NEW YORK — After days of lining up to see BTS’ Jungkook serenade Central Park, crowds that had congregated along several blocks of Fifth Avenue had to pack it in Friday when the K-pop star’s performance was upended due to weather.
Thunder and lightning ultimately forced Jungkook, 25, to pre-record three songs as part of the “GMA Summer Concert Series,” WABC reports.
Before that though, fans — some of whom ultimately got to see the superstar perform — came prepared with blankets, hand wipes, air mattresses, books and snacks, water and portable fans to beat the heat. While portable toilets sat at the head of the line on 72nd Street, many opted for the more sanitary choices in the form of the nearby Apple Store and Starbucks.
Air Force contractor Shelley Wilson, 44, from Hampton Roads, Virginia, and her 18-year-old son Parker told the Daily News they “drove all night” Tuesday. Even after waiting days to receive tickets, the longtime BTS fan said having one was “no guarantee” of admission.
“People started panicking,” explained Wilson, a long-time fan of BTS, or member of the BTS Army. “It’s been hot but it’s been nice interacting with other Armies.”
“I visited Monday and I saw like 50 people” on line, Katharine Murphy, 23, of Central Harlem, told The News.
Murphy, who was saving spots for her friends with whom she planned to stay overnight until the park opened for fans at 5:45 a.m. Friday, echoed Wilson’s concern about who would get in. “People are saying there’s a capacity limit.”
Stephanie Alcaide, 30, of Flushing, works as a custodian at the Museum of Natural History and arrived at 71st Street. She’s part of a group of eight fans from New York, New Jersey and Maryland that had been taking shifts since Tuesday night.
“Some leave to go to work and get some rest,” said Alcaide, who began her shift in the line at 5 a.m. Thursday. “I’m waiting for someone to switch with me.”
Cindy Lin, 25, of Bay Ridge, works in politics, and had been waiting since 8 a.m. She and three friends were rotating in and out of the line, with Lin telling The News they “brought all the essentials,” including water and “Chinese bakery stuff.”
Lin, who has seen BTS five times in the three years she’s been a fan, “nearly cried” when she scored her ticket on the first day, and even brought her work phone along to wait.
But the heat and sometimes stressful anticipation was tempered by the communal feeling of being among so many BTS fans. Alcaide mentioned a bakery worker and fellow fan waiting “got croissants for us.”
Grace, a 29-year-old from Los Angeles who with her friends boasted a tent and tarps, “kind of befriended everyone” and became “a big group of 18.” They were considered the unofficial welcoming committee, everyone joining the line visited them and had their names written down in a notebook with a corresponding number — with the list at 832 when she spoke with The News.
Jungkook’s hotly anticipated performance came just over a year after BTS announced they were going on hiatus.
