BTS fulfilled their promise to return as a full seven-member group in the spring of 2026, exactly as they had declared to fans after four years of pausing group activities to focus on individual projects and to complete their mandatory military service. Their fifth studio album ARIRANG, which reached No.1 on Billboard, along with a year-long global tour featuring more than 80 shows across 34 cities worldwide, serves as a gift to fans who had waited so long to see BTS as a complete group again.
Although BTS have truly returned stronger than ever, prior to March 20 there were still numerous doubts and disbandment rumors surrounding the possibility of a full OT7 reunion. In the history of K-pop, the moment when a group resumes activities with its full lineup and original operational state after a long hiatus is almost unprecedented—not only in K-pop, but even in the global music industry.
At the time BTS announced their hiatus four years ago, many media outlets exaggerated the situation, suggesting it could signal a permanent breakup. As a result, HYBE’s stock once dropped sharply by as much as 28%. The term “hiatus” also led the public to believe BTS might follow the path of groups like One Direction or Fifth Harmony—bands that announced temporary breaks, promised to reunite, but ultimately never returned.
Even after BTS completed their military service and began producing ARIRANG in the United States late last year, speculation about a possible disbandment continued to spread. In particular, following a live broadcast in which RM candidly admitted, “(We've) thought for tens of thousands of times whether it would be good for us to disband or to suspend activities,” the topic reached a new peak. Discussions about a supposed “fake bond” among the members even began to emerge.
The situation became so widespread and heated that, in a recent interview with The JoongAng, the reporter pointed out, “There were even rumors of a disbandment” to BigHit Music’s Vice CEO, Kim Hyun Jung, also known as Nicole Kim. In response, she described the members’ reaction as: “The members would find it absolutely ridiculous to hear that,” and stated firmly, “Their relationship is just that strong,” effectively putting an end to the speculation.
This response reminds fans of BTS’s own statements over the years regarding their relationship. In an individual interview, SUGA once addressed whether the members compete with each other for individual success by saying: “Are you competitive with your family members? Do you get jealous if your brother or your sister does well? We’re real brothers… If you live for 13 years in one house under the same roof 24/7, you become a family…”
In the series BTS Monuments: Beyond The Star, SUGA further emphasized: They're the people I've been with and seen the most in the 30 years of my life. We've really become a family. There's no other words to describe our relationship. We're family."
This perspective was also reinforced by RM in an interview with Zane Lowe upon the release of ARIRANG: “We’ve been together for half of our lives, like 15 years. That’s a long time—that’s like a family. You know, as we see just each other’s eyes, we just understand, we just get it. ‘You’ve been through hard times, then I’ll do some more, I’ll take care of you.’”
BTS have also declared that their Chapter 2 has only just begun and that they still have many things ahead of them. SUGA even said he "envision myself performing until my 60s", while RM imagines BTS becoming “Bangtan Papas or even Bangtan Grandpas. Maybe 20 or 30 years later". j-hope also revealed in an interview with MK Sports that the members have seriously discussed forming a band together when they reach their sixties.
Taken together, the statements from BigHit Music, BTS, and the group’s current activities clearly affirm the enduring existence of BTS as a seven-member group. At this point, all talk of BTS disbanding can finally be put to rest—or you could come back and doubt them when they’re 60, just as they’ve announced!
