It was 20 minutes past midnight in Korea when BTS decided the world had waited long enough. The septet dropped the full 14-track tracklist for their upcoming album ARIRANG on March 4, and by the time most fans in other time zones woke up, their timelines were already on fire.
The album drops March 20, 2026 and based on what the tracklist is telling us, this one is going to hit differently.
The title track and the man behind it
The title track is called SWIM. That alone got people talking. But the production credit is what really set things off.
SWIM is produced by Tyler Spry - the same man behind Bad Bunny's DeBí TiRAR MáS FOTos, which just won Album of the Year at the Grammys. That is not a small name to have attached to your comeback single. It signals immediately that BTS and their team were thinking big with this record.
Other big names involved
Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic has credits on the album. So does Diplo. Both have spoken publicly about their involvement, which is unusual - producers and collaborators typically stay quiet until release. The fact that they are talking suggests they are proud of what ended up on the record.
RM carried the writing
Look down the tracklist and one thing becomes very clear very fast. RM has songwriting credits on all 13 tracks whose details have been revealed. Every single one. SUGA follows with 11 credits and J-Hope with 10. Jungkook appears in 4 tracks, while Jimin and V each show up in 2.
Jin is the only member without a writing credit, understandable given that he was on a solo tour for most of the period when the album was being put together.
The Mystery Track
Track 6 is called No. 29 and it is listed as the interlude. No songwriters. No composers. No additional information at all - just a title sitting there quietly in the middle of the tracklist. Fans have been speculating about a big feature hiding behind it. BTS might just surprise everyone. Or they might keep it simple and let the music speak. Either way, No. 29 is the track everyone is watching most closely right now.
The Full ARIRANG Tracklist
Track 1 - Body to Body: RM, SUGA, J-Hope
Track 2 - Hooligan: RM, J-Hope, SUGA, Jungkook
Track 3 - Aliens: RM, J-Hope, SUGA, Jungkook
Track 4 - FYA: RM, SUGA, Jungkook
Track 5 - 2.0: RM, J-Hope, SUGA, V, Jungkook
Track 6 - No. 29 (Interlude): details unknown
Track 7 - SWIM: RM
Track 8 - Merry Go Round: RM, SUGA, J-Hope
Track 9 - NORMAL: RM, J-Hope, SUGA
Track 10 - Like Animals: RM
Track 11 - they don't know 'bout us: RM, SUGA, J-Hope, Jimin
Track 12 - One More Night: RM, SUGA, J-Hope
Track 13 - Please: RM, SUGA, J-Hope
Track 14 - Into the Sun: RM, SUGA, J-Hope, V, Jimin
Two weeks away
March 20 is close. The tracklist is out. The title track has a Grammy-winning producer attached to it. And ARMY, as always, is ready. The only thing left now is the music itself.
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