B.T.R.'s first gigs in Tokyo and Honolulu

Rock band embarks on national and world tour

published on 2/4/25 8:15 AM

Photo: Facebook/ B.Т.R.

2024 was more than a successful year for B.T.R. - one of Bulgaria's most iconic rock bands. They celebrated the band's 30th anniversary with a national jubilee tour, culminating in two consecutive concerts at Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture, as well as a European tour. The new year, 2025, promises to be just as eventful, with two tours planned - a national club tour and a world tour.

The "National Club Tour 2025" kicks off on 7 February at the Sofia Live Club and continues in Varna (12 February), Plovdiv (15 February) and Stara Zagora (19 February). The musicians will then head to Germany, where they will play a concert in Münster on 22 February at the invitation of the "Little Bulgaria" cultural association.

They will embark on a two-month cross-continental world tour on 27 February. The first stop will be Dubai, followed by Tokyo and Honolulu (Hawaii). On 7 March they will begin a tour of the USA.

Slavcho Nikolov

"It's interesting, we want to do these shows," says guitarist and main writer of B.T.R.'s music Slavcho Nikolov, who toured some of these places with the superband The Foundation a few years ago. - Especially for B.T.R. this will be our first concert in Tokyo. It will also be our first time in Honolulu. There are a few cities in the States that we haven't visited on previous tours. It's always exciting to meet different audiences and get the reaction of people who are seeing us live for the first time. So we've got a lot of positive energy going into this year.

When asked what kind of audience they expect on their world tour, B.T.R. drummer Ilian Dikov replies:

"Diverse, but mainly Bulgarian. Because we're a band that has relied on its mother tongue for 30 years, so Bulgarians are our main audience. Of course, there are the friends, acquaintances, boyfriends, wives, husbands of our fans, so at the concerts we have a lot of friends who are not Bulgarian.

The last of 26 concerts on B.T.R.'s "Around the World Tour 2025" is scheduled for 13 April in Canada. From there they will return to Bulgaria to resume their nationwide tour of the country's summer theatres, which will traditionally end with a concert in Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture on 8 October.

The set list will include many of B.T.R.'s old songs, as well as the latest ones that have been instantly loved by the fans.

In anticipation of B.T.R.'s tours, we're left with one of their hits, '100 Hopes', from their 2014 album Why. The music of the track is by Slavcho Nikolov, lyrics by Alexander Petrov and arrangement by the band. Guest musicians are Stoyan Yankulov-Stundzhi on percussion, Kiril Nikolov on bagpipes and Yassen Velchev on keyboards.