"BTS Streaming World No. 1 City" LA Times, Live Report from Mexico City Concert "Climbing Trees to Watch" Passion [K-EYES]

*This content was translated by AI.

When BTS appeared on the balcony of the National Palace in Mexico on the 6th, 50,000 people filled the plaza within just five hours. This shocking scene drew attention not only from Mexico but also from media outlets worldwide, including the United States. The Los Angeles Times, America's largest daily newspaper, traveled to Mexico City to report on the reasons behind this phenomenon through a live dispatch. The following is the content of the article published on May 9.

Mexico City is the world's No. 1 city for BTS streaming according to Spotify. Beyond mere K-pop popularity, BTS has long become a cultural phenomenon in Mexico. While K-pop fans are known for their fervor everywhere, Mexico City holds a particularly special status among them.

That fervor was also proven by numbers. Over 1 million Mexican fans attempted to purchase tickets for the third concert, but most failed. As the situation grew serious, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum even sent a diplomatic letter directly to the South Korean president requesting additional concerts. The Korean side politely declined, stating that "additional concerts are impossible due to the world tour schedule." Meanwhile, scalped ticket prices soared to approximately 3.5 million won (3,500 dollars) per ticket. Considering the original ticket price was around 50,000 to 60,000 won, this represents a nearly 60-fold increase.

The stories of fans who could not secure tickets were even more touching. Rosa Gabriela Hernandez Flores, a 22-year-old fan who traveled from Sinaloa in northern Mexico, was stunned upon learning the scalped prices but could not leave the venue. Eventually, she found a spot outside the concert hall where music was leaking out and a corner of a large screen was visible, joining other fans to sing along loudly to songs like "MIC Drop" and "SWIM." "We cried, laughed, and screamed. Those few minutes felt like magic," she said. A 12-year-old girl named Zoe Castro, who has been a fan since she was six, was captured by LA Times cameras searching for tickets on her smartphone outside the venue without giving up.

The scene around the concert venue itself also became a topic of discussion. Fans who came to listen to the music without tickets even climbed trees near the venue to peek inside. Cameras also captured scenes of fathers and daughters dancing together outside the concert hall. On the day of the performance, President Sheinbaum personally urged BTS, "You must come back next year," and later officially announced at a press conference that "BTS will return to Mexico in 2027." One million people wanted tickets, the president sent a diplomatic letter, and fans climbed trees. It was the moment when pop music became the language of diplomacy.

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*This content was translated by AI.