Jin stepped out onto the stage and pressed a buzzer as he cried, “dojeon!” A spectacular burst of fireworks ushered in the idol’s first solo world tour for fans, “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR.” Born from Jin’s idea “that for the last show of ‘Run Jin’ we could do a concert with the fans,” the whole tour was designed as a special gift that could be enjoyed with ARMY. Throughout the concert, Jin took on a wide variety of missions, ran around here and there, and put on electrifying performances of songs like those off his first solo album, “Happy,” and his mini album, “Echo,” making ARMY feel like they’d come to a music festival to witness their favorite rock star onstage. Now that “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR” has officially crossed the finish line, we’ve prepared a report featuring behind-the-scenes insights into the ideas and plans that went into developing the fan concert, along with the artist’s personal reflections on the tour.

1. Tour dates

Jin kicked off his first solo world tour for fans, “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR,” on June 28 and 29 at Goyang Auxiliary Stadium in Korea. The tour, which ran through August, included a total of 18 shows across nine cities, including two stops in Japan, four in the United States, and two in Europe. “I thought ARMY would have been bored,” Jin had said on Weverse LIVE, so “I’ll go to as many places as I can” while the other BTS “members are preparing.” As such, he challenged himself to reach as many ARMY as possible with his shows. The Goyang performances were complemented by a LIVE PLAY simulcast at Jamsil Arena, while the Osaka shows were given the LIVE VIEWING treatment, simultaneously streamed online and in theaters. The LIVE VIEWING experience then continued right up until the final show in Amsterdam. The purpose of giving audiences the option to watch the tour online or off was to connect with even more ARMY and express gratitude for accompanying the BTS member all throughout “Run Jin.” Jin’s top priority in getting ready for the tour was “being together with all ARMY,” according to concert director Jungjae Ha, Lead Professional with HYBE 360 Concert Production Studio 1. “Jin was always doing something with his guests or other people on ‘Run Jin,’ and whether it was by singing or playing games together, the key idea behind this concert was to carry on the spirit of togetherness seen in the series.”

2. Set list

“We wanted this concert to be a continuation of ‘Run Jin’ while also serving as the grand culmination of Jin’s solo work,” Ha explained. As such, the set list for “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR” was structured into five rounds while alternating between songs and minigames like those on “Run Jin,” all to showcase the artist’s multifaceted allure. Notably, Jin “wanted to be sure and work dojeon into the concert, as it’s a signature aspect of ‘Run Jin,’” and the opening did just that. Starting the first round off with dojeon, or trying something new, Jin, joined by a live band, burst into a jubilant festival atmosphere with songs like “Running Wild” and “Don’t Say You Love Me.” “Since rock plays a distinctive role in Jin’s solo album,” Ha elaborated, “we aimed to put a flashy, bold rock festival spin on things.” Whether he was getting the crowd to cheer when he stepped onto different platforms to get closer to them, or running carefree through all the elaborate stage props and effects, Jin was channeling his inner rock star. The challenge he set himself up for right from the beginning, then, was to drive home what he’s all about when he’s making music solo.

For round two, the “Run Jin” concept was in full swing. Jin played host for the TELEPATHY GAME, moving between the main portion of the stage and the extended portions to make sure he engaged with everyone in the audience. It was a delightful game that everyone was a part of, with the number of correct answers dictating what clothes he would change into, or even prompting him to perform “Super Tuna.” “As someone who’s played games online for a long time, I don’t like events where only a small group of people get chosen and you just give up because you already know you won’t be one of them,” Jin said, explaining his inspiration for his decisions. “As host of the concert, I thought it could be fun if I got everyone involved.” For the third round, Jin put himself up to the challenge of playing piano and performing “I will come to you” and “Abyss” because he once again “thought ARMY would like it.” As Ha also noted, “Jin thought the very act of playing the piano and singing onstage is a dojeon in itself,” which is why the team built an entire round around it.

Entertaining ARMY with such a diverse range of songs and games, especially in a concert everyone could take part in, was itself an important challenge to take on. The SING ALONG game in round four, which challenged the audience to a group singalong, perfectly captured the core vision of “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR”—a series of concerts designed with crowd participation from the start. Lyrics were displayed on the big screen in multiple languages, including Korean, English, and Japanese, with pronunciations provided as well, allowing fans at every show to fill the venue with their voices. “We wanted to set up a special moment where ARMY’s voices were all that would be heard,” Ha said. “That’s why we came up with the singalong game specially for them.” With the energy all amped up by the crowd’s singing, the concert reached its peak as Jin sang a highlight medley of the BTS hits “Dynamite,” “Butter,” “Mikrokosmos,” and “Spring Day” by himself. Performing on the extended stage and without backup dancers, Jin timed his rhythm to nothing but ARMY’s voices as they sang along. With the encore fleshing out the fifth and final found, Jin came to the finish line after a whopping 22-song set list, where he made a promise to the audience. “RUN SEOKJIN_EP.TOUR won’t stop until I meet every ARMY on Earth! Run! Seokjin!” The show might be over, but you have Jin’s word that he’ll see you again at the next one, ready to take on the next challenge together and race toward the finish line.

