YEONCHEON, South Korea (AP) — Jin, the oldest member of K-pop supergroup BTS, began his 18 months of mandatory military service Tuesday at a South Korean frontline training camp in as fans gathered near the base to greet their star. .
Six more younger members of BTS will be joining the military in the next few years, one after the other, which means that the biggest boy band in the world has to take a break, maybe for a few years. Their enlistments have sparked a heated domestic debate over whether to change the country’s recruitment system to expand exemptions to include top entertainers like BTS, or not give those benefits to anyone.
With MPs squabbling in Parliament and polls showing public opinion is sharply divided over granting exemptions to BTS members, their management agency said in October that all BTS members would fulfill their military obligations. Big Hit Music said that both the company and BTS members “look forward to reuniting as a group around 2025 as a result of their commitment to service.”
Jin, who turned 30 earlier this month, entered the training camp in Yeoncheon, a city near the tense border with North Korea, for five weeks of basic military training with other new recruits, he said. Defense. After training involving rifle shooting, grenade throwing and marching drills, he and other recruits would be assigned to army units across the country.
About 20 to 30 fans — some holding photos of Jin — and dozens of reporters gathered near the court. But Jin didn’t meet them when a vehicle carrying him entered the training ground without taking him out.
“I want to wait for Jin to see him in the army and wish him all the best,” Hong Kong’s Mandy Lee said before Jin entered the field.
“It’s actually complicated. i want to be sad I want to be happy for him,” said Angelina from Indonesia. “Mixed feelings. He has to serve (for) his country.” Angelina, like many Indonesians, uses only one name.
A few dozen fans could be seen as a small presence considering Jin’s huge popularity. But Jin and his management agency had previously asked fans not to visit the site and informed them that there would be no special event involving the singer to prevent any problems caused by crowding.
Authorities have further mobilized 300 police, soldiers, rescuers and others to maintain order and guard against any incidents, according to the army. Tight security measures have been put in place as South Korea is still reeling from October’s devastating Halloween spree in Seoul, which killed 158 people.
Hours before taking the field, Jin – whose real name is Kim Seok-jin – wrote on online fan platform Weverse that “It’s time for a curtain call.” On Sunday, he posted a photo of himself in a military crop and a message that read: “Ha ha ha. It’s cuter than I expected.”
By law, all eligible South Korean men must serve 18 to 21 months in the military under a conscription system created to deal with threats from North Korea. But the law grants special exemptions to athletes, classical and traditional musicians, dancers and other dancers if they have won major prizes in certain competitions and gained national prestige. K-pop stars and other entertainers do not enjoy such benefits, even as they gain worldwide fame and win major international awards.
“Although BTS members chose to join the military, there are still regrets,” said Jung Duk-hyun, a pop culture commentator. “Those in the pop culture industry face few disadvantages and injustices compared to those in the pure art or sports industries. This will probably continue to be a contentious issue, so I wonder if it should be discussed on an ongoing basis.”
Exemptions or evasion are a very sensitive issue in South Korea, where the draft forces young people to put their studies or careers on hold. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and Lee Ki Sik, head of South Korea’s enlistment bureau, previously said it would be “desirable” for BTS members to perform their military duties to ensure fairness in the country’s military service.
Chun In-bum, a retired lieutenant general who commanded South Korea’s special forces, said the government must take steps to repeal any exemptions because the army’s dwindling recruitment pool is “a very serious problem” due to the declining fertility rate in the country. He called the debate about BTS’s military service “unnecessary” because it was not brought up by BTS members, who showed their willingness to perform their duties.
BTS was created in 2013 and has a legion of supporters around the world who call themselves the “Army”. Its other members are RM, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook, who is the youngest at 25 years old. The group expanded their popularity in the West with the 2020 mega-hit “Dynamite”, the band’s first English-language song, which made BTS the first K-pop group to chart on Billboard’s Hot 100. world and even invited to speak at United Nations meetings.
Hybe Corp., Big Hit’s parent company, said in October that each member of the band will focus on individual activities planned around military service plans for now. In October, Jin released “The Astronaut”, a single co-written by Coldplay.
Jung, the commentator, said the sold projects could give BTS members time to develop after working together as a group for many years. But Cha Woo-jin, a K-pop commentator, said it’s unclear whether BTS will enjoy the same popularity as a group when they reunite after completing their military duties in a few years.
In August, Lee, the defense minister, said active BTS members would likely be allowed to continue practicing and join other inactive BTS members on overseas group tours.
Cha said that the global influence of K-pop will not be hurt too much by the enlistments of BTS members because “they seem to represent K-pop, but they are not all K-pop”. Chung agrees, saying that other K-pop groups like BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and aespa could grow even more.
Kim reported from Seoul, South Korea.
