Big Time Rush to Play Rupp Arena on Monday, February 2, 2026
LEXINGTON, KY. (October 20, 2025) – Big Time Rush is officially heading to college. After fans flocked to their wildly successful 2025 run this summer, the group will be hitting the road (and the books) again with 15 new U.S. shows for 2026 including a stop in Lexington, KY at Rupp Arena on Monday, February 2, 2026.
The In Real Life Worldwide Tour continues as Big Time Rush’s most expansive tour yet as the group plays criss-crosses the globe performing at the largest venues of their career. The new dates will follow BTR’s upcoming full-scale European leg in November & December, including sold-out shows and multiple nights in select cities. The band will then return to Mexico & South America for the first time since their sold-out run in 2023, to Australia following their sold-out 2024 run, and to Hawaii & the UAE for their first-ever shows in Honolulu & Dubai.
The band will take their pop major to the next level, earning some “extra credit” with these newly announced shows produced by Live Nation.
Limited $30 student tickets are available at participating shows (any taxes will be added at checkout as applicable to each city, state and venue).
The band is thrilled to bring the show to colleges across the country, saying “one of us actually dropped out of college and well, the others didn’t go, but the point is, we’re coming to a college arena near you and are ready to get the party started! Your homework assignment is to know all the lyrics to every song from every episode. Get to work - we’ll see you top of 26!”
Big Time Rush is getting their PhD in performance - hitting the stage with the same energy, humor, and charm that made them fan favorites from their Nickelodeon days, will revisit their favorite moments from the show, plus many more surprises. Katelyn Tarver and Stephen Kramer Glickman, also known as Jo and Gustavo on the show, will be joining the band as support, making for an epic reunion.
The band will play every song from every episode of their hit Nickelodeon show, many of which have never been played live.
In celebration of the new dates, BTR will release their beloved track “Blow Your Speakers Out” on official platforms on October 30. The song is a fan favorite from the TV show but was never officially released or performed live until the In Real Life Worldwide Tour. Download the single artwork HERE and pre-save the track HERE.
TICKETS & VIP UPGRADES: Tickets and VIP Upgrade packages will be available starting with artist presale beginning Tuesday, October 21. Upgrade packages will be available for these shows and may include meet and greets with solo or group photos with BTR and more. For more information on VIP upgrades and to sign up to be a BTR Fan club member, go to BigTimeRushOfficial.com. Additional presales will run throughout the week ahead of the general on sale beginning Friday, October 24 at 10 A.M. at Ticketmaster.com, RuppArena.com, or in person at the Central Bank Center Box Office from 12-4 P.M. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Media Contacts:
Big Time Rush:
Erica Gerard | erica.gerard@fullcov.com
Jordan Ament | jordan.ament@fullcov.com
Live Nation Concerts:
Navier Grimes | naviergrimes@livenation.com
To apply for media credentials to the North American tour dates please visit: livenation.com/pressrequests
Venue Contact:
Samantha Luse | SLuse@centralbankcenter.com
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About Big Time Rush
Big Time Rush became an overnight sensation in November 2009 when the scripted TV show of the same name launched on Nickelodeon. The show focused on the Hollywood adventures of four hockey players from Minnesota after they were selected to form a boy band. The show became a huge success and later, Carlos, Kendall, James, and Logan came to life as a band off the screen releasing three full length albums and performing across the globe. As the show concluded in July 2013 and after four years of recording music and touring as a band, they went their separate ways but remained close friends through the years.
After 7 years, in an effort to bring joy to their fans during quarantine around the world, the members of Big Time Rush decided to appear together as a group to send a message of love and togetherness. This was soon followed by a socially distant performance of an acoustic version of their smash hit, "Worldwide". These appearances resulted in hysteria amongst their fans and in the media, followed by BTR receiving 10+ million streams in 2020 alone. Four seasons of the TV show were added to Netflix in March 2021 and have appeared in the Netflix "Top 10" trending titles.
The band finished off 2021 with a performance at iHeartRadio Jingle Ball in Philadelphia as well as 2 sold out shows in Chicago and NYC, capping it off with the release of their first single in 8 years, “Call It Like I See It”.
The power group kicked off 2022 stronger than ever with the launch of their wildly successful, sold-out Forever Tour, as well as all new music, including hit singles “Honey,” “Fall,” and “Not Giving You Up.” The Forever Tour included numerous sell outs including shows in Chicago, at New York City’s legendary Madison Square Garden and on all dates on their Mexico Tour. The tour concluded in early 2023 in South America with shows in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Chile.
Another Life, which was released in June of 2023, was the band’s first new studio album release in ten years and was followed up by a special deluxe version in November. The band’s 2023 Can’t Get Enough Tour sold out amphitheater and arena shows – selling out venues across the US including Los Angeles’s KIA Forum and New York’s Jones Beach on the 39-city run. Across 2022 and 2023 the band’s reunion resulted in over 600,000 tickets sold.
2024 was another incredible year for Big Time Rush, including several sold-out international tours in the UK, Europe, Asia & Australia. The band ended the year with their sold-out holiday extravaganza – Big Time Rush On Ice – bringing their fans together for a first of its kind skating and concert spectacle on ice.
About Rupp Arena
Located in Lexington, Kentucky, the Lexington Center Corporation (LCC) is a not-for-profit 501c3 corporate agency of the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government. It was established in 1974 to manage and maintain Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, the Central Bank Center (formerly Lexington Convention Center), Triangle Park, and the Lexington Opera House. One of the nation’s most storied entertainment destinations, Central Bank Center venues collectively welcome an average of 1.3 million patrons annually.
Since 1976, Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center has served as the home court of the University of Kentucky men’s basketball team, regularly leading the national attendance average. Rupp Arena has hosted legendary artists such as Justin Timberlake, Paul McCartney, Garth Brooks, Chris Stapleton, and many more. Since 2018, Oak View Group and Live Nation Arenas have provided booking services to Rupp Arena. During the last 18 months, Rupp Arena has broken all previous audience attendance and revenue records in its storied 43-year history.
About Oak View Group
Oak View Group (OVG) is the global leader in live experience venue development, management, premium hospitality services, and 360-degree solutions for a collection of world-class-owned venues and a client roster of arenas, convention centers, music festivals, performing arts centers, and cultural institutions. Founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff in 2015, OVG is the leading developer of major new venues either open or under development across four continents. Visit OakViewGroup.com, and follow OVG on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.