WEEK 49 | Like a Star that Doesn’t Shatter.

Monday Muster
Written By Quince

December 9-15, 2024

Shining.

 

If there is one thing Kim Seokjin excels at, it is not worrying about what’s already done, or what could potentially be. During his “Suchwita” episode he told SUGA that he values the lessons learned from the past, but only carries happy feelings and memories forward. Self-admittedly, he prefers to focus mainly on the present, and small attainable goals for the future. His overriding drive is sustaining happiness—if doing something isn’t going to serve that goal, then he’s not interested.

. 

2018 MAMA Awards

It sounds like such a no-brainer. We should all aspire to live our lives this way, right? Of course! But then the doubts start to creep in... “But if I don’t worry about the future, who will?” “It’s not possible to be happy ALL the time.” “If we forget everything painful from our past, how will we learn enough not to repeat our mistakes?”


These are all valid thoughts. And thoughts that surely run through Jin’s head sometimes as well. Is his utopian outlook on happiness achievable one hundred percent of the time? No, of course not. We know it’s not for him either.


During 2017 and 2018, BTS was going through one of the most difficult times in their career. As we’ve discussed in this blog before, they were suffering massive burn-out from their crazy schedule, and seriously considering disbanding at the end of their initial seven-year contract with Big Hit. It would take a lot of soul-searching and frank conversations with each other for the members to realize they wanted to stay together and continue on as BTS. For the fans, certainly, but mostly for each other. Instead of disbanding, they ended up renegotiating their contracts early and getting terms that worked better for them in the future.


Most of this was happening behind the scenes, so ARMY was none the wiser at the time. It wasn’t until the end of 2018 that fans would find out how close we came to losing BTS. At the MAMA awards ceremony, BTS nabbed the daesang for “Artist of the Year”. A few of the members spoke, some of them breaking down into tears. But it wasn’t until Jin stepped up to the microphone that ARMY realized why.

ARMY! The beginning of this year is really on my mind. Earlier this year, we were quite tired mentally. So, as we talked together, we even considered disbanding. But then… we got a hold of ourselves again. And to be able to achieve such great results after that again makes me think… it’s such a relief. Thank you to the members who listened to their hearts and always loving each other. And to our ARMYs, who are also loving us, thank you so much!

The others had hinted at the fact that they’d just gone through a very tough couple of years, but Jin bluntly laid it on the line. As the eldest hyung, Jin took that moment to recognize his fellow members’ bravery and love in coming through the fire. In his commitment to seeking happiness, he wanted ARMY to know that they were stronger than ever, always grateful, and dedicated to focusing on what truly matters the most… their fans, and each other.


This week we’ll see how this simple honesty, and lack of guile, has carried Jin through his years in BTS, and served as an inspiring example for both his bandmates and his fans—particularly during the years around their contract renewal, the Pandemic, his first release as a solo artist, and his military enlistment in 2022.

 

BTS Acceptance Speech / Artist of the Year @ MAMA 2018

 
 
 
 

Skip to Content: Day One | Day Two | Day Three | Day Four | Day Five

 

DAY ONE:

BTS Memories 2018 photoshoot

Believe it or not, for someone who repeatedly introduces himself as “World Wide Handsome”, Jin doesn’t have the strongest self-confidence. He is shy, and gets easily self-conscious if too much attention is focused on him individually. (The tell-tale sign of this is the tips of his ears turning an adorable shade of red the longer anyone looks at him in an uncomfortable moment.)


So, to some degree, the larger-than-life persona he’s created over the years for the cameras is the direct opposite of his real personality. He’s happiest at home, gaming or cooking, or spending time quietly on a boat with a fishing rod in his hands. He doesn’t necessarily think he’s anyone special, deserving of attention from millions of people around the world.


However, as we established in the intro this week, while RM leads BTS, as the eldest, Jin leads his members by example, often jokingly being referred to as “the dad” of BTS. He encourages his bandmates to speak up for themselves, even when it’s scary, if they know it’s the right thing to do. Even though he’s naturally shy, Jin is often the loudest one in the room—telling jokes, playing around, or acting out a dramatic scene. “World Wide Handsome” is the epitome of “Fake it ‘til you make it.” All of this is to provide inspiration to their fans—grab life and make it what you want. Have fun and be happy.