3. Behind the scenes
“We thought the concert could serve as the final challenge and chapter of ‘Run Jin,’” Ha said, diving into the story behind the tour, and indeed, the series was reflected all throughout the stage production. “We matched every song conceptually with an episode of ‘Run Jin’ by displaying the episode logo on the big screen or incorporating it into the stage design.” For example, “With the Clouds” featured a backdrop of mountains and clouds reminiscent of the “Climbing Mt. Hallasan” episode, while boats and other ocean motifs from the “Coast Guard” episode decorated Jin’s performance of “Super Tuna.” This audience became immersed in a world where they weren’t just watching a concert but felt as if they had stepped into the universe of “Run Jin” itself.

Even the overall flow of the concert was designed to feel like a variety show. To mark his triumphant return, Jin started the show by saying, “I’m ready to start today’s journey, but if there’s any ARMY who aren’t ready yet, I’ll give you extra time!” Just then, a 60-second timer appeared on the big screen. According to Ha, this was “a device to make the audience feel like even the act of mentally preparing for the next song was a kind of game.” Following the TELEPATHY GAME, Jin briefly excused himself from the stage to change into a costume selected at random, complete with tense music and a 90-second countdown, giving the audience the sensation that they were part of a “Run Jin” game right then and there. “Every part of the concert without exception was designed so the audience could be fully involved,” Ha explained. ARMY there for “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR” had been invited as guests on the tour episode, their mission to put on a great show with their beloved idol.

Ha described the concert as “the most Jin-like performance—something only Jin could do,” and a show that “captures what makes Jin the entertainer so delightful.” Building on the experimental overall arc of the concert as based on “Run Jin,” that sense of delight was worked in, all throughout the production. For instance, the main screen, designed to look like a pair of lips, was inspired by Jin’s signature “worldwide handsome” moniker and the iconic way he blows kisses. The concert also made heavy use of special effects, incorporating air cannons, confetti, and more into almost every song. “We wanted the whole thing to be exciting and have the atmosphere of a festival, with fireworks and confetti popping off for every song,” Ha explained, “so we used a comparatively large amount of special effects,” making the show as enjoyable for the audience as possible. Jin echoed this sense of purpose behind the show. “I figured what ARMY likes best is concerts, so I wanted to make the most of the time with them until the rest of the group got out of the military,” he said. “And honestly, I missed being onstage, too, so I used the concert as an excuse to hang out with ARMY.”

4. ARMY
Every part of the concert was a sincere effort on Jin’s part to connect with ARMY. During the SING ALONG game, when it looked like he might get every question right, Jin gave a wrong answer on purpose to get hit with a tray and make the audience laugh. There was never going to be a dull moment, even for costume changes, thanks to the six different “ARMY Karaoke” videos that were on deck and ready to go. Each time Jin was set to perform “Moon” for an encore, he would first descend into the audience and ask a fan to hum the melody. “I was getting ready for my tour while j-hope was on his,” Jin said, explaining the story behind the special recurring gesture, “and I liked how he would start ‘= (Equal Sign)’ with the audience, so I ended up doing something similar.” “What he wanted more than anything was to see all his fans,” Ha said, “so making sure they spent every moment together was the top priority.” Initially, there were plans for Jin to challenge himself with games in a one-man-show approach, but in the end, he got his wish and the idea was extended to include the entire audience.

When he became the first BTS member to complete his military service, a short-haired Jin took to the stage and reassured ARMY with a heartfelt promise, “I will always be by your side.” Since then, he released his solo album and kept fans entertained through videos released by BIGHIT and by appearing on various variety shows. The “#RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR,” with Jin repeatedly shouting “dojeon” with ARMY, felt like an encapsulation of his journey as a solo artist since leaving the military. “I wanted to find something fun and fresh and try something brand new” with the fan concert, Jin said. “I was worried about it right up until the day of the first show, but luckily the fans loved it.” In the London and Amsterdam stops of the tour, Jin knelt down onstage, eyes welling up with tears, as he listened to the crowd sing along to “Spring Day.” “‘Run Jin’ will continue one day,” he said, concluding the concert. Like this closing scene to the final episode of “Run Jin,” and the closing curtain of the last stop of the tour in Amsterdam, Jin will once again be “running on the time” to “get to the other side of the earth” and “put an end to this winter” when the BTS member stands up in front of ARMY again.