BTS Denies Disbanding

BTS (Photo: Ig @ bts.bighitofficial)

JAKARTA - K-pop supergroup on Thursday emphatically rejected rumors that the group was taking steps to disband following the announcement of the group's recent cessation of activities.

"We will try to put on a good performance as a team or individually," RM said in a post on the Weverse platform, quoted from Yonhap on Thursday, June 16.

After the group on Tuesday, June 14 announced its plans to take a break from activities as a group to focus more on solo projects, RM admitted that he had even received the most phone calls in his nine-year career. The announcement shocked many, including fans and the media, both in South Korea and abroad.

The announcement via a video on YouTube also led to speculation that the "hiatus" practically means there will be no more group activities or the group will be disbanded as they will be serving in the military starting this year.

“They put in a lot of sensational keywords like 'dissolution' or 'cease activity'. It's not that I didn't know this was going to happen or I didn't prepare for it, it's just that I feel bitter," said RM.

Meanwhile, the youngest member of BTS, Jungkook, also denied the rumors in his new V Live video on Wednesday (15/6) night. He said he needed to clarify the rumors a bit and said that BTS still had a lot of work to do as a group.

“We said we would do individual activities but never said we would stop as BTS. We have no intention of stopping and still have a lot of group plans left. BTS will be forever," he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, June 15, Hybe's agency sent a long email to its employees denying rumors of BTS' disbandment. Hybe also released a statement rejecting the use of the word "hiatus".

In a video on YouTube on Tuesday, June 14, the group spoke in Korean but the word "hiatus" was used in the English subtitles included in the video.

“BTS is not on hiatus. Members will focus more on solo projects at this time," the statement said.

According to a Vairety report, Hybe's shares in South Korean trading fell nearly 28 percent following BTS' announcement made Tuesday, June 14. Hybe's shares fell about 25,000 won on Wednesday morning and have continued to fall throughout the day, erasing a market cap of around $1.7 billion.