President of the Korea Singer Association opposes the temporary suspension of BTS’s group activities, “Please reconsider it for the Korean Wave”
Chairman Lee Ja-yeon said, “Pop artists should be included in the military service exemption plan as well.”
Lee Ja-yeon, chairman of the Korea Singer Association, expressed her active opposition to the temporary suspension of BTS’ group music activities.
Chairman Lee Ja-yeon expressed her opposition regarding the temporary suspension of BTS’ group music activities towards the group’s members and their agency through the Korea Singer Association on Jun 22nd.
Chairman Lee said, “We are fearing that the BTS Korean Wave, which has the strongest cultural soft power in the history of Korea as well as the world, will disappear,” adding, “Just as it is not easy to create a second the Beatles, it is difficult to expect a second BTS, so we are worried that the Korean Wave will come to a halt.”
“It will be a decision that needs much consideration, but can’t you reconsider it for the K-pop industry?” she said. “If BTS disappears, ARMY’s Hallyu evangelist will disappear, and we won’t be able to depend on Hallyu tourism or cultural power anymore.”
She also stressed, “The military service special exemption in sports and culture and arts competitions should include popular culture and arts as well,” adding, “It is urgent to pay a lot of attention and discuss the current situation to solve these problems.”
Chairman Lee urged, “We sincerely ask the National Assembly and the government to pay keen attention to the continuous spread of the Korean Wave boom and actively consider revising the Military Service Act so that BTS can continue to work.”
Chairman Lee said, “The Korea Singer Association already held a public hearing on BTS military service issues in 2019, and we are forming a consensus against the suspension of BTS activities along with many popular singers’.”
Meanwhile, on Jun 14th, BTS announced in a video released on their official YouTube channel BANGTANTV that they plan to temporarily suspend their group music and performance activities for the time being and focus on the members’ solo activities for the time being. The members will focus on their individual activities starting with the release of J-Hope‘s solo album.
In response, Big Hit Music said on Jun 15th, “BTS will start a new chapter that combines their team activities with individual activities,” adding, “It will be a time period for each member to grow through various activities, and we hope for BTS to become a long-running team in the future.” Of course, both sides made it clear that the team was not disbanded.
Source: Dispatch
