On December 13th 2022 Kim Seok-Jin, better known as just Jin, enlisted into the military being the first member of BTS to undergo Korea’s mandatory military service following members, J-hope, Suga, RM & V, and lastly Jimin & Jungkook. Before officially leaving, Jungkook sent heart warming letters to fans on Weverse, an app for kpop idols to better connect to fans. “I’ll miss you deeply” he writes. “ Don’t get sick and stay healthy. I love you ” He adds as his final goodbye. For the next 3 and a half years these men have grinded on completing their army work taking a break from their lavishing popstar careers of art and performance. BTS fandom Army reactions to their absence have been full of angst and homesickness. One Army shared how BTS was gone for so long they literally got married and had a baby during the duration of their enlistment. 

Nonetheless, the dread of missing your favorite boy group is officially over as on January 13, 2026 BTS announced their worldwide comeback which includes . . .

• Studio album “ARIRANG” with 14 tracks releasing on March 20th 2026 
• Large 2026 through 2027 world tour with 81 shows in all 6 continents ( Asia, North America, Europe, Oceania, Latin America, and middle east/Africa ) 
• Netflix life stream of their first show in Seoul, Korea on March 21st 2026 at 8pm KST , 4 pm PT, and 7am ET 
• Netflix documentary – BTS: The Return released on March 27, 2026 directed by Bao Nguyen 

So much is yet to come from BTS and as they stayed quiet for the years they were gone their impact will shake the music industry like it did during their active years. But, what if they never left? Their hiatus has sparked conversation of Korea’s military service being mandatory and begs the question of what if military was mandatory in the US, too. For men only ages 18 – 28 are assigned the duty of serving for 18 – 21 months and In an article by Wionews.com this is because of the complicated history between North and South Korea. At the end of WWII the south of Korea was controlled by the US and the north the Soviet Union. Eventually, the two were unable to come to a joint trusteeship and soon enough South Korea broke apart from the United States and in their constitution it stated “All citizens shall have the duty of national defense under the conditions as prescribed by Act” and so therefore serving in the military became a constitutional duty even the members of  BTS participated in.