BTS’ Jin Just Deferred His Military Service by 2 Years Thanks to a New Korean Law

Thanks to a new Korean law, BTS’ Jin will defer his military service by two years. Jin, the eldest member of BTS, will turn 28 on Friday, December 4, which meant that he had 20 months to enlist in the military under the previous South Korean law.

According to The New York Times, all able-bodied South Korean men are required to enlist in the military within 20 months of their 28th birthday. However, due to a revision of South Korea’s Military Service Act that was passed on Tuesday, December 1, Jin will have at least two more years until he’ll have to take a break from the K-pop industry for the military. “‘bts military enlistment is postponed until the age of 30’ what a time to be alive,” tweeted fan @moekapinkk.

In an interview with CBS This Morning in 2019, Jin responded to concerns over how this mandatory service in the South Korean military will affect BTS. “As a Korean, it’s natural,“ Jin said at the time. “And, someday, when duty calls, we’ll be ready to respond and do our best.“

“I don’t want to think about it at this point. We have something really good going,” Jungkook added.

RM also added, “That’s the answer. We just enjoy the ride, live in the moment. That’s all we can do.

Buy: BTS 'BE' Deluxe $59.79

Image: Courtesy of Big Hit Entertainment.

A industry source told Variety in October that BTS’ management company, Big Hit Entertainment, wants the band to target the Grammys before its members enlist in the military. The seven-member K-pop boy band—which includes Jungkook, RM, Jimin, Suga, J-Hope, V, Jin and Jimin—earned their first Grammy nomination in November for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their all-English single “Dynamite.”

“Big Hit really wants to target the Grammys before [the members] go into the army,” the source told Variety. The magazine also reported that Big Hit plans for all of BTS members to complete their service at the same time.

In an interview on The Late Late Show James Corden after their Grammy nomination, RM talked about what the milestone meant to the band. “First of all, we’re truly honored and we know this is a huge step and a milestone, not only for us but for the music industry. It makes us even happier to know how proud our fans must be right now, and it feels like our hard work has finally kind of paid off,” he said. “Since we’re nominated, if we can get a win too, that would be really amazing — greatest honor that we could ever have. And what else can we say? Call us and we’re ready for the stage, anything.”

BE by BTS is available on Amazon.

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