“He's visibly shaken up too”- Fans react as MONSTA X's I.M’s video clip announcing real-time news of Korea’s martial law goes viral 

MONSTA X's I.M reportedly became the first K-pop star to break the news of the Martial Law declaration. On December 3, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law during a live public address, shocking the entire country.

Simultaneously with the Presidential announcement, MONSTA X's I.M was hosting his Kiss The Radio show on KBS's Cool FM radio at 10 PM KST.

As a result, as soon as martial law was declared, MONSTA X's I.M broke the news to his late-night program audience in real-time. The video clip of the K-pop idol sharing the martial law news quickly went viral online.

“Here’s breaking news. This evening, President Yoon Suk Yeol declared- has declared emergency martial law,” I.M stated.

Fans expressed worry as they believed the singer appeared nervous while announcing martial law. Echoing this sentiment, one X user stated:

“Imagine being from gwangju, the center of resistance during the previous military dictatatorship, with three of your members currently serving as active duty soldiers, and having to announce this. He's visibly shaken up too.”

One user on X commented (Image via X/@hyunghyukks)

Many other mixed responses for MONSTA X's I.M were seen online. While many people remarked they couldn't picture the idol's state of mind, others pointed out how traumatic it would have been for him.

“This actually makes me wanna throw up, I can’t even imagine what was going through his head when he had to say this,” stated another X user.

“This must have been so traumatizing for changkyun,” wrote a follower.

“This is so scary and so unexpected praying for everyone’s safety in sk, hope kyuni returned safely as well..” stated another supporter.

“Man i really feel for him, can only imagine having to announce this sh*t keeping your cool when internally your world changes,” commented a fan.

One follower highlighted the three MONSTA X members, namely Hyungwon, Kihyun, and Joohoney, who are currently in the military for their mandatory service.

“having to announce this, knowing 3 of your bandmates are active military must have been so rough,” stated another netizen.

“what’s also shocking is that many people knew about the martial law from an idol who was hosting his radio show…imagine hearing this news from a celebrity…imagine how he felt when he had to announce this…that’s crazy,” expressed a fan.

“i heard most of the public didnt know about it until they hear the words from changkyun’s radio cant imagine the terror he felt while announcing this,” commented another X user.

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MONSTA X's I.M was selected as DJ for Kiss The Radio show in June 2024

On June 18, MONSTA X's I.M took over as DJ of KBS Cool FM's Kiss the Radio replacing DAY6's Young K. Kiss the Radio is a long-running radio show that began with g.o.d's Danny Ahn as the first DJ, 20 years ago.

Over the years, numerous K-pop stars have served as DJs for this show, including Super Junior's Leeteuk, Eunhyuk, and Ryeowook, F.T. Island's Hongki, BTOB's Minhyuk, and others.

Additionally, Korean artist BIBI, aka Kim Hyeong-seo, commenced her live stream on Instagram during the imposition of martial law in the country, attracting significant online attention.

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The emergency martial law was repealed at roughly 4:30 AM on December 4, 2024 (KST) following a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Yoon to sanction its revocation.