BTS Announces Release Date for New Album Map of the Soul: 7

Members of the avid BTS fan base army, a.k.a. ARMYs around the world are marking a much-anticipated occasion on their calendars: Friday, Feb. 21 — the newly announced date K-pop juggernaut BTS is dropping their upcoming album. The news was shared on WeVerse along with the name of the new project: Map of the Soul: 7. Immediately, terms related to the comeback began to dominate Twitter’s worldwide trends, with the hashtag #7isComing surpassing a million tweets just hours after the announcement.

And they dropped the first single “Black Swan” off of Map of the Soul with an accompanying art film featuring some elaborate choreography.

Map of the Soul: 7 follows BTS’ album from 2019, Map of the Soul: Persona. Fans were not expecting the new title. ARMYs had studiously searched for Easter eggs in previous releases, and speculated that the upcoming album be named “Shadow” or “Ego” based on the writing on a blackboard in leader RM’s “Persona” music video. But yet again, BTS surprises. The number seven carries special significance for the group. This year is BTS’ seventh anniversary, after debuting back in June 2013 with the album 2 Cool 4 Skool. Seven is also the number of members in the supergroup. “The 7 years we have been together, always exists in 7 members of BTS,” RM says in the septet’s intro video at the 2019 MAMA show in December.

BTS has already started the new decade in the most majestic fashion — ringing in 2020 at New York City’s Times Square following a dazzling performance at Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve. The group’s company Big Hit Entertainment has also teased an upcoming tour that will take place in a few months. “April 2020. Stay tuned,” the caption read.