“Imagine if the Beatles had broken up at the height of their fame. “The world’s best pop band, BTS, is doing that right now.”
On the 12th, the British BBC reported that BTS’ Jimin (28) and Jungkook (26) enlisted as active-duty soldiers in the army, making all seven members fulfill their military service obligations. This means that the shock that global fans will feel as BTS’s activities are temporarily halted due to military enlistment is the same as the disbandment of the Beatles.
BBC evaluated that Jungkook had recently reached the peak of his solo career with hit songs such as ‘Seven’ and ‘Standing Next to You’. “Just as he was about to soar to the next level of stardom, he put the brakes on and returned to Seoul,” the report said. “The K-pop star’s lush permed hair disappeared and the short-cropped hair of a frontline soldier appeared.”
K-pop fans around the world, including BTS fans ARMY, expressed their disappointment over the enlistment of all members. Comments such as “Everyone disappeared at once,” “My heart hurts so much,” and “I will miss everyone” were posted on BTS TikTok videos. The New York Times (NYT) analyzed that BTS would have to wait at least 547 days, 13,128 hours, and 47 million seconds before they could get together again and hold a concert. K-pop researcher Grace Caomi, a professor of sociology at Yale University, said, “It is very cruel to Western fans that BTS has to take a ‘forced break’ (due to military service).”
J-Hope of the group BTS enlisted in the recruit training center of an army division in Gangwon-do on the 18th, and the members are taking commemorative photos as they see him off. (BTS SNS capture) 2023.4.18/News 1Nevertheless, experts predicted that BTS’ popularity would continue steadily. Billboard magazine K-pop columnist Jeff Benjamin said, “Generally, if a music group takes a hiatus, it affects its popularity. However, I would like to boldly say that if there is a group that can resist that trend, it would be BTS.” On the 11th and 12th, the song ‘Spring Day’ released 6 years ago ranked first in the iTunes rankings.
Some analysts say that BTS’ absence is an opportunity for other K-pop groups. Professor Park Ji-min, who studies K-pop at the University of Malaya in Malaysia, said, “The temporary suspension of BTS will make a difference so that other K-pop groups can receive more attention,” and added, “It is a ‘win-win’ situation for the industry.” BBC said to In fact, ATEEZ, a K-pop boy group belonging to a small and medium-sized agency, topped the Billboard album chart with their album ‘The World EP.Fin: Will’ on the 12th.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.