One of the biggest steps on that road to happiness is self-love. This is a message we’ve heard countless times from BTS, and from Jin’s music in particular. In his solo song, “Epiphany” from 2018’s Love Yourself: Answer (see Week 31 for more on this), he tells us:

I’m the one I should love in this world
The shining me, the precious soul of mine
I realize only now, so I love me
Though I’m not perfect, I’m so beautiful
I’m the one I should love

In short, embrace who you are, and let that shine for the world to see. If you believe it enough of yourself, everyone else will too.

 

LOVE YOURSELF: ANSWER ‘Epiphany’ Comeback Trailer

 
 

Jin at Red Carpet of KBS Song Festival 2018

 

Fun Fact:

BTS & Jin with MapleStory...

MapleStory, originally released in 2003 by South Korean company Wizet, is a free-to-play 2-D MMORPG (massive media online role-playing game). Over the years it has become extremely popular around the world, as well as inspiring a sequel and spin-offs.

In 2020, BTS teamed up with MapleStory to develop their own items and logos that players could acquire within the game. The process of the members designing their items was filmed and released as a three-part web series on MapleStory’s YouTube channel.

Two years later, a two-part follow up series was released with Jin, working as the new intern of the MapleStory planning team. It’s super cute… he goes to meetings and gives presentations. We know Jin is an avid gamer, so it’s clear he had a lot of fun doing this.

We have both BTS’ and Jin’s MapleStory series linked below for you. Enjoy!


  1. KIM SEOKJIN | THE 'JIN' SIM IN MAPLE FINALLY APPEARS IN NEXON! | TEASER (0:16)

  2. KIM SEOKJIN | MAPLESTORY X BTS JIN'S HEARTFELT ENCOUNTER! | TEASER (0:38)

  3. KIM SEOKJIN | IS A 10-YEAR IDOL A NEW INTERN IN THE MAPLESTORY PLANNING TEAM? | EP.01 (14:25)

  4. KIM SEOKJIN | MAPLE NEW INTERN BTS JIN'S AMBITIOUS IDEA REVEALED | EP.02 (23:01)

  5. BTS JIN'S BEHIND-THE-SCENES SURPRISE REVEALED (8:45)

  6. BONUS: PREVIEW – I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING! BTS DREAMS COME TRUE | MAPLESTORY X BTS (0:59)

  7. BONUS: 📺EP.01 - THE MAPLESTORY ORIGINALS | MAPLESTORY X BTS | ONCE UPON A TIME (19:50)

  8. BONUS: 📺EP.02 – BTS' UNSTOPPABLE CREATIVITY | MAPLESTORY X BTS | PERSONALITY (16:26)

  9. BONUS: 📺EP.03 – ※VISUAL AMAZEMENT ALERT※ A TRUE MASTERPIECE! BROUGHT TO YOU BY BTS | MAPLESTORY X BTS (24:36)

 
 

DAY TWO:

The more Jin really got comfortable with the confident and braggadocious jokester persona he put on for the cameras, the more inevitable it was that World Wide Handsome would begin to really influence how he felt about himself personally.


Last week, we talked about how Jin came into Big Hit and BTS with pretty much zero musical experience. He had to learn to sing and dance from step one, so when it came time to debut, he often remarked that he didn’t feel ready at the time. He thought the other members were miles ahead of him in terms of skill and talent.

So, as the years went on, Jin worked hard to improve. He wanted to not only succeed for himself, but also to show his bandmates and fans what is possible when you put your mind and determination to something. He went to extra practices, delved into learning the songwriting process, and studied guitar and piano.

By the time we get to 2019 and 2020, Jin’s vocals were well-established as a standard, not just within BTS, but K-Pop as a whole. His smooth, clear tone, and beautiful falsettos earned him the nickname “Silver Voice” from music critics in the industry. Not bad, for someone who’d never sung anything at all just a few years before…

2018 Melon Music Awards Performance

 

‘Moon’ Live Stage Mix

 
 
 
 
 

Bangtan Bubble: What’s your favorite Jin “dad joke”?

 
 

Let us know your answer in the comments below or on social media (include #BangtanBubble)!

 

DAY THREE:

We (ARMY, the members of BTS, the world, Jin himself) spend a lot of time talking about Jin’s good looks. As we’ve established, him being “World Wide Handsome” is sort of… his thing. Rather than acting demure (though still mindful), or pretending to think he’s not handsome, he’s almost always the first one in a room to point it out. How many times have we heard, “Hello, my name is Jin, and I’m World Wide Handsome, you know?”

