As expected of the ‘K-pop leader’.

Global group BTS is unfolding their steadfast solo path, leaving behind external noise such as internal strife related to their agency HYBE. They were not shaken by the ‘military decree’ that all seven members, starting with the eldest brother Jin in December 2022, enlisted in the military in December of last year. The members filled the year by releasing new solo songs that they had prepared in advance in an orderly manner, which even led to evaluations that they expanded the group‘s color.

Jin, who was the first to be discharged in June, will release his first solo full-length album ‘Happy’ on the 15th and begin full-fledged activities. He properly showed off his ‘superstar’ aspect by filling the album with songs in collaboration with global stars such as Wendy of girl group Red Velvet, British pop band Take That, and Japanese rock band One Ok Rock.

On the 16th and 17th, he will hold a solo fan showcase ‘JIN Happy Special Stage’ at Jangchung Gymnasium in Jung-gu, Seoul and interact closely with fans.

V, who is currently serving in the military, released the digital single ‘Friends’ in March, and will simultaneously release ‘White Christmas’, a duet with ‘pop music legend’ Bing Crosby, on December 6th at 2PM worldwide. The song is a ‘World’s Representative Carol’ that was a huge hit since its release in 1942. V, who has been a huge fan of Bing Crosby, plans to reinterpret and sing part of the song.

‘White Christmas’ has been covered by many pop stars including Taylor Swift and Mike Bublé, but this is the first time that Bing Crosby has officially released a duet with this song. Furthermore, it is garnering worldwide attention as it has been 47 years since his collaboration with David Bowie that year, before his death in 1977.

Jimin and RM‘s work has also been a constant topic of conversation. Jimin has been on Billboard’s main single chart ‘Hot 100’ and album chart ‘Billboard 200’ for 15 weeks with the title song ‘Who’ from his second solo album ‘Muse’ released in July. The documentary film ‘RM: Right People, Long Place’, which contains the preparations for RM‘s second solo album ‘Right Place, Long Person’, is scheduled to be released on December 5.

As they are actively promoting as solo artists, interest in BTS’s full group activities is naturally growing. This comes after CFO Lee Kyung-joon answered a question about a 2026 tour during the parent company HYBE‘s third quarter performance report conference call on the 5th by saying, “We are discussing the 2026 plan,” leading to various speculations about whether BTS will promote as a full group next year.

The industry predicts that BTS’s group activities will not be delayed, as they previously expressed their hopes for a group comeback in the second half of next year after all members serve in the reserves in June, and are currently discussing a new tour in 2026.

Regarding this, HYBE told Sports Donga on the 7th, “We are closely discussing with the members about post-service activities, and once specific plans such as the timing and method are decided, we will announce them at the appropriate time.”


Reporter Yoo Ji-hye yjh0304@donga.com