Jimmy Fallon’s Staff Accused Of “Kidnapping” And “Torturing” BTS Fans At A Top-Secret Performance
What began as a dream come true for BTS fans turned into a nightmare that has left some in tears.
On the morning of March 25, BTS performed at the Guggenheim art museum in New York City, ahead of their March 26 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. According to Billboard, BTS performed two tracks from their new ARIRANG album, “SWIM” and “2.0” for about 150 fans.
Phones were not permitted at the performance, but that hasn’t stopped fans from sharing the bleak details about the event on X (formerly Twitter). In a thread captioned “Exposing the Jimmy Fallon and his disgusting management: ,” one fan described their experience in heartwrenching detail.
Exposing the Jimmy Fallon and his disgusting management:
First of all I’m grateful I got the special taping. I have been waiting to see BTS OT7 again for 6 years since 2019 so I’m greatful I got to see my 7.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
In a series of tweets, they described the event’s management as “absolutely disgusting and cruel,” while giving a play-by-play of how fans were treated. According to their account, all the fans were transported from the NBC building to the museum, but only some were able to watch BTS perform in person.
HOWEVER, the management for this event was absolutely disgusting and cruel. I went into the show expecting to get the intimacy you get from the taping in the NBC building but once we were in they locked our phones and took us on a bus to the Guggenheim.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
It was a little weird but we’re excited to see what was coming. Everything we did was separated by wristbands so they called people to line up along the Guggenheim spiral to see BTS perform from below. The performance was great the boys looked absolutely ethereal.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
But this is when things started going down hill. There was a stage at the bottom of the Guggenheim and they put blue pillows around it. They picked people with blue wristbands and random people to go sit at the pillows along the stage.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
It was very close and personal like a very unique close experience. BTS came out and they performed for the group three times while people with other wristbands were locked in a room away form the rest and they live streamed it to us.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
THIS AS ABSOLUTELY CRUEL. They showed us BTS performing and interacting with other people in another room THREE TIMES while were locked away in the same building. We were under the impression that other wristband holders would would get the same experience.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
But no they ever switched out the groups and as we realized we were not gonna get the same experience the mood turned sour. Everyone was not happy. People were looking away from the screen me included and some started crying.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
This was absolutely cruel. I was first in line and waited since 11pm to 4:45am for check in. I came all the way from Connecticut, took time I away from work and school to see them.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
The whole taping process was 5 hours not counting the waiting in line in the cold. I did not sleep basically and they just locked me in room to watch bts perform for other people in a room right next to me. How does that make any sense??
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
They had space and time to accommodate so that everyone could see them but their lazy ass team chose to not let others see BTS. It was all planned. They wasted my fucking.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
I Genuinely can not describe how sad, devastated, and betrayed everyone felt. The mood was HORRIBLE. They could have let us go but they locked us in a room NEXT TO BTS AND FORCED US TO WATCH THEM PEFORM FOR OTHER PEOPLE AFTER HOURS OF WAITING IN LINE IN THE COLD SLEEP DEPRIVED
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
We didn’t know what time it was because our phones where locked away and we just sat there wasting our time. It would have been better if they did not show it. It was a very disgusting and cruel experience. I’m never going back to the Guggenheim. I’m genuinely traumatized.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
I have so much hatred in my heart for this show and their management. They wasted my time and sleep just to get people to show for one performance and not reward us back with the one thing we came to see. I would have rather had the closeness of a studio performance than this.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
Fuck you Jimmy Fallon, fuck your terrible horrible cruel management and fuck that racist host WHO TF EVEN IS HE. I HATE THE COLOR BLUE. I’m happy for everyone that got an interaction but the fact that even the earliest people didn’t get this is insane.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
AND WHY WOULD THEY SHOW US. If you weren’t gonna give a fair experience to all the people you just kidnapped why would you so cruelly show us something we can’t have because you deliberately chose to fuck over half your audience. Fuck the Jimmy Fallon show.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
Fans described sitting there for hours, phones locked away, with no sense of time, as they watched other people live their dream while they cried, turned away from the screen, or felt completely devastated and betrayed. Many had taken time off work or school and traveled specifically for this taping.
The way I was legit psychologically tortured by the Fallon show today. I can’t describe what it like to be in room with people crying while someone else is living your dream down the hall and you are locked away watching it. With no sense of time.
— myg enthusiast ⟭⟬⁷ (@nimnooy913) March 25, 2026
what the tonight show/jimmy fallon just did to us in the morning taping was cruel
— kels⁷ (@shotglassofjjk) March 25, 2026
My friend was asked by staff “why should I pick you? Tell me why you really want it.”
Only for her not to get picked at all. https://t.co/YD1Fqf1m5e
— ⟭⟬ Gemini ⁷ is seeing BTS ⟬⟭ ⊙⊝⊜ (@gem_jam) March 25, 2026
Jimmy fallon and his team should not only apologise to bts but they should definitely apologise to the armys who cried because of them. I’m so mad rn
— Naza⁷🧋 (@bangtanniesgguk) March 25, 2026
Fans were also reportedly expected to arrange their own transportation after the show, despite none of them being told ahead of time that they would be transported from The Tonight Show‘s studio to a top-secret location.
THEY DID NOT. Everyone had to find their way back home in their own. Would’ve been fine just dropping us back to the Jimmy Fallon studio but we were on our own and they weren’t transparent about that at all even though we figured when they dodged the question.
— ⟭⟬ Gemini ⁷ is seeing BTS ⟬⟭ ⊙⊝⊜ (@gem_jam) March 25, 2026
Additionally, one of the staff members has been accused of racism.
Joon just the other day said “no one asks if I’m from north or South Korea anymore” and today a staff on the jimmy fallon show “jokingly” asked “which one of them is from North Korea?”
BTS have been active in the west for 10 years and they’re still facing the SAME xenophobia.
— sid⁷ 🪭 ARIRANG TO 1B ‼️‼️‼️ (@introjiminiee) March 25, 2026
i’m sorry but your staff/emcee needs to fix their fucking attitude/blatant racism
“which one of them is north korean?”
excuse me what the fuck?? @FallonTonight
— tram anh⁷ IS SEEING BTS (@gazedkth) March 25, 2026
not only did you think it was okay to split the audience for the SWIM performance, only allowing ppl who YOUR staff thought deserved to see it based on who knows? (looks) even though their was enough room for all…
your emcee also thought it would be okay to make a racist ass…
— Jung Kirk is seeing BTS (@peachiikoo) March 25, 2026
not only did you think it was okay to split the audience for the SWIM performance, only allowing ppl who YOUR staff thought deserved to see it based on who knows? (looks) even though their was enough room for all…
your emcee also thought it would be okay to make a racist ass joke asking “which of them is north korean?”
what a shit show jimmy fallon. very disappointing coming from you especially
@FallonTonight— Tweet caption
BTS’s Fallon interview and the first of their two Guggenheim performances will air on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on March 25 at 11:35 p.m. on NBC. The second performance will air on Thursday, March 26.
