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David D. Lee

Until now, no exceptions have been made for K-pop stars when it comes to South Korea’s mandatory military service for able-bodied young men.
After all, the nuclear-armed and weapons-testing North Korea is not far away, and the two sides are technically still at war.
That helps explain why global superstars like rapper G-Dragon, a member of the group Big Bang, and Exo singer Chanyeol have both gone through the rite of passage of wearing military gear for at least 18 months.
But now it seems possible that the seven members of BTS – also known as the Bangtan Boys – will become the first K-pop stars to receive a military exemption.
What were these 5 Korean stars like during their military service?
While there seems to be general support for the move from national legislators and the public, many people including some men aged 18 to 28 who cannot avoid conscription, have expressed their disapproval of the band – Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, RM, Jungkook and V – continuing to sing instead of march.
The seven have already deferred their compulsory enlistment thanks to 2020’s so-called “BTS law”. It allows K-pop entertainers awarded government medals for their achievements to be allowed to join the armed forces aged 30, instead of 28, if recommended by the culture minister.


Like them or loathe them, the men share a noteworthy resume, including becoming the first South Korean artists to reach No 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and selling millions of albums worldwide. They were also the first K-pop group to be nominated for a high-profile Grammy Award in the US (they did not win).
Unfortunately for BTS, such major accolades overseas do not mean they can avoid a sergeant major back home shouting at them to get up before the crack of dawn.
Currently, only award-winning globally recognised classical musicians and Olympic and Asian Games gold medallists are exempt from enlisting or allowed to do other kinds of public service. Some art competitions – irrelevant to BTS – also allow for exemptions.

Given that BTS’ creativity is worth around US$3.54 billion to the South Korean economy annually, it is not so surprising lawmakers are discussing ways to exempt the group from military duty, likely fuelled by the fact that oldest member Kim Seok-Jin – known as Jin – will be 30 in December.
That means he will have to put on his military fatigues for the first time by the end of 2023 if the current law does not change. In 2020, he seemed more than willing to, saying “military service was a necessary duty” and he would “respond whenever the country called”.
However, at a press conference this month, before the group performed in Las Vegas, Jin said he had “talked a lot with the label and decided to leave most matters in the hands of the label”.
Which South Koreans are famous enough to avoid military service?
Lee Jin-hyung is chief communications officer for entertainment company HYBE, which manages BTS. Speaking at the same event, he said the “military service revision bill pending at the National Assembly would hopefully come to a conclusion as soon as possible”. He also hoped BTS “would continue its activities without a long period of break”.
According to a recent Gallup Korea poll, 59 per cent of those questioned said pop stars should be able to receive military exemptions; 33 per cent thought they should not (the rest did not express an opinion).
Representative Sung Il-Jong of the People Power Party said last week that he and his Democratic Party counterpart recently discussed the need to review military exemptions and hinted changes may come very soon.
He said while sports stars added value to the economy, with an Olympic gold indirectly bringing in around US$210.7 million, a number one song in the US would have an economic effect in South Korea to the tune of US$1.38 billion.

Set an example, or one rule for them?
There are many reasons, though, why military exemption, including for cash cow BTS, is still a controversial topic. For starters, some people are angry that powerful men like politicians and business leaders, and their close relations, manage to avoid military service, with various controversies in recent years.
Sports teams have been accused of using major competitions as routes to exemption, picking players about to enter the military to be on the national team instead of other worthy candidates.
Women are excluded from military duty which upsets young antifeminist men, many of whom voted for conservative president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol in this year’s election. He has promised to raise the monthly wage of soldiers.


But the support by Yoon’s People Power Party of a revision to the military exemption law has left young people like Kwang Do-kyeom, who voted for Yoon, disappointed.
Serving military would feel deprived if more men became exempt, said the 20-year-old from the southern city of Yeosu. Due to join the army this year, he called a revision “ridiculous” and said soldiers were already annoyed at not getting the national minimum wage and having few benefits.
Bae Kyung-hoon, a 31-year-old shop clerk on Jeju Island, said the law was “specifically tailored for only BTS. And let’s not act like the national economy will freeze if BTS goes to the military”, he added.

