6 members of BTS have been discharged from the military, the last member Suga will be discharged on June 21 - Photo: Yonhap News, iMBC
In the rest of 2025, BTS will return from military service, amid the anticipation of not only millions of fans but also the entire multi-billion dollar K-pop industry.
According to ABS-CBN, experts say the group's comeback could take South Korea's cultural export machine to new heights.
"BTS's most ambitious comeback yet"
The media has been continuously making optimistic predictions about the comeback of the world's most famous boy band. The shares of HYBE - the group created by BTS - have skyrocketed to their highest level since April 2022.
BTS' discharge from the military is "extremely positive news" for K-pop, analyst Yoo Sung Man (Top Investment and Securities) told AFP.
"With the entire group's long hiatus, this comeback is expected to create a strong global impact on all fronts: from streaming, album sales to concerts," he said.
According to AFP, before enlisting, BTS created an annual economic impact of more than 5.5 trillion won ($4 billion, according to statistics from the Korean Culture and Tourism Institute), accounting for about 0.2% of South Korea's total GDP.
BTS's influence does not stop within the borders of Korea. Since 2019, the group has become an indispensable name in the global music scene with album sales, fandom size (Army) and concert scale all among the top in the world.
BTS took a photo to celebrate 12th anniversary FESTA with two active members, Jin and J-Hope - Photo: BigHit
According to India Today, the upcoming comeback will be BTS's most ambitious yet. It could include a stadium-sized world tour, a full-length album, and multi-format content. There are rumors that the album will be released in Q4 2025 and the tour will begin in early 2026.
As every year, BTS's annual group anniversary festival (called FESTA) is taking place in June in South Korea.
The atmosphere was described as "dyed Seoul purple", the words "We Are Back" on the HYBE Group building, images of each member appeared everywhere from the airport, large buildings, shopping malls, buses to fountains playing BTS music...
Still having trouble?
Are things better than ever for BTS? That's the expectation, but the reality isn't perfect.
In his first solo livestream after enlisting on June 10, group leader RM spent nearly an hour talking about the difficulties during his military service, especially the insomnia that left him exhausted for a long time.
RM said he sometimes found military life too much to bear. In April and May last year, he was awake for 78 hours straight.
RM didn't elaborate, but one of the reasons was the negative information happening at HYBE Group. And the negative information at HYBE hasn't ended yet.
After the girl group Newjeans' noisy lawsuit with their management company ADOR, president Bang Si Hyuk is now under investigation for alleged fraudulent stock trading involving 400 billion won (295 million USD), according to Korea Times.
Chairman Bang Si Hyuk (center) is being investigated for alleged fraudulent stock trading of $295 million - Photo: TIME
During the investigation, some analysis showed that while Mr. Bang - a billionaire - and his acquaintances benefited from the transactions, BTS members - the founders of HYBE with Mr. Bang - were only given a small number of shares before they sold them all in 2021.
From 2023, BTS's shareholder status will be changed to private, so there is no information on whether they still hold shares or not.
Hope Suga returns safely
On the Korean community site Theqoo, besides the excited comments about the six members' comeback, there are still mixed opinions about Suga - who was involved in a scandal for violating alcohol concentration in August 2024.
Some malicious comments from anti-fans aimed at Suga asked "Does BTS have six or seven members?" to mock him.
Fans hope Suga will be warmly welcomed when he is discharged from the army - Photo: WWD
Facing waves of hate is not new to BTS. Having competed with many strong opponents in K-pop for the past 12 years, the group has encountered many online wars and cyber violence from anti-fan "alliances". The group has overcome with solidarity among the seven members and the support of the Army.
On June 21, when Suga is discharged from the army, fans hope he will return safely in the arms of his members and welcomed by the public.
BTS at the United Nations headquarters in 2021 - Photo: BigHit
BTS is often seen as a soft power asset for South Korea due to its global influence.
Over time, their influence has gone far beyond the entertainment industry, from human rights messages or speeches at the United Nations; from Grammy nominations, Billboard domination and paving the way for many K-pop artists to go global.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bts-xuat-ngu-nhung-vi-vua-cua-k-pop-da-tro-lai-va-ca-the-gioi-san-sang-lang-nghe-2025061309415477.htm
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