South Korean boy band BTS wrapped a 14-month world tour of 62 shows across four continents in 2019. When production arrived in the US, Morris Light & Sound was asked to join the crew to share their expertise in lighting, technical drawing and technical system design.
CASE STUDY
BTS
The K-Pop Invasion
In August 2018, shortly after the launch of the BTS Love Yourself World Tour, the band left South Korea and went stateside. While most of the mainstream music industry had only heard of them in passing, they sold out 4 consecutive nights at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and then went on to play many sold-out dates across the U.S. To help out with the challenges of moving the tour to the US, the production team knew they needed a partner with the inventory and experience to match the scale of the tour. Morris’ track record of excellence with large events paved the way for success as a partner on the BTS Love Yourself World Tour. Fifteen Morris crew members were able to step in and provide lighting equipment, lighting labor, technical drawing and technical system design.
Client
BTS
Type
World Tour
Services
Lighting, Crew, Technical Drawing, Technical System Design
From Stadiums to Arenas
The challenge with the Love Yourself album cycle was to create a show that could open the tour in an 80,000-capacity stadium and then move to arenas less than two weeks later. Moving from the first stadium to an arena was difficult, as the only equipment that was the same was some of the bespoke scenic elements. All of the vendors changed from Korea to the US as did many of the lighting and video products. Passion and dedication from the Morris team allowed them to overcome the immense technical complications of the massive rig while creating deep personal relationships across a cultural divide.
Breaking Records
The BTS Love Yourself World Tour set the record for the largest deployment of Robe B RoboSpots, with 32 BMFL Followspot LTs on hand from Morris. This enabled spot operators to control the fixtures from the safety of the ground. 439 fixtures were stationed in the air supported by over 1,000 feet of GT Truss, and 225 were positioned on the ground, totaling over 664 fixtures. The massive data network contained 11 consoles with 24 switches and 22 nodes all working together for 132 universes.
”Morris’ ability to scale to a massive event, combined with a dedication to quality was key. We admire FragmentNine for their vision and deep understanding of technical elements. This was critical in creating an amazing experience for those who were lucky enough to attend this groundbreaking tour - which really was an outstanding production, not only for its scope but also for its continuity of design.
Joseph LogsdonSenior Account Manager, Morris Light & Sound
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