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Jin, a member of boy band BTS, took to the online community platform Weverse to share a photo short shaved hair, with the caption “It looks cuter than I thought,” ahead of his 18-month military enlistment.
Jin’s enlistment
The 30-year-old vocalist will begin his military service in one of the northernmost military bases in South Korea on Tuesday, joining around 200 other new soldiers.
Jin will be placed in a military unit after five weeks of basic training in Yeoncheon.
Born Kim Seok-jin, the oldest BTS member announced his plan to serve in the military after the band’s Busan concert in October. He is the first among his bandmates to enlist in the country’s mandatory service.
All able-bodied South Korean men between 18 and 21 months are required to fulfill their military duty, under a conscription system established to deal with North Korea’s threats.
BIGHIT MUSIC statement
Last week, BIGHIT MUSIC said that there would be no special send-off events for Jin, and requested fans to refrain from visiting him on the day of his recruitment in “order to prevent any issues that might occur from crowding.”
BIGHIT MUSIC announced in October that the members will focus on their solo music careers and fulfill their military duties based on their individual plans.
“After the phenomenal concert to support Busan’s bid for the World Expo 2030, and as each individual embarks on solo endeavors, it’s the perfect time and the members of BTS are honored to serve,” it said in a statement.
Both the company and the members “are looking forward to reconvening as a group again around 2025 following their service commitment.”
In October, Jin dropped solo single ‘The Astronaut.’ The pop rock genre song co-written by Coldplay dominated iTunes’ top songs chart in 97 countries, including Bahrain, UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.