However, others, like Lee Won-cheol, a 31-year-old businessman in the city of Hanam, thought more exemptions should be granted including for famous players of electronic sports, known as Esports.
He said exemptions for BTS did not have as much support as exemptions for Tottenham Hotspur striker Son Heung-min, who in the end served just three weeks of basic training, or gaming icon Faker; he has yet to serve in the military but may miss doing so as he is seen as a gold medal contender in September’s Asian Games.
As it is mainly men who have strong opinions about their counterparts who try to avoid military service (given that it is men having to enlist) and the boy band’s fans were mostly women, Lee thought there would potentially be more voices coming out against BTS.
Why debate over women in military is ruffling feathers in South Korea
An automatic military exemption for the highest-achieving pop stars could pave the way forward, with some suggesting those who receive the South Korean Order of Cultural Merit, usually awarded by the government after decades of cultural influence, should be considered exempt upon receipt.
BTS, the singer Psy (of Gangnam Style fame, who actually served in the military twice) and Oscar winning actress Youn Yuh-jung (a woman) have all been awarded it.
Choi Kyu-sung, pop culture critic and CEO of the K-pop Database Institute, said the government has tended to focus more on traditional and classical music but many more people now see pop music as artistic.
“It’s just difficult at the moment because there hasn’t been a case of a K-pop star not having to serve in the military,” Choi added. “Maybe BTS can be the first ones.”


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K-pop group BTS salutes to their national flag during a ceremony marking the National Youth Day at the presidential Blue House in Seoul. File photo: Yonhap via AP 

A woman walks past a board showing members of BTS in Seoul. File photo: AP

BTS in 2020. Photo: via Getty Images

BTS salute their national flag in 2020. Photo: via AP

American Mariah Leckliter, second from left, hands out handmade bracelets and stickers to fellow BTS fans before the band’s sold-out show in Las Vegas on April 8. Photo: AP

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Jimin from BTS. Photo: Handout

A JejuAir plane emblazoned with Jimin’s birthday banner. Photo: Twitter/Jimin Bar China

epaselect epa09216714 (L-R) V, Suga, Jin, Jung Kook, RM, Jimin and J-hope members of South Korean boy band Bangtan Boys (BTS), pose as they arrive for their new digital single album 'Butter' launch at Olympic hall on Olympic park in Seoul, South Korea, 21 May 2021. EPA-EFE/JEON HEON-KYUN

A JejuAir plane emblazoned with Jimin’s birthday banner parked at an airport in South Korea. Photo: Twitter/Jimin Bar China

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Private rooms at Seoul Restaurant, in New Delhi, India.

Kimbap at Seoul Restaurant, in New Delhi.

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The main dining area at Seoul Restaurant, in New Delhi.

Tteokbokki at Seoul restaurant, in New Delhi.

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Members of BTS perform their hit song Butter during the 64th Grammy Awards show in Las Vegas on Sunday. The song missed out on an award, leaving fans of the K-pop boy band disappointed. Photo: Reuters

BTS pose on the red carpet as they attend the Grammy Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Photo: Reuters

Jimmy Kimmel likens BTS to a fever and is accused of racism for the comment on his TV show, especially with anti-Asian hate on the rise in US

BTS perform on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2017. Photo: RB/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

Jimmy Kimmel has drawn accusations of racism online with his recent comment on his TV talk show in the United States likening K-pop boy band BTS to a fever comparable to Covid-19. Photo: AFP/Mark Ralston

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BTS. Photo: @bts_bighit/ Twitter

V, Suga, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Jimin and J-Hope of BTS arrive at the 2021 American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles, hosted on November 21. Photo: Reuters

K-pop star Kim Jong-hyun of popular K-pop boy band Shinee bemoaned feeling “broken from inside” and “engulfed” by depression in a suicide note as his death, in 2017, sent shock waves across K-pop fans worldwide. Photo: AFP

South Korea has one of the highest suicide rates globally among developed nations. Photo: EPA-EFE

 A 2016 study found that 30 per cent of South Koreans suffer from mental illnesses. Photo: Shutterstock

Members of K-pop boy band Blitzers performing during their dance practice session at a rehearsal studio in Seoul, as part of a rigid training process that keeps young musicians away from their families for months at a time. Photo: AFP

BTS attend a meeting about youth during the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations headquarters. Photo: AP

BTS performing at their Permission to Dance on Stage online concert, one of their final live engagements before announcing a break. Photo: Bright Music

A fan pays tribute to the late K-pop star Goo Hara, who died of suicide in November 2019. Photo: Reuters

The BTS boys need a break. Photo: Big Hit Entertainment

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Jin, the oldest member of the band, is 29, meaning he is soon due to start his mandatory military service – unless he gets an exemption
There is government and public support for allowing the group to bypass enlisting, but not everyone in South Korea would welcome such a move


Jin, the band’s oldest member at 29, is due to begin his military service. While there’s government and public support for BTS to bypass enlisting, others they they would not welcome such a move.


Will BTS be the first K-pop stars to bypass South Korea’s military service?

Jin, the oldest member of the band, is 29, meaning he is soon due to start his mandatory military service – unless he gets an exemption There is government and public support for allowing the group to bypass enlisting, but not everyone in South Korea would welcome such a move

Jin, the oldest member of the band, is 29, meaning he is soon due to start his mandatory military service – unless he gets an exemption

There is government and public support for allowing the group to bypass enlisting, but not everyone in South Korea would welcome such a move