BTS members now done with mandatory service
BTS poses in the press room with the awards for favorite pop duo or group, favorite pop song for “Butter,” and artist of the year at the American Music Awards on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021, at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
SEOUL, South Korea — Suga, a rapper and songwriter in the global K-pop sensation BTS, has been discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service, marking the official return of all seven members from their enlistment duties.
The label confirmed that Suga completed his alternative service duties on Wednesday, June 18, after using up his remaining leave. His official discharge date is Saturday, June 21.
BTS’ management agency, Big Hit Entertainment, had said earlier that no events were planned for Suga’s release out of concern for overcrowding.
Suga also expressed his gratitude to their fans, dubbed as ARMY, on Saturday through the platform Weverse. The K-pop star also stated that he was able to reflect on himself the past two years.
“ARMY, thank you and thank you again for waiting. Also, I am sorry for causing disappointment and concern with what happened last year,” he said in Korean, apparently referring to the DUI incident in 2024.
“More than anything, the fact that I hurt the fans’ hearts was so upsetting to me. I was also sorry to the members, whose hearts must have been heavy in their own respective places because of me,” he continued.
Concluding his message, he vowed, “From now on, I will work even harder to repay the love you have given me. I love you.”
It is a momentous occasion for fans of the K-pop group BTS. The seven singers of the popular K-pop band plan to reunite as a group sometime in 2025 now that they’ve finished their service.
Last week, BTS superstars RM and V were discharged from South Korea’s military after fulfilling their mandatory service. Jimin and Jung Kook were discharged a day later. All four were enlisted in December 2023.
Six of the group’s seven members served in the army, while Suga fulfilled his duty as a social service agent, an alternative form of military service.
Jin, the oldest BTS member, was discharged in June 2024. J-Hope was discharged in October.
In South Korea, all able-bodied men aged 18 to 28 are required by law to perform 18 to 21 months of military service under a conscription system meant to deter aggression from rival North Korea.
The law gives special exemptions to athletes, classical and traditional musicians, and ballet and other dancers if they have obtained top prizes in certain competitions and are assessed to have enhanced national prestige. K-pop stars and other entertainers aren’t subject to such privileges.
However, in 2020, BTS postponed their service until age 30 after South Korea’s National Assembly revised its Military Service Act, allowing K-pop stars to delay their enlistment until age 30.
There was heated public debate in 2022 over whether to offer special exemptions of mandatory military service for BTS members, until the group’s management agency announced in October 2022 that all seven members would fulfill their duties. /ra
