[with ARMY ㉒] "The Best Is Yet to Come": One ARMY Finds Strength in BTS After a Difficult Year

TORONTO — Among the thousands of ARMYs gathering for BTS' "ARIRANG" World Tour in Toronto, Joanie Rioux-Morin stood out in a pink-and-red hanbok-inspired outfit she had spent eight hours preparing for the occasion.

The look featured a pale pink top paired with a long red skirt, with floral embroidery and decorative details running across the front. She completed it with red-and-black hair ornaments and small floral details across her face, putting her own touches on an outfit she had purchased ahead of the concert.

For Rioux-Morin, 35, the decision to draw from traditional Korean clothing was intentional. Ahead of what would be her first BTS concert, she wanted what she wore to acknowledge the culture behind the group she had come to love.

"It's related to Korean culture, so I was thinking it was fitting to honor their culture," she told K-POPIT.

Rioux-Morin described herself as a "baby ARMY," having discovered BTS in 2023 after coming across content of Jungkook and Jimin while scrolling online. But in the relatively short time since, the group's words had taken on a much deeper meaning in her life.

What first resonated was BTS' message to "love yourself." More recently, however, another phrase became especially important to her: "The best is yet to come."

For Rioux-Morin, those words became something to hold onto through an especially difficult period.

"Last year, I did chemotherapy, and my mother died last month from cancer too," she shared. "I think 'the best is yet to come,' it helped me to get through that."

Her story reflected how quickly a connection to BTS can become meaningful, even for someone who discovered the group years after their debut. While some of the ARMYs surrounding her in Toronto had followed the seven members for a decade or more, Rioux-Morin had only been part of the fandom since 2023.

Still, it was BTS' message rather than the length of time she had spent as a fan that mattered to her. Asked what she liked most about the group, she pointed to "their vision" and the messages they share with their listeners, particularly the emphasis on self-love that first drew her in.

The Toronto stop also marked another first. Rioux-Morin had never seen BTS perform together in person before the group's Aug. 22 and 23 concerts at Rogers Stadium.

When asked what she was most excited about ahead of her first show, there was no particular song, member or performance she singled out.

"To be here," she said. When asked again, her answer remained the same: "To be here."

After a year marked by both her own treatment and the loss of her mother, simply reaching that moment carried enough meaning on its own. Dressed for an occasion she had spent hours preparing for and surrounded by thousands of ARMYs waiting to see BTS, a phrase that had helped carry Rioux-Morin through a difficult period took on another layer of meaning.

For at least that night, "the best is yet to come" was no longer only something she was trying to believe. She had made it to a moment she had been waiting to experience.