BTS’ Jungkook teases 2026 album amid protests and harassment over aespa’s Winter rumours: 'The title song is...'

As dating rumours spiralled and fan wars dominated timelines, Jungkook did the unexpected — he went live.

In the middle of the chaos surrounding alleged links with aespa’s Winter, the BTS star appeared on a livestream, calmly talking music, choreography, and the band’s next album, as if the noise outside didn’t exist. And in doing so, he shifted the conversation entirely.

Jungkook revealed that the members have been talking frequently and are in the process of assessing which songs translate best into performance. “Some songs worked really well with choreography, some didn’t,” he shared, adding that the group plans to regroup for practice around the 19th or 20th. He confirmed there are two to three performance-heavy tracks — then paused, corrected himself. "No, wait… one, two, three, four,” he said, hinting that fans should expect more than they’re anticipating.

What stood out most, however, was how he described the album itself. According to Jungkook, the upcoming record doesn’t follow the traditional K-pop structure of a dominant title track. “The title song isn’t like a title song,” he explained. “This album doesn’t really have that kind of concept. But if you had to choose one, there is a title track — it’s that kind of album.”

His appearance came just as online discourse around Jungkook and Winter reached a fever pitch.

Over the past few weeks, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) have been flooded with alleged photos and speculative “evidence” fueling dating rumours between the two idols after claims of 'matching tattoos' went viral. A section of Jungkook’s fans organised a truck protest outside BTS’ management company’s headquarters in Seoul, with LED displays calling for clarification over the rumours and, in some cases, urging the singer to step back from group activities if the claims were true.

According to a Korea Times report, messages displayed on the trucks included demands such as “Erase the couple tattoo or step back from BTS activities,” alongside harsher statements like, “Are you in your right mind deceiving fans and harming the group?” and “ARMY waited for you during the military, and this is what we get in return.”

Both stars have faced a surge in online harassment. Jungkook’s secondary Instagram account — often used to share posts about his dog — and Winter’s official Instagram were flooded with hostile comments from some users pushing dating allegations.

While neither artist has addressed the claims directly, the situation escalated when Winter’s agency, SM Entertainment, issued an official statement warning against the spread of malicious content and confirming legal action to protect the aespa member.

The move sparked immediate backlash.

While some praised SM for taking a firm stand against defamation, others accused the agency of acting too late — and for the wrong reasons. Fans pointed to reports suggesting SM Entertainment’s stock had dropped nearly six percent before the statement was released, leading to accusations that the agency only intervened once financial impact became unavoidable.

Earlier, BTS RM had earlier seemingly addressed the controversy saying that he does 'not represent' the team, and that he was just 'one person'.