J-Hope, the second ‘military service member’ of the global group BTS, is finally returning to his fans. J-Hope, who enlisted in April of last year and served as an assistant instructor at the 36th Infantry Division‘s new recruit training battalion in Wonju, Gangwon-do, will be discharged upon his completion of his service on the 17th.

J-Hope plans to leave the unit on this day without any special discharge events. On the 16th, his agency Big Hit Music announced through the fan community Weverse, “There will be no separate events on the day of discharge, and we ask that you refrain from visiting the site to prevent safety accidents.”

Instead, it seems that he will greet fans directly on Weverse immediately after his discharge. Jin, the eldest member of the group who completed his military service first in June, held a live broadcast on Weverse right after his discharge and personally revealed his future plans. Fans also did not visit the site at the time, as per Jin’s request, but instead showed their welcome by floating banners with messages of support and advertising balloons on the roadside in front of the unit.

J-Hope has also been a topic of conversation for his exemplary military life. He obtained the qualifications of a special warrior and was promoted to corporal two months early, and was also given the position of squad leader, leading a squad. Last November, a photo of J-Hope teaching basic shooting stances to soldiers while wearing an instructor‘s hat was released through the military communication site The Camp, drawing a lot of attention from ARMY (fandom name).

J-Hope also left a special comment on Weverse last month, saying, “Looking back on my military life, I feel proud and upright,” and “Time just passed by quickly, but now I’ve developed affection and I miss it.”

The fandom ARMY has already started a “J-Hope Welcome Ceremony” on a different scale. Some J-Hope fans created a bench garden called “J-Hope Forest 2” to commemorate his discharge between the central pond and the water playground in Seoul Forest in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. Japanese fans have decided to install a sculpture named after him in his hometown of Gwangju, Buk-gu, and provide scholarships for local youth.

With J-Hope‘s discharge, anticipation for a ’full group comeback‘ by BTS is already growing among the global fandom. With the exception of Jin and J-Hope, the other members are scheduled to complete their military service in June next year, so a full group comeback in the second half of 2025 is likely.


Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com