Bangtan Bomb: Can’t Say No to Ice Cream

We know it’s a persona. But Jin is not an idiot, nor is he blind. He does know that he’s handsome, and if he ever forgot it for a second, he’s surrounded by people happy to remind him at any given moment. In fact, he’s been named for having the most “perfect” and “symmetrical face”, and has gone viral several times over for his visuals.


It would have been easy for Jin to build a career solely on his looks—he jokes about his face being his “money-maker”, but that was never his intention. Don’t misunderstand—he’s practical, and he definitely knows how to work those looks, but he also backs them up with plenty of personality and substance.

During the Pandemic, it was that personality and substance that was needed more than his handsome face. Jin went LIVE often during lockdown (a good portion of his “Eat Jin” content happened then), just to provide comfort, and much-needed laughter to ARMY. In Bangtan Bombs and behind-the-scenes footage from the early days of the Pandemic, through the releases of BTS’ “English Trilogy” of songs, Jin’s goofiness and playful antics are dialed up to 11, because he knew ARMY (and his members) needed it.

Who can forget his absolutely RIDICULOUS ice cream tug-o-war with V in the behind-the-scenes for “Permission to Dance”? Certainly not RM. (The pained look on his face as he stands to the side listening to the shrill giggles of two grown men fighting over an ice cream pop will never cease to amuse me.) Jin, throughout BTS’ career, has had an uncanny ability to know when the mood needs to be lifted, and has always been willing to throw himself on the altar of embarrassment for the cause.

 

Galaxy X BTS: The Strange Tailor Shop | Samsung

 
 

Bangtan Bomb: Jin and Jung Kook play with a camera

 
 

Fun Fact

Jin levels up with a new skill.

“Run BTS!” has had a few guest stars over the years, but certainly one of the most popular was celebrity chef Baek Jong-Won. He appeared in two special episodes in 2021, once in January, and then again in June. Both episodes were, you guessed it, cooking competitions.

The chemistry between Chef Baek and the members was evident from the start, and after their initial filming, Jin wanted to thank the chef, so he gifted him some strawberries from his hometown. In response, Chef Baek invited Jin to his house for dinner, and during that dinner they discovered a mutual love of gaming. They started gaming together, and a friendship was born from their good-spirited teasing and competition.

Since then, we’ve seen Jin hang out with the chef on numerous occasions, and in 2022 he invited him to be on a video series he’d planned for himself during BTS’ break, and before starting his military service. Jin had already long enjoyed cooking, and he’d only become more interested since becoming friends with Baek, but now they decided to explore a mutual interest and turn it into content for YouTube.

What was this interest? Learning how to make traditional Korean alcohol with the intent to produce and sell it. Thus we got “Jin’s Traditional Alcohol Journey”. It’s funny, heart-warming, and educational. If you’ve never seen it, go now! I promise you’ll enjoy it.

  1. JIN'S TRADITIONAL ALCOHOL JOURNEY WITH BAEK JONGWON - OFFICAL TEASER (1:11)

  2. JIN'S TRADITIONAL ALCOHOL JOURNEY WITH BAEK JONGWON , EP 1 (27:16)

  3. JIN'S TRADITIONAL ALCOHOL JOURNEY WITH BAEK JONGWON , EP 2 (29:06)

  4. JIN'S TRADITIONAL ALCOHOL JOURNEY WITH BAEK JONGWON , EP 3 (24:17)

  5. JIN'S TRADITIONAL ALCOHOL JOURNEY WITH BAEK JONGWON , EP 4 (35:58)

 

DAY FOUR:

 

As the world was slowly coming out of the Pandemic in 2022, and life was beginning to return to a semblance of normal, some ARMYs were expecting BTS to jump back into business as usual, full steam ahead.


However, though they’d had to cancel their world tour in 2020, and all of their live promotions for almost two years, they hadn’t really slowed down that much. They prepared numerous performances (entire concerts even) that were recorded and/or shown live online, they livestreamed constantly, and they wrote and released new (and unplanned) music. This included two albums and three english language singles that ended up catapulting them into superstardom.

Jin ‘The Astronaut’ promotional photo

Jin ‘The Astronaut’ promotional photo

As a result, they were in high demand. There were countless interviews and pre-recorded performances for talk shows or award ceremonies. All the while, checking in with ARMY to make sure we were okay. By the time everyone else was ready to come back out into the world, BTS was tired and ready for a break.


