Meet the BTS ARMY invading Hamilton this week

Tens of thousands of fans from all over North America have come to Hamilton to see K-pop band BTS play at FirstOntario Place this week. Tickets are sold out for all three nights they're playing, and hotels in the city are completely booked for the next few days.

Fabiha Chowdhury is one of the thousands attending FirstOntario Centre this weekend to see her idols.

"I've been living here my whole life, so when I heard BTS was coming to Hamilton you can imagine my shock. I dropped my phone and panicked!" she said over email.

It was in a different language, but their music spoke to me and it just got me out of that dark place.- Bibi Lopez

She says she got her tickets within the first few minutes after they went on sale. "I was hoping for seats closer to the stage, but just being able to go there is a blessing itself," she says.

K-pop is shorthand for Korean pop music and the seven-member boy band has legions of loyal and passionate fans  around the world.

Tickets initially went on sale for as cheap as $80 and topped at $325 for floor access. As of yesterday, resale prices on Ticketmaster were over $1,400.

Hanna Dunbar-Bruce has come from Windsor to see the concerts. She's got tickets for two days, and is trying to get tickets for the third night. "I managed to get floor tickets for Thursday from buying off someone a couple weeks ago."

She says she paid $360, but it took weeks to find. She is now willing to pay up to $750 for tickets to the show on Saturday.

The band will perform today, Saturday and Sunday. All three events are completely sold out. In fact, the band is StubHub's best selling act for fall 2018. They sold more tickets through the platform than Elton John, Paul McCartney and Drake.

Sold out hotels as far as Stoney Creek

"All of our hotels are sold out," says Carrie Brooks-Joiner, manager of tourism and events of the city. "As of yesterday, there was limited availability to as far as the Stoney Creek area, but I'm sure that's gone too", she says.

Fans, or like they call themselves the ARMY, have lined up since Wednesday in front of the FirstOntario Place. Today the lineup on York Blvd. was more than two blocks long.  

There was another line designated specifically for buying BTS merchandise on the Jackson Square roof. The products ranged from the usual hoodies, to framed pictures of the 'boys'.

They were also selling 'bombs', the latest evolution of the "lighter in a concert." The bomb has integrated bluetooth that connects to the concert production system. Then, production controls the colour of the light that the device produces.

BTS's success is shocking, but not surprising.

"The key to their popularity has been their use of social media platforms," says Michelle Cho, K-pop culture expert at McGill University.

"They're huge on Twitter and they have a really big YouTube presence. That's been part of the reason why they have a huge following at this point."

Cho says in 2012, BTS became the first South Korean band to create a Twitter account.

"Because of their engagement on that platform and also through their YouTube channel they were awarded the Billboard music award for social artist in 2017," she says.

International stars

Cho says BTS has been focusing on the international market since their conception.

This has marked a before and after in the K-pop world. Before them, "K-pop artists would debut in South Korea, they'd try to build up a domestic fandom and really work on the local market first before moving to overseas markets."

I owe them everything.- Bibi Lopez, 25

But Cho thinks the content of BTS's lyrics and music videos is another reason for their success.

"BTS has had this kind of story world, this multimedia narrative that has been building over the last several albums," she says. "They really are able to connect with their fandom because they're focusing on topics like coming of age, not knowing what to do with one's life, or facing challenges as a young person trying to find a calling or a reason for being."

This is something fans can attest to.

Bibi Lopez is a 25-year-old who flew in from Texas to see the band live. "I was in a pretty bad place mental-wise. I didn't think there was purpose anymore," she says.

That was until she heard BTS.

"I thank them for their music. It was in a different language, but their music spoke to me and it just got me out of that dark place. Now I'm better. In a better place, better job, better life. I owe them everything."