Opinion BTS and Army: Conscription and the myth of the ‘borderless’ artist

For some time now, the “BTS Army” has been worried. The legions of fans of arguably South Korea’s most popular export were hoping that members of the K-pop band would be granted exemption from the country’s mandatory military service, as has been granted to artists and sportspersons. Earlier this week, it was announced that this was not to be.

K-pop and K-dramas have been the foundation of an economic and soft power behemoth. Billions of dollars from merchandise across the world, Korean-language music and television have gone from being a sub-culture in many parts of Asia, to one of the most dominant streams in the vast sea of content that young people now consume. Yet, the conscription is a reminder for many that for all the international appeal of certain kinds of art, they often follow the logic of multinational companies that turn national champions. Borderless art, or artist, is a myth.

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The entertainment industry, like so many others, often serves strategic and economic ends. In the case of the US, still the most dominant soft power, this is sometimes more obvious — Top Gun and Zero Dark Thirty, for example, clearly have a tilt towards interventionism and American exceptionalism. BTS, though, is more innocuous and often, more fun. Yet, when push comes to shove, the members of the band are not internationalists and they must “serve” when called upon. Domestically, this may enhance their appeal. Most fans, though, probably don’t care much about these high-minded implications. For them, the tragedy is that the BTS Army will be robbed of their heroes — for some years — by the Korean military.