After years of hiatus, global superstar BTS is about to make their highly anticipated comeback with their new album ARIRANG, and they’re collaborating with Spotify for a series of exciting experiences called the SWIMSIDE campaign. From special in-app experiences to immersive pop-ups in select cities, it will connect ARMY to BTS, the comeback, the music, and the artistic legacy behind it. The first thing on the list is Decoding ARIRANG. Here’s everything you need to know about the in-app experience.

Beyond the music, beyond the moment — #SWIMSIDE is where ARMY comes together to discover a whole new side of BTS.

Get ready to dive into exclusive BTS content, as well as online and offline experiences that’ll complete your ARIRANG season ✨ pic.twitter.com/TeGDYrWwRo

— Spotify ❤️ K-Pop (@SpotifyKpop) March 11, 2026

BTS and ARIRANG

In case you haven’t seen the animation trailer released earlier today, BTS makes a call back to the story of seven young Koreans who voyaged to the US in May 8, 1896 and captured the first known audio recordings of Koreans in Washington, D.C., on July 24 of that same year.

These audio recordings were recorded on a wax cylinder.

What is Decoding ARIRANG?

To kick off the final countdown to their highly anticipated comeback, BTS is inviting fans to Spotify to take on the Decoding ARIRANG mission.

Starting March 13, you can go on a treasure hunt in the Spotify app to search for 7 wax cylinder fragments. Once you find one, a fragment will unlock 1 of 7 secret voice recordings from the members, revealing personal reflections around ARIRANG’s lead single “SWIM.”

When you find all 7 fragments and reassemble BTS’ wax cylinder on Spotify, you will gain access to the ultimate ARIRANG easter egg — and another special message from BTS themselves!

How Decoding ARIRANG works

It’s easy, especially for ARMYs who are quite the detectives when it comes to anything BTS.

1. Update your Spotify app. Ensure your app is updated to the latest version and that you are logged into your Spotify Premium account to enjoy the full experience.
2. Search for the fragments on Spotify.
3. Tap on the fragment once you find it to collect it.
4. Listen to the voice recording once the fragment is loaded.
5. Click the Share button to unlock a sharecard that you can post on your social media account to let your ARMY friends know you’ve found a fragment.
6. Repeat the process until you find all 7 fragments to assemble the BTS wax cylinder and receive the final recording.

So what will you get when you complete Decoding ARIRANG?

The ultimate easter egg we mentioned earlier is actually some lyrics to ARIRANG’s lead single “SWIM.”

Spotify will be the only platform where ARMYs can find teasers to the lead single’s lyrics, so we’re pretty excited to find all of these fragments.

Tips for Decoding ARIRANG

Here are some tips to start your treasure-hunting journey:

• Fragments released each day will vary, so you’ll need to keep an eye on @SpotifyKpop on X (formerly Twitter) to see how many were released for each day.
• Click whatever you can!
• The fragments will be located where BTS is on Spotify.
• The locations of the fragments were chosen by the members. We asked a Spotify rep, and the members were really involved in this campaign, so that might be a clue!
• If you’re persistent, just like all ARMY, you can find the fragments on the day it drops.

Can you revisit the voice recordings from Decoding Arirang?

Yes, don’t worry! You can relisten and revisit the voice messages. Simply “BTS Decoding ARIRANG” on your Spotify app, and the in-app experience will open.

This experience will be available starting from March 13 until a short period of time after the album launch.

As you hunt for fragments, don’t forget to pre-save BTS’ new album ARIRANG on Spotify!

ARMY, you’ve got an incoming call from @bts_bighit 📞

excited for ‘ARIRANG’? don’t forget to pre-save BTS’ upcoming album on Spotify! https://t.co/AarYSsfria#BTS_ARIRANG #SpotifyxBTS pic.twitter.com/rZak7A70qR

— Spotify ❤️ K-Pop (@SpotifyKpop) March 13, 2026

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