two years' worth of preparation for a BTS weekend they had been waiting for since the K-pop group went on hiatus.

Keele, 41, and her daughters, Jocelynn, 16, and Annette, 6, traveled from Sacramento for the show and planned to attend all three Stanford concerts, hoping to hear different surprise songs each night.

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Keele said her family has been drawn to BTS since 2019, when she discovered the band’s song “Mikrokosmos” would immediately calm down her son, who has autism. The band’s welcoming community and lyrics about self-love, she said, are what make BTS so special.

“It’s just magical music,” she said. “Once you know someone likes BTS, it’s like you click. … There’s nothing more inclusive than a K-pop concert.”

They were among thousands of fans who turned Stanford Stadium near Palo Alto into a sea of purple Saturday as BTS opened a three-show run, the group's only Northern California stop on its sold-out “ARIRANG” comeback tour.

Fans of all ages were decked out in sparkly jerseys, friendship bracelets, merch with band members’ faces and outfits from the group’s music videos. They milled about under the hot sun, waiting in line in hopes of grabbing something from the popular, fast-selling merch stands or singing along as popular BTS songs blared on the stadium's speakers.

The South Korean K-pop band's shows Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday mark BTS' return to the Bay Area for the first time since 2018, when the group’s “Love Yourself World Tour” came to Oakland Arena. The Stanford concerts are part of the band's global comeback after a four-year hiatus while its seven members completed mandatory military service.

Excited fans who call themselves the “BTS ARMY” flocked to the stadium in preparation for the group’s first headline performance as a full group since their 2021-22 limited run “Permission to Dance on Stage” tour.

Nadine Elsayed, 30, and her sister Sarah Elsayed, 25, traveled all the way from New York City to see the show with their Bay Area friends Katrina Doan, 30, Priyanka Singh, 40, and Laurie Kim, 35. The group, except for Singh, also plans to travel to New York later this summer to see BTS perform again.

“We’ve waited so long for them to go back on tour,” Elsayed said. “Especially all of them together.”

The group of friends became fans in 2019, as BTS was expanding its already massive global following. Elsayed said they all met and bonded through their love for the boy band, and now travel to BTS concerts together.

She said the band’s genuine love for and connection to their fans is what sets them apart from other groups, with BTS members often livestreaming everyday tasks like cooking, folding laundry and even sleeping. She said that sense of caring has made the BTS ARMY especially kind, with fans often handing out homemade crafts and knick-knacks at shows.

Elsayed pointed to various crocheted likenesses of the BTS members, which each of her friends wore - memorabilia Kim made, she said. Kim also held a bag of crocheted goodies to hand out, known among BTS fans as “freebies.”

“You know that childlike joy? Even 30 years old, they bring that out in me,” Elsayed said of BTS and the fanbase. “It’s just pure, genuine joy.”

The group’s three Stanford shows are expected to draw more than 50,000 fans each night. The concerts follow last year's Coldplay shows, which marked a rare major concert run at Stanford Stadium.

Despite the concert gates not opening until 4:30 p.m., the campus and nearby area were already bustling with activity early Saturday afternoon. Local officials were anticipating heavy traffic in the surrounding area and encouraging concertgoers to take public transit.

Occasional calls of “do you want a freebie?” could be heard as fans bonded while exchanging homemade gifts and BTS memorabilia, such as necklaces, keychains, photos and other collectibles.

The concerts also rippled into the surrounding community. Palo Alto High School moved prom pickup and drop-off Saturday night to Gunn High School in an attempt to avoid the concert traffic and earn some money from hosting concertgoers’ cars at the high school, the high school’s student newspaper reported.

In an effort to entice fans to take Caltrain, two K-pop-themed trains will take fans to the venue Tuesday. On board, fans will find decorated train cars, fun giveaways and prizes, music and a festive atmosphere as they travel to the concert with the rest of the BTS ARMY, Caltrain said.

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This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 6:54 PM.