A disappointing news for fans of the South Korean band BTS was announced at the annual dinner marking the group's 9th anniversary, as the group announced that they are taking a break to focus on their solo careers.
The K-pop group said in a video that they are "tired" and "going through a difficult period", but that they will come back as a "stronger group."
"We are on a hiatus now," the band's star, "Shuga", 29, said in a live video posted on the group's official YouTube channel.
Hype, which manages the band's business, tried to ease the news on the audience, as it later said that the group had not stopped working, and would continue its work as a group as well as individually.
"Members will focus more on individual projects at this time," the company said in a statement, without giving further details.
At their celebratory dinner on Tuesday, J-Hope, RM, SUGA, Jang Kwok, V, Jin, and Jimin spoke in Korean in the video, which included English subtitles, and explained why they decided to take a break.
RM, 27, said that after the group's last song, "I don't know what kind of group we were anymore, I always thought BTS were different from other groups. But the problem with K-pop and the idea of fame is that it doesn't give you time to mature." .
He noted that the band members need a chance to explore their own music, so they can pursue their careers on their own.
Time away from each other
For his part, Jang Kwok, 24, said, "BTS will become stronger in this way, we must spend some time apart, learn to unite again, and I hope we do not consider this a negative thing, it is a sound move in everyone's interest, we promise that we will someday be more mature than we are now," and asked fans' "blessing" for their current move.
BTS members believe that the new step will lead to the strengthening of their group (French)
BTS does not disintegrate
Shuga explained that this wasn't a breakup. "It's not that we're breaking up, we just want to break up for a while."
Amid an atmosphere of sadness, Jimin, 26, praised BTS fans around the world during the dinner party, stressing that "they are a major reason for the success that has been achieved."
According to the English "TheGuardian" website, some K-pop followers have speculated that the requirements for performing military service in South Korea may have been a factor in the team's latest decision.
Jane, 29, the oldest member of the team, is scheduled to begin nearly two years of military service by the end of this year.
During the posted video, Jimin said that the members are "slowly trying to figure things out now, we're starting to think about what kind of artist we want our fans to remember. I think that's why we're looking for a break right now, trying to find our identity and that's a long and stressful process." ".
Fears of the fate of "One Direction"
Great fears that the band would not return again, confirmed by the BBC, which likened the situation to what happened previously with the famous British band “One Direction”, which announced in January 2016 that it was entering a period of rest, but Not back at this writing.
This further worried fans of the band, who said that this was not the first break they were taking, as they had been on short breaks before, first in 2019 and later in December 2021.
Not just a boy group
The news comes just days after the group released "Proof," which includes an anthology and a new single.
The Korean band was founded in 2009, and included 7 members who were teenagers at the time, and achieved great success in their concerts and works that achieved record views, such as the songs "Dynamite" and "Mic Drop".
Named after the Korean expression "Bangtan Sonyeondan," meaning "bulletproof boys," the group has generated more than $1 billion in revenue from online content and album sales.
BTS recently made headlines for its visit to the White House to deliver a message to US President Joe Biden about fighting racism against Asia.
It also set a record in the "Guinness Book" for the most listened songs at one time, as the encyclopedia recorded in March 2021 about 3 million listeners at the same time for the song "Dynamite" via the YouTube Premiere platform.
The worst kept secret in history 😉@BTS_twt's record for the 'most simultaneous viewers for a music video on YouTube Premieres' has now been confirmed, with the 2020 single Dynamite clocking up over three million viewers.
👏 pic.twitter.com/QUdBQf2KEu
— Guinness World Records (@GWR) March 16, 2021
The concern of the "Army" of "BTS" fans
BTS fans known as "The Army" have flooded social media platforms with messages of support, with one fan saying on Twitter, "They're not breaking up. They're taking time off to do whatever they want out of the public eye. They might work, they might just have fun. Honestly. We should follow their lead and take some time for ourselves as well."
To the inevitable outlets asking for comments about BTS' much-needed hiatus: They are not disbanding.
They are taking time off to do whatever they want out of the public eye.
They may work, they may just chill.
Honestly we should follow the suit & take time out for ourselves, too.
💜
— Jae-Ha Kim 김재하 (@GoAwayWithJae) June 14, 2022
Another wrote in disbelief, "Do you do like me, and tell your family and friends that BTS 'will not disintegrate'."
Do you think the band will return after the end of its rest period, or will it be a final dissolution?