BTS won the Artist of the Year award at the 52nd American Music Awards held in Las Vegas on May 25, 2026, beating nominees including Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, and Harry Styles [1, 2, 3]. The band also took home Song of the Summer for their lead track "Swim" from their fifth studio album, ARIRANG [1, 4, 2, 3]. ARIRANG marked BTS's comeback after all members completed South Korea’s mandatory military service and was released in March 2026 [1, 4, 2, 5].

The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and Top Album Sales charts, showing strong global streaming and sales performance [1, 2, 5]. BTS was also awarded Best Male K-Pop Artist, a category which was split into male and female awards for the first time this year [5]. TWICE won Best Female K-Pop Artist, marking their first AMA win [5].

During the week of the awards, BTS held a sold-out four-night concert residency at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas from May 25 to May 28 [4, 2, 5]. The group, which has seven members, has planned to continue their World Tour ARIRANG with shows in South Korea and Europe after the Las Vegas dates [1, 2, 5]. The tour will cover 82 shows across 34 cities [4, 2, 5].

In acceptance speeches, BTS members expressed gratitude to their fans. RM said, "Armys, we did it once again! It’s an honour to receive this precious award after everyone completed their military service. Since this is a fan-voted award, our biggest thanks and gratitude, as always, go to Armys all over the world" [1]. He also added, "Thank you so much for giving all the love for ‘SWIM.’ When we made this, we had a lot of pressure, and were trying to figure out what kind of music felt the most like us right now. The only thing we believed then was that we have to keep challenging and keep moving forward" [4]. J-Hope said, "We have been overwhelmed by the reaction from the album. Thank you for embracing us on every single song on the album" [1, 2], while Jimin thanked fans for their ongoing support during the tour [1].

The song "Swim" topped the Billboard Global Excl. US chart six times by May 23, 2026 [1].

BTS plans to return to South Korea for concerts in Busan as part of their World Tour ARIRANG before continuing to the UK and European tour leg following the conclusion of their Las Vegas residency [1, 2].