Jin knew time was ticking for him as well. He was turning 30 in December of 2022, which meant it was time for him to enlist for his mandatory eighteen months of service in the South Korean military. That year, at their annual Festa dinner, the members of BTS let us know that they would be taking a break from group activities. They would be using the following months to focus on solo projects leading up to all of their enlistments with the aim of them all being back for a reunion by Festa of 2025.



The announcement was emotional, and they were afraid of disappointing us, but in typical Jin fashion… he stepped forward to ease the burden. “Hyung will go first.” He wanted to set the example, as always, for his fellow members and show them that they’d be okay. And to ensure ARMY of the same thing, he gave us a present before he left… one beautiful song.

 

‘The Astronaut’ Official M/V

 
 

Bangtan Bomb: Jin’s Tennis Practice

 

Fun Fact:

The Adventures of Seokjin LIVE! (2018-2022)

It feels like we JUST celebrated Jin’s birthday, right? That’s because we did! Here we are in “Jincember” and our WWH’s birthday was on 12/4.

AP529 has been honoring all the members (since the beginning of the year) with video compilations featuring moments from all of their birthday content and LIVES over the years, so our Jin video just went up a few days ago (as of this blog’s publication)! If you want to check that out, as well as the other member’s birthday tributes (so far), visit ARMY Project 529 on YouTube!

In the meantime, enjoy all of Jin’s livestreams from 2018 through right before he enlisted in 2022…

  1. 181204 SEOKJINNIE'S BIRTHDAY!🎂 | VLIVE (1:23:41)

  2. 190512 JJIN~! | VLIVE (36:37)

  3. JIN (+ENG) | YT LIVE (39:35)

  4. 201204 HAPPY BIRTHDAY SEOKJIN | VLIVE (34:03)

  5. 210809 HI, IT'S JIN! | VLIVE (29:53)

  6. 211204 JIN'S BIRTHDAY! 🎂 & SUPER TUNA 🐟 SHOWCASE | VLIVE (40:06)

  7. 220913 GAME TO CELEBRATE NAMJOON'S BIRTHDAY | WE-LIVE (3:26:21)

  8. 221204 JIN'S BIRTHDAY | WE-LIVE (15:26)

  9. 221204 JIN BIRTHDAY AGAIN | WE-LIVE (9:33)

 
 

DAY FIVE:

Jin performing “The Astronaut” in Argentina with Coldplay

“The Astronaut” was the brainchild of Chris Martin from Coldplay. After BTS had collaborated with the British rock band on their song “My Universe”, Jin struck up a friendship with their lead singer and they remained in touch after. When Jin told him that he was going to be enlisting in the military soon, and wanted to write a “see you later” song for his fans, Chris jumped at the chance to help.

The song continues the space theme Jin used in “Moon” and expands upon it. He wanted ARMY to know that we are his reason for doing what he does. His love for us is what drives him, and that was not going to change while he was away serving in the military. The M/V features Jin as an alien stranded on Earth, suddenly given the opportunity to return to space. He must decide if he wants to go, or stay with his newly found family (ARMY). I think we all know what his choice was…

When I'm with you

There is no one else

I get heaven to myself

When I'm with you

There is no one else

A life, a sparkle in your eyes

Heaven coming through

 

Because “The Astronaut” released so close to his enlistment date, Jin did not have a ton of time for promotions, but what he did manage to fit in was EPIC. He chose a few interview programs to go on like “Suchwita” (though we wouldn’t see it until the following summer), and “Nothing Much Prepared” with Lee Young-Ji, during which he got adorably tipsy and then had to take over hosting duties when Young-Ji passed out after accidentally drinking too much out of nervousness. (She was interviewing THE Kim Seokjin… we can’t blame her.)

He also made time for one very special gift for us. Instead of organizing a quick performance of “The Astronaut” in South Korea and singing over the backing track, Jin decided ARMY deserved more. So, he got on a plane and traveled roughly thirty-six hours to meet up with Coldplay, who were on tour in Argentina. This was for one night. One performance.

He had one day to practice with the band, and was fighting through jet lag the entire time. But when it was time for him to join Coldplay on stage, Jin gave the performance of a lifetime. He ran around, owning the stage and having so much fun taking in the last time he’d get to see ARMYs up close like that until after his military service. It could have been sad, but instead he played around with the band, laughed when Chris Martin messed up the lyrics, and said “See you later, ARMY” in the most Jin way ever—with a smile.

