One day before the beloved boy band BTS makes their triumphant return to the stage, with a Netflix concert for over 250,000 screaming fans set for March 21, 2026, the group’s record label announced that BTS’ superstar leader RM suffered a serious ankle injury during rehearsals.
It’s a stunning development for fans worldwide who’ve been waiting for new music from the K-Pop boy band since 2022, when all seven members were enlisted in South Korea’s mandatory military service, per Today.com. The show will go on, they say, but RM addressed his sidelining injury during a group interview on March 20.
BTS’ RM Says He Will Be On Stage for Comeback Concert
Despite RM’s injury, BTS will still take the stage in Seoul, Korea’s Gwanghwamun Square on March 21, according to Billboard. Their concert, “BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG,” is set to livestream on Netflix at 7 a.m. Eastern time (8 p.m. in Korea).
A statement issued on March 20 by BTS’ record label said that during rehearsal for the concert, RM “suffered an ankle injury and was taken to a hospital to undergo a detailed examination and treatment.” He was diagnosed with “a sprain of the accessory navicular, a partial ligament tear and a talus contusion (which includes ligament damage and inflammation).”
GettyAs the news was being announced, BTS gathered for a livestreamed “Studio Notes” discussion on BANGTANTV and RM addressed the “sad” situation, wearing a boot on his left leg.
According to the provided translation, he said, “I am not able to perform right away, so I won’t be able to perform (at the comeback concert), but I will be on stage … I will be singing and hyping everyone up.”
He also urged fans to “not worry” as his bandmates discussed how “startled” they were to see him injured as they rehearsed choreography, and that they thought he was kidding at first, noting that he’s sprained his ankle several times in the past but was able to carry on. RM assured his bandmates and fans that he’ll follow doctors’ orders, noting, “I promise to take care of it.”
RM Spoke About Being the Leader of BTS After Their Long Hiatus
Apple Music also premiered a pre-recorded BTS interview with Zane Lowe on March 20, in celebration of the group’s new album, “ARIRANG” — their first full album since 2020.
When Lowe asked RM how he’s handling being the leader of the group after they’ve been apart for several years, the singer told him, “That’s the trickiest point. I don’t know, sometimes I put too much weight on myself, like, ‘You’re the leader, so you have to do something, you have to get your [expletive] off the sofa, just go out and say something to the label or, like, to the people.”
“We’ve all kind of grown up,” he continued. “We’re all (in our) 30s, and we all got back from the unique experience … but I think there’s still something that I can do for this team. Maybe just to communicate with the label, or could represent, say some words that could bring the whole team to a better level.”
“We’ve been together for half of our lives,” RM noted. “Like 15 years, that’s a long time, that’s like a family. So as we see each others’ eyes, we understand. We just get it.”
GettyAccording to Billboard, the March 21 concert will be so big that officials in Seoul have raised the terror alert level with “6,500 police officers, 70 riot control units, and 5,400 pieces of specialized equipment to be on the scene at the time.”
After the concert, BTS will head to New York for a Spotify fan event and to appear on appear on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” — the last place they performed together in 2021. According to Variety, Their in-studio interview with Fallon will air on March 25, as well as their performance of one of th songs from the new album. They’ll perform a second song on the March 26 episode.
BTS debuted in 2013 and became one the biggest bands in music history, with number one singles in over 100 countries, per CNN, which reported that the group’s comeback tour will cover 80 cities across five continents.
