On Break The Silence episode 4 “Speak Yourself,” the BTS members kick off the Speak Yourself Tour after their promotions for Map of the Soul: Persona.
“You can think of the sizes of the venues to be among the top ten in the world. It may seem like a tough schedule, but aside from when we tour, people only get to see us on the internet,” Yoongi says.
The boys stop by GMA during their tour for their Summer concert series on top of all their own scheduled concerts.
Jin says, “During rehearsals, I thought, these venues aren’t that different from domed stadiums. But once the seats filled up I could see the difference. I thought, ‘This is a real festival.’”
After a concert, Jimin calls the show legendary and then laughs at himself.
“It’s a beginning…this is just the beginning,” Jungkook tells the Break The Silence crew.
The Break The Silence episode jumps back to when the boys were flying out of South Korea to start the international leg of the tour. They dressed casually in comfortable clothes for the long flight. Fans and news alike swarmed nearby to get sight of them before they left.
BTS kicks off the tour in California, which serves as an encore tour to the Love Yourself tour. They have a lot to prepare as they hadn’t had time to do so in South Korea before they’d left. Which brought some anxieties to the surface for them as they try to bring the best show that they can.
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“We’ve changed the entire cue sheet. We couldn’t use the one we had,” Yoongi explains. “Maintaining the overall flow is one thing, but in addition to that, the concert has to be fun, above all else.”
“We jokingly asked, ‘Can we do this, too?’” Jungkook comments as the episode shows him practicing flying in the air for his performance of “Euphoria.” “I think we’ve taken on a new challenge this time.”
Each member has new stages for their solo songs to bring something fresh to the performances.
“The team of directors thought that the clicking noise was the sound of a door closing,” Yoongi explains about “Seesaw” to the Break The Silence crew. “It’s actually the sound of the ‘play’ button on a cassette deck.”
He laughs, “The clicking sound of a cassette deck. Yes, that’s what it’s supposed to be.”
“Since we used the same piano for every tour, I asked, ‘Can you replace the piano with one that looks futuristic?’ And they did a good job. I was impressed,” Jin says.
Namjoon adds, “It was so much more than an encore tour. We approached it as a new tour and the set and equipment are new and different, too. It might be called an encore tour but it feels like a whole new concert.”
They’re not only practicing for the concert with their new stages but also still getting their outfits finalized. With all-new wardrobes, there’s a lot of things to try on and pick out.
Jimin watches recordings of the stages, he’s anxious that they haven’t had enough time to rehearse.
“Since we had to leave in a hurry, we didn’t have time to put it together. We left right after our album promotions. Usually, we do a technical rehearsal in Ilsan, but we weren’t able to do it this time. Everyone was feeling a bit tense about not being fully prepared,” Yoongi explains.
Once night starts to set in, the BTS members are able to practice more with all of their dancers on stage. They have things to go over with their performance director Son Sungdeuk as well.
“We do it like it’s our calling. Actually, the pressure is a lot less lately compared to when we first started. Before I debuted, or even just after we debuted, I was young then and would often think, ‘I have the experience, so I should step up.’ But now, to be honest, the members are doing such a great job. So in terms of that, I don’t see the pressure to lead from the front that much,” Hoseok says.
Before the actual concert starts, the BTS members meet to go over any last-minute things they need to discuss. They’re already in their outfits for the first song as they stretch and get ready.
“I’m sure the members have their own struggles at times. I’m sure that happens, but BTS is a group of guys who speak the same language. So we’re able to communicate well,” Namjoon explains. “I think that’s really important. Since we can understand each other, there’s no reason for anyone to bottle things up. We talk among ourselves, even if we don’t agree on something. We’re able to get through to one another. I think that’s how we’ve come this far.”
As the members walk to the stage from the artist are they’re blown away by the sound of the crowd that’s already excited.
“I feel a lot of pressure even though I don’t show it. It’s a lot of pressure, but I try not to dwell on it. I’ll often think, ‘This is a concert like any other,’ so I don’t feel overwhelmed by the energy in the stadium, nor feel small in front of such a large audience,” Hoseok admits.
Break The Silence shows the members kicking off the show with “Dionysus” and “Not Today” in their all-white outfits. The crowd gets even more hyped with the high energy songs starting the night.
As the night goes on, the members are happy with how things go. They comment on how they like the new cue sheet and being glad it’s not boring.
Hoseok says, “I think that whatever we had practiced came out naturally, just like that. It’s not that we had explicitly prepared for this. I think all the things that we’d learned throughout our performances, and all the skills we’d honed over time, naturally flowed out of us during that concert. How can I put it? I think this is a testament to how important experience is. It just came out naturally.”
“First of all, I’m so happy. I think it’s something people in my life, including family, friends, and everyone else would be proud of. And it’s something I want to boast about. I think I’ll remember it for a long time,” Taehyung says.
Jin adds, “In the packed stadium when everyone held up the flashlights on their phones, it was so beautiful. I feel like I was in a micro-universe.”
They show the members leading the ARMYs in making a wave with their lights through the stadium.
“Seeing tens of thousands of fans from the stage is such a happy feeling. It’s such a beautiful sight. It’s like you’re seeing a really pretty sunset,” Jimin says.