 
 
 
 

‘The Astronaut’ with Coldplay | Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres Tour in Buenos Aires

 

'The Astronaut’ Live | 2024 Jin “Happy” Special Stage

 
 
 
 
 
 

Bangtan Bubble: What do your “I get heaven to myself” moments look like?

 

Let us know your answer in the comments below or on social media (include #BangtanBubble)!

 
 

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I think Jin, in the midst of the whirlwind of BTS’ rise in popularity over the years, is the best example of someone using what they have to benefit others. He’s always quick to draw attention to himself, but it’s never for his own gain. It’s always to guide, to calm nerves, or to provide comfort and joy to others. A lot of emphasis is placed on Jin’s appearance, but he’s proven time and time again that he’s more than just a pretty face.

Next week, Jincember continues with Kim Seokjin’s triumphant return from military service… ready to hit the ground running just when ARMY needed him the most…

 
 

Side Quest

More than a Mukbang… let’s talk “Eat Jin”.

In 2015, Jin decided he wanted to create his own live broadcast series. Fans already knew that he liked to cook and eat, so it wasn’t all that surprising when he announced it was going to be a mukbang show called “Eat Jin”.

Jin’s reasons for choosing to land on the concept he did went beyond his simple love of food however. Over the years, he’s been very vocal about not liking it when staff members would comment on his weight (or on the weight of any of the other members), and/or tell them they needed to diet more. In his very first solo VLOG on their YT channel he calls out someone for saying he’d gained weight. “I don’t think I look any different.”

While Jin spoke up honestly, he still took it all in stride and didn’t let the comments bother him too much. However, he knew other Idols (including some of his own bandmates) weren’t able to shake off the criticism as easily. We know that Jimin, in particular, struggled with the body image the company wanted him to maintain in the early years, and it affected his eating habits. Part of the reason why Jin created “Eat Jin” was because he wanted people to see an Idol eating normally and enjoying themselves. And to show that it was okay for anyone to eat like that as well. In fact, he sometimes invited Jimin to come and eat with him during “Eat Jin” segments, and they would often end up dissolving into giggles the whole time.

Here is Season 2 of his amazing show, including the triumphant return at Festa 2024 after he was discharged from the military.

 

190519 Eat Jin with Jimin

 
 
 
 
 
 

CREDITS:

YouTube/Web

BANGTANTV, HYBE LABELS, Anna Verschuren, Apple Tape BTS, BANGTAN SUBS, BANGTANFM, Brilliant, BTS LIVE ARCHIVE, faye, Cloudy Hobi, DANDELION FOR JIN, elisssa, Enjoy BTS more, Fandoms Unite, flowerboyoppa, JAEGUCHI, Jemi Castillo, Jin y Jungkook 9297, Jinjjakpop, Jinkook_Kookjin_BTS, jinnie eats, KBS WORLD TV, KOCOWA TV, KPOP TV, KSTAR LIVE, Lemoring, LEMORING, LOYE ME, MAPLESTORY, Ornythorin, PUMA, Quixotic illusion, SAMSUNG, Sandii, Seokjinnie Zone, 김석진사랑해, 스마트학생복 / SMART, 안구정화티비 Your Korean Friend Angoo, 에이스토리 ASTORY, 차린건 쥐뿔도 없지만, 할명수, ミー｜me; Web:

ARMY Project 529 Volunteers

Research Team: Angel (TikTok: Lilangel2828), Leslie Day (TikTok: Leslie Day), Merry (TikTok: merryj67), Sam T (TikTok: samt_26), Shelley (TikTok: shels167), Trudy (TikTok: theeducationmommy), Viv (TikTok: VivEliz); Video Team: Leslie Day (TikTok: Leslie Day), Namz (TikTok: Namz07)

 
 

Join us on TikTok every Sunday evening at 8pm ET for #the529live, a wrap up of each week's “Monday Muster”, thoughtful discussions, and tons of laughter! It’s hosted by AP529 Founder, Stefne, on her channel (@StefARMYProject529). Catch us every Wednesday night at 9pm ET on our project channel (@ARMYProject529) for #the529tea, when we dish about all the news going on with Bangtan. 

If you can't watch in real time and want to catch up later, Lives are recorded and posted to our YouTube (@ARMY Project 529).


Quince
Next

WEEK 48 | I Want to Dream More.