V Releases Jazzy Covers of "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" and "Cheek to Cheek" For Festa

It's that time of year again for the BTS ARMY: Festa time! Every year, the two weeks leading up to June 13 (the anniversary of BTS's debut) are sacred to BTS's fandom, as the group releases content almost every day up until the big anniversary. On May 30, Big Hit released the schedule for 2023 Festa, teasing what's to come from BTS's momentous 10th anniversary.

Things are a bit different this year in more ways than one. First, 2023 Festa marks the first year not all members may participate in the Festa content. Currently, BTS is on a temporary hiatus as a group so that members can pursue solo activities and serve their mandatory service in the Korean military. So far, Jin and J-Hope have enlisted, with the rest of the group to follow in turn. (J-Hope and Jin will still be represented in Festa content in some capacity through pre-filmed footage.)

Additionally, unlike previous years where the content that will be released each day is clearly laid out, this year's schedule was massively cryptic, the poster only giving small hints as to what each day's content would entail through emojis.

However, fans know what Festa usually includes: new photos, video performances, new songs as gifts to fans, a group dinner, and more, so they were easily able to guess what each day's release could be. Many guessed the guitar and mic on June 7 could mean Jimin will perform his secret song for ARMY off his "Face" album, "Letter," (and they were right!), and there were countless other theories that ended up panning out.

Ahead, you can read about all the specifics for each day of FESTA we have so far leading up to Festa 2023's grand finale on June 17.

On May 1, BTS unveiled their BTS Everywhere website, which will be the home base for all their FESTA content this year.

On June 2, BTS announced they would livestream three of BTS's concerts throughout the day on June 3 via Weverse and YouTube as part of Festa. The concerts included the 2019 Muster Magic Shop, 2021 Muster Sowoozoo, and their 2020 virtual concert Map of the Soul ON:E. Apart from streaming the three concerts for fans, they also released six never-before-scene dance practice videos on BANGTANTV throughout the day, including "Anpanman," "Boy With Luv," and "I Need You."

On June 7, Jimin shared an acoustic live performance of his secret song for ARMY off his "Face" album, "Letter," with fans.

In a pre-filmed video featuring all the members of BTS, the members plan out a project to celebrate with ARMYs (the video title includes the phrase "Apobangpo," a term that stands for, "ARMY Forever, Bangtan Forever." Each member selected a medium for which a message from BTS would be displayed from the group, from a plane to bus stops.

Big Hit released their OT7 single, "Take Two," on June 9 as part of Festa. "The song conveys their appreciation toward ARMY for all the love you shower them with and their desire to always be together with you," Big Hit wrote about the single in a May 30 Weverse statement, adding, "We hope that 'Take Two' will become a precious 'Gift' from BTS to you all."

Suga released a new episode of "Suchwita" with Jin as a special guest. During the episode, J-Hope stopped by for a visit and Jungkook also appeared to watch Jin shave his head ahead of his military enlistment.

Each member of BTS took a fun survey of questions about their 10 years together on Twitter, including polls about the best of their best tweets - from the most iconic birthday tweet to the best group photo. The closest the group came to a unanimous decision was for question four, which asked, "What's one tweet a member posted that you feel best reflects his unique charm?" Every member except Jimin voted for the iconic selfie Jimin posted five days after their debut, asking their then-fledgling fandom, "Am I charming?"

J-Hope gifted fans with a rock version of "Arson," his single off his solo album "Jack in the Box."

BTS released a live performance of their new single, "Take Two," as well as individual-focused versions for each member of the group.

One thing fans knew they would get this Festa was an official announcement of BTS's new memoir, "BTS: Beyond the Story," which finally happened on June 14. The announcement came in the form of a one-minute trailer that teases the chapters of the book alongside clips of BTS's growth from their 2013 debut until now.

The book's existence was meant to be kept under wraps until the Festa announcement, but in early May, ARMYs and Taylor Swift fan speculation about the then-mysterious memoir's release prompted Big Hit to confirm it was a BTS book.

V released a live performance of two jazzy covers: "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas," originally performed by Bing Crosby, and "Cheek to Cheek" by Frank Sinatra (Minna Seo joined him for this duet). Fans will remember V originally released his Christmas cover in December 2022 as a gift to fans during the holiday season, but this new version sees him performing on stage with a full jazz band (fans will recognize BTS's regular collaborator, producer DOCSKIM, on the piano).

On June 6, BTS announced the 10th Anniversary FESTA @ Yeouido with a 15-second animated trailer. The announcement reveals it will take place in person on June 17 at Yeouido Hangang Park in Seoul, South Korea. The trailer ends with fans sitting in front of a screen with the BTS logo on it in a park.

Days later, on June 8, Big Hit revealed more details about the event on Weverse. It'll include special exhibition and experiential spaces, including BTS family portraits, a 10th Festa monument, and a temporary tattoo booth, among others. The festival will also feature special programs like "It's 5 pm and This is Kim Namjoon," a radio show recorded live with RM in person, plus a firework show to conclude the festival. Check out the event trailer for the event below.