“Not being able to communicate your happy, excited, and joyful feelings through words or actions is the most frustrating feeling. But it was just at that moment, when I was finding it hard to communicate my emotions, that RM started talking. I thought, ‘How is he able to tell them everything so clearly?’ Before I knew it, I found myself getting emotional and started tearing up.”
After the mentions at the concert, the other BTS members congratulate Namjoon on his sincere words. They watch the fireworks that end out the show from the sidelines together, Jimin continues to tear up.
“They weren’t just an audience. We shared something special with them on stage, and then the fireworks went off. So in my mind, the word ‘perfect’ was all I could think of. I think it was perfect,” Jimin says.
Break The Silence episode 4 jumps to their Chicago concert, but rain and cold weather has put a damper on the situation. They still perform their soundcheck to ARMYs geared to in rain ponchos. They worry about the fans waiting out in the cold and wet weather for them as they head back inside to prepare more.
They talk about their choreography for the night. They still want to attempt to dance as long as they can take it easy. But the older members worry that the younger ones might get hurt if they go too hard.
“I think it’s something that we had to experience at some point. That way, the next time it rains, we can do even better. We’ve managed to avoid it all this time until it finally happened today,” Jungkook says.
Jin manages to keep the mood light by filming the members before the show. He can’t get a handle on the camera that moves on a tilt by himself and it garners laughs from all of them.
Namjoon jokingly tells the members that they must dodge the rain to keep the equipment from getting wet while they perform. Even showing them how to do it while they laugh.
Despite the cold weather, the members tried to have fun on stage anyways. Their only worry for the night was how cold the fans might get.
“I thought, ‘We should try to make this extremely fun and exciting.’ Because that would warm the fans up and make them laugh, too. We did it with the thought that it would be a win-win for all of us, at the time,” Taehyung explains.
After the show, the members were extremely cold from being on stage for over two hours. However, they were in high spirits from all the fun that they had.
“I don’t know why, but maybe all the members got so cold that we lost our minds for a second. It was so cold. We performed until our hands turned red. Maybe it’s because we let ourselves go a little. The concert was so fun. I think I’ll remember it for a long time,” Jimin says.
Before their next show, BTS stops to take questions from students in a Q&A session. In which they talk about the message behind their music.
Yoongi remarks, “The messages in songs are what first got me into making music, because I grew up listening to that kind of music. Apparently, they say that the music you listen to in your teens and 20s has the greatest impact on you during the course of your life. I read that the music you listen to in your earlier years holds greater value. That’s how crucial music is in creating one’s value system. I don’t know about now, but it was like that then. Being able to leave a positive message in their minds would be incredible.”
“People always change. Some might bring up ‘No More Dream’ and say, ‘You told people to dream, saying, ‘That’s all you dream of?’ and now you say you have no dream?’ They could go, ‘What’s that about?’ I was 19 years old at the time. To say, ‘When I was 19, I needed a dream. Now that I’ve achieved it, I don’t need one.’ That’s not true at all. I don’t know what my dream is. I think I’m still dreaming now,” Namjoon states.
“My thoughts have changed as I’ve gotten older. It would be ridiculous for people to stay the same, right? It’s about whether you’ve changed for the better or worse. I think how you change is really important,” Yoongi comments.
“There are times when I get really depressed, when I’m going through difficult times, and when I want someone to hold my hand. Sometimes I’ll think, ‘Forget it. I want to be this way.’ I often feel that way,” Taehyung explains. “But when we started the Love Yourself world tour, I stopped having those thoughts. Seeing how the members were happy after seeing me be happy also made me happy. I’m not sure exactly why, but I think it was a turning point for me.”
“Luckily, I’m making music with the kind of message that I’ve always wanted to send, which makes me feel fortunate. That’s why I live my life the way that I do. It gives out a positive energy,” Yoongi adds.
Jin remarks, “For me, it’s not so much about the message itself. When I’m performing a song, and I feel content with how it sounds, that makes me think, ‘I sang that well. What a great song.’ These thoughts give me a boost in self-esteem, and that, in turn, makes me feel uplifted.”
“Namjoon told me something, that made me stop and think for the first time…he said that he’d hear himself talking, and that made him even more aware of the words he was saying. I remember him telling me that,” Jimin says. “I think I’ve been feeling like that this past year. That’s how important the Speak Yourself tour is and it’s a way for me to find my own meaning in life.”
“We hope that a verse in our music, a gesture we make during our concert, or something we say in an interview becomes a moment of light for those in certain situations. That’s why we do this. So, in interviews, when we’re asked, ‘What is your message?’ there’s nothing I want to say. I want to keep emptying and filling myself up for others, so that others can see and be inspire to create new things. I think that’s what’s most meaningful to me,” Namjoon states.
“Thanks to our fans, we’ve been reflecting on and rediscovering ourselves, so I think it would be great if they could reflect on and get to know themselves by watching us,” Jimin adds.
Jin closes out the Break The Silence episode by saying, “I don’t want to achieve anything as grandiose as being influential. As long as the people watching us are happy and smiling, that’s all I need.”
BTS Break The Silence can be purchased exclusively through Weverse! New episodes of Break The Silence will be released every Tuesday and Thursday, as the series follows the 351-day journey on the Love Yourself tour.