"It's time to consider" - Korean Minster of Culture considers military service changes for popular artists following BTS' impact on South Korea

On Friday, August 30, 2024, The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Yu In-chon, commented on possible changes to the mandatory military service rules for well-known artists following BTS' success. This comment was made with the consideration of BTS' impact on South Korea.

BTS has been one the biggest factors in the push towards South Korea's tourism, especially with the member Jin serving as the honorary tourism ambassador of Seoul City and participating in the Feel Soul Good campaign.

The group was also appointed as Special Presidential Envoy for Future Generations and Culture by the South Korean President, Moon Jae-in, in 2021. Apart from these achievements, Moon Jae-in also mentioned the group as one of his three major innovation strategies for the country's content industry in 2019. These are a few impacts they have made on the country.

He stated that since the impact is equivalent to the change Olympians bring to the country, a similar consideration on military service needs to be made for the influential artists of the country. This statement was made during an interview with YTN on August 30. On the other hand, South Korean men who have won gold medals for the country are exempted from mandatory military service.

Here's what The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Yu In-chon, stated:

"The results that BTS has achieved through its journey are almost equivalent to winning several gold medals at the Olympics. Now, it seems like it's time to consider various ways to examine this. (alternative military service for popular cultural artists)."

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All you need to know about BTS and their military services

BTS, also known as Bangtan Sonyeon-dan (Bulletproof Boys), is a seven-piece K-pop boy group that debuted in June 2013 under BigHit Entertainment. While the agency was a small company during BTS' debut, the group and agency grew together.

BigHit Entertainment, relabeled and expanded as HYBE Labels, is not the largest entertainment company in the South Korean music industry. On the other hand, BTS's success and impact on South Korea's and the world's music industry has only been moving uphill since their debut.

The band is now known as the most successful K-pop and musical band in the world, with enormous awards of recognition and achievements. While they've constantly succeeded since June 2022, they've also been growing individually as solo artists. All the members have now made their solo debut and have bagged much recognition and appreciation.

However, as of December 12, 2023, all BTS members have enlisted in the military. Jin was the first to enlist in December 2022, and he has returned to the industry after fulfilling his mandatory military service as an active drill instructor. j-hope, who enlisted in April 2023, is expected to return to the music industry in October 2024.

The other members are all expected to be discharged in June 2025. While Suga enlisted in September 2023, he will only be discharged in June 2025, serving longer than the other members. This is because Suga is serving as a social worker since his shoulder injury restricted him from joining other sections of the South Korean army.

The group's leader, RM, enlisted alongside V on December 11, 2024. The two recently completed their military training and graduated as Elite Performers of their batch. Jimin and Jungkook enlisted on December 12, 2024. The two entered their military through the Buddy System.

This system means they will serve together, side by side. The system allows friends, family, or close acquaintances to enlist together to help each other complete the period of military service. The four members, RM, V, Jimin, and Jungkook, will be released in June 2025.

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As BTS will reunite in 2025, fans eagerly await their return as a group. Stay tuned for more news and updates on the group's career and achievements.