How BTS Cleverly Utilizes 'Gunbaekgi' [Jihye Yoon's Public Exploration Area]

[Kstar Jhon] Singer Yoo Seung-jun, who captured the hearts of the Korean public with his "scissor dance" more than 20 years ago, was banned from entering the country when he obtained a U.S. citizenship ahead of his enlistment in the military, and MC Mon, who was loved by the public not only as a singer but also as a producer and entertainer for his exceptional talent more than a decade ago, was banned from appearing on broadcasters amid suspicions that he was trying to avoid military service, including having his molars removed and falsely taking a civil service exam.

The tragedy of the decalcomaniacal duo began with suspicions that they had evaded military service. If you're an able-bodied male star in the Korean entertainment industry, or even a regular person, military service is something you want to avoid if at all possible. Every day is precious, and no one wants to mortgage their life's freedom for an indefinite period of time, no matter how short it may be.

Especially for celebrities, it's not so much the military service itself, but rather the unintended consequences of it, the so-called 'military hiatus'. If you've established yourself before enlisting, you'll be forgotten, if not, you'll be forgotten again, and you'll have to live with the fear and dread of losing your chance.

In the midst of all the talk about the inevitability of the situation and the wide margin of error of leaving it to chance, an example of an exemplary answer has recently emerged. This is BTS (BTS). BTS, whose members are all currently serving in the military, are proving their popularity during their hiatus, or "military hiatus," as they are actively returning to the activities that they did in their own style before enlisting in the military.

J-Hope's special mini-album "Hop on the Street VOL 1," released on the 29th, broke his own record for highest ranking on the UK Official Charts, Jimin became the first Korean solo artist to reach 1 billion streams on Spotify, the world's largest streaming platform, with "Like Crazy," released a year ago, and V surpassed 500 million streams with "Love Me Again," released last September.

And let's not forget Jungkook. His debut solo album, "Golden," has held the honor of being on the Weekly Top Albums Global Chart for 22 consecutive weeks, the longest by a K-pop solo artist in history, according to Spotify. After successfully completing his first solo world tour "D-Day" as "August D," Suga is preparing to release a movie documenting his three-day concert in Seoul as his final and encore performance, and his YouTube channel "Shuchuta" (Time to Get Drunk with Suga) is still updating new videos every two to three weeks.

With the end of the war just around the corner, Gene's first solo single, "The Astronaut," which he released before enlisting in the military, reclaimed the No. 1 spot on Shazam Japan, the world's largest music search platform. It's a testament to the fact that he's still very much loved more than a year later. After BTS's group activities were temporarily suspended, RM took advantage of his own tastes and appeared on the program "Alphabet Dictionary of Mysterious Human Trivia," a program that deals with various knowledge about human beings and life in an interesting way, and showed off his value as a core part of BTS's philosophy.

Of course, BTS was late to enlist in the military compared to the average age of military service. However, there is a significant difference between delaying their enlistment to avoid it, and the fact that each of the members enlisted one by one, making the most of their time off from group activities in their own way, and doing their best to fulfill their military obligations, even enjoying them. In other words, they have thought a lot about their military service, both as an idol group and as stars, and have made sincere preparations accordingly.

This goes hand-in-hand with the authenticity that has made BTS so beloved around the world. The reason why most people, even if they're not in the Army, love BTS - or at least, can't hate them - is because they've built a strong atmosphere of trust and belief that they're genuine in their music and performances. This is also evident in their approach to military service. They're open about their fears and worries and share everything with the public as much as possible.

Perhaps, this process is giving them the opportunity to boldly face the barrier of 'military service' and actually use it as a stepping stone instead of a barrier. This is especially true for those who are watching, as they realize that BTS is not just an idol group that was created by luck. In many ways, this is an inspiring example for the Korean entertainment industry, which has had to deal with a lot of noise in the face of military service.

[Kstar Jhon, photos = BTS official SNS, Jin&RM&Suga&Jimin SNS]