RM Reflects on BTS’s 11th Debut Anniversary: I Realized Where I Need To Return To

On June 15th, RM shared on Weverse that although they had recently celebrated their 11th anniversary, he had been too busy to even leave a brief message at the time.

He shared, “Come Back To Me was released a month ago and RPWP was released three weeks ago. Last April, I had planned to enlist with Ho-seok, but ended up joining my younger siblings in entering the army. For 23 years, I balanced drinking and work. Although I am envious of my friends who have already achieved the rank of sergeant, I have no regrets.”He added, “This album allowed me to express my hidden feelings for the first time. There were many things I wanted to say and I have poured my heart into this project. It’s an honest representation of myself and I hope you will listen to it and revisit it for a long time.”

RM shared, “Jin was released from the military three days ago. I brought my saxophone, hoping to have a good time, but I couldn’t shake off a sense of complexity. It dawned on me that he must have felt incredibly lonely and exhausted as the first member to enlist. I wonder what it was like for him. The one year and six months of service treats everyone equally. We are probably reliving the experiences that Jin has already gone through.”

Despite my absence, everyone is doing well. Life continues on, as usual, and although it felt slightly empty, it was a great opportunity to reunite with my fellow members and have meaningful conversations over drinks after being apart for so long. It’s been nearly 10 months since we’ve gathered like this, and I couldn’t help but wonder why I missed them so much. In fact, I frequently called them to inquire about their well-being.

During a conversation, RM reminisced, “Jin constantly expressed, ‘I truly miss our members. I’m sure you all feel the same.’ Now that I reside in Gangwon-do, I comprehend the depth of his words. Reuniting with him and conversing, I comprehended the significance of his message. It reaffirmed that everything remains constant – the place I belong and the person I am. It was a truly meaningful moment for all of us.”

He asked, “Where will we be wandering? What will we look like on our 12th anniversary next year?”, before stating, “It’s been 11 years already. We just have one more year to go. I trust in Jin, who has already returned to the loving embrace of our fans, and Hobi, who will be joining us soon.”

Finally, he expressed, “I have come to the realization that we are not forgotten, as there are still many people waiting for us and showing us love. Your love is abundant. As always, I will keep the well-being of our members and fans in mind and strive to do my best every day.”

After completing his military service on June 12th, BTS’s eldest member Jin made a highly anticipated return to his fans. To commemorate his discharge, the rest of the members came together for a special celebration. The very next day, Jin made his official post-discharge appearance with ARMYs. J-Hope is expected to follow suit and be discharged in October, with the group’s full team activities projected to resume in